Production Year: 2007 - Family - Director: Michael Bay - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Hugo Weaving, Rachel Taylor, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, John Turturro, Bernie Mac, Megan Fox, Jon Voight more
Based on the Hasbro toy line that initially captivated kids in the 1980s, director Michael Bay's TRANSFORMERS finds two warring bands of shape-shifting alien robots renewing their... more
Transformers (2007) [DVD]
As sci-fi action blockbusters go, they dont come much bigger thanTransformers. Maybe its ... more
because of the subject matter: its based on a toy line from the 1980s, concerning giant robots from outer space engaged in a civil war that pits the heroic Autobot...
Transformers (2007) [DVD]
As sci-fi action blockbusters go, they dont come much bigger thanTransformers. Maybe its ... more
because of the subject matter: its based on a toy line from the 1980s, concerning giant robots from outer space engaged in a civil war that pits the heroic Autobot...
Transformers (2007) DVD
Their war our world... Dueling alien races the Autobots and the Decepticons bring ... more
their battle to Earth leaving the future of humankind hanging in the balance. Introduced in 1984 the Transformers brand took the world by storm with its compelling...
A review by B_O_M_B_A on Transformers (DVD) October 21st, 2008
Author's product rating:
Did you enjoy it?
Loved it
Story
Outstanding
Characters / Performances
Outstanding
Special Effects
Outstanding
How does it compare to similar films?
Outstanding
Advantages:
Shia is brilliant and animation amazing
Disadvantages:
None
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Introduction -
Transformers was one of my favourite childhood programmes, so you can understand my excitement when I heard they were bringing it to the big screen. I had seen numerous trailers of the film before I went to see it, but nothing could prepare me for what I was about to experience. The film was released in 2007, Directed by Michael Bay and executively produced by Steven Spielberg, looking at the names you already know you are in for a treat.
The film grossed approximately $708 million making it the 30th most successful of all time, and was nominated for 3 academy awards; it also won four awards from the Visual Effects Society. It did receive some criticism however, largely due to the radical re-design of the characters, this however didn't bother me, I think they look brilliant. The sequel Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is predicted to be released on 26th June 2009, one I personally can't wait for.
Plot -
The film opens with a brief description from Optimus Prime (leader of the Autobots - Peter Cullen) of how the Transformers planet, Cybertron, was destroyed by Megatron, (leader of the Decepticons - Hugo Weaving) who are intent on domination.
All of the Transfomers take the form of an Earthly vehicle; Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet (Autobots) all take the form of cars and trucks, whilst Blackout, Scorponok, Frenzy, Barricade, Starscream, Devestator and Bonecrusher (Decepticons) all take the form of army like vehicles such as tanks. When they transform they turn into huge robots around 30ft tall with powerful weapons and human voices that have learned from the web, this is also where they found out about the glasses, through Ebay where Sam is trying to sell them.
Both groups are searching for the All Spark, Megatron located it on Earth but crash landed in the Arctic circle, freezing him for years. Unexpectedly Captain Witwicky and his group of explorers discovered Megatron but at the same time activated his navigation unit, the coordinates of the All Spark were etched in the Captains glasses who have now found their way into the hands of his Sam Witwicky (Shia Labeouf), descendent of Captain Witwicky.
We next see an attack on the U.S Soccent FWD military Base in Qatar, two Decpticons, Blackout and Scorponok are trying to hack the military network to find out the co-ordinates of the glasses. Their plan however is thwarted by the base staff who cut the lines, unfortunately their second attempt on the Air force one is more effective, and two more Decepticons, Frenzy and barricade begin to search for Sam. Luckily the Autobots have a robot, Bumble Bee (disguised as a 1976 Chevrolet Camaro - Mark Ryan)) already on Earth who gets to Sam in the nick of time. Bumble Bee also helps Sam out with his crush Mikaela Banes (Megan Fox), Bumble then sends out a signal to his fellow Autobots who respond to the call and crash land on Earth.
From here on the story really takes off so I won't say anymore in case I spoil it for you. I apologise if my plot description is brief, but if I went to another level of detail it would simply be too long and boring.
My Opinions -
Before Transformers I had never heard of Shia, he had probably been in films but I had never noticed him. After, he became one of my favourite actors, I thoroughly enjoyed watching him in every scene, he isn't your usual hero which makes it so easy to relate to him. He is trying to 'hook up' with the hottest girl in school, even though he is a bit of a nerd, one scene with a disco ball in his car is hilarious. He is however extremely charismatic and funny, his relationship with his parents is also brilliant, especially the scene involving 'Sam's happy time' which I laughed out loud at, as well as half the audience. This is obviously what makes him attractive to Mikaela, she is used to vain football players but obviously appreciates the attention Sam is paying her. The relationship between Sam and Mikaela starts out a big weak in my opinion but by around half way through the film is a solid one.
In my opinion Shia made the film what it is, his acting style suits the film perfectly, far more than his role in the latest Indiana film which I thought was terrible. Although Sam is a very nervous person he still has the guts to stand up for himself, expressed in one scene by a very strange policeman who is trying to make something of nothing, and accuses him of staring at his 'piece'...gun.
Although Megan does a great job of playing the eye candy in the film I think she struggled to keep up with the quality of acting going on around her. It felt to me like Shia carried her though the film and without him she would have had nothing to work off of, Shia on the other hand gave the impression he could have managed the film alone. Im not saying she did a terrible job, on the whole she did very well considering the expectations placed on the film, but she just wasn't as good as some others.
Tyrese Gibson and Josh Duhamel play Army Captain William Lennox and Robert Epps, two parts of a seven man Special Ops team who survived the attack on Qatar and who feature heavily in the film. The connection between these two is great, and the witty banter helps keep a light feeling to the film. In one scene they are in a deadly fight with Scorponok and still managed to make me giggle with a joke relating to the location of a phone. Bernie Mac also gets a small appearance in the film selling cars as Bobby Bolivia, in just these few minutes he had me chuckling, a credit to his career.
The Robots themselves are equally as impressive, the CGI is amazing and you would struggle to notice that they are added into their environment. You feel as if they are really there, water bounces realistically off of them, lights and shadows follow their movements to the dot and their mouths actually move accurately with what they say. Although Bumble Bee can't talk he is my favourite by far, I think the Directors have done a great job of getting his opinion across using the radio, brilliant. Apparently it took around 38 hours to create one frame of movement.
Although the storyline is actually very good there are a few problems I have, unfortunately they all appear after some crucial points in the film so I cant tell you them...therefore I give the storyline a score of 80% to give you abetter idea of my thoughts.
The music was composed by Steve Jablonsky who worked along side Bay on the film 'The Island'. Recording took place in April 2007; the score includes teaser music and overall used six major themes across 90 minutes of music. The Autobots have three of these scores themselves, including one to represent their friendship with Sam called 'Optimus' and another played during their arrival on Earth. I have to say I thought the music was quite powerful and really stressed how important and momentous some of the scenes were. I am also a fan of Linkin Park so I was pleased to hear one of their tracks, 'What I've Done' as the theme song to the film; it's a very mellow but in some ways fitting song for the film.
As you can tell I thoroughly enjoyed the film, I was captured for the entire 143 minutes, I didn't find myself bored for one second. Usually if I have high expectations for a film it ends up letting me down, that wasn't the case here, it exceeded my expectations. I would recommend the film specifically to any comic book fans, but everyone will get something out of it. Even my mum who usually hates my film suggestions got very much in to it. There are some scenes of violence and a few suggestive lines so children under the age of 10 should be supervised. You can purchase the film from Amazon or Play for around £4-5, a complete bargain; it should definitely have a space in your DVD collection.
Advantages: A feast for the eyes that's brainless fun. Disadvantages: Lots of plot holes and shaky characterisation.
...cent spent on developing the Transformers robots. The design of the robots is a master-class in how to animate CGI automata. For a start, they look the business; there are a range of textures and reflective qualities to the metals, right down to different paint effects such as metallic sparkles or matt brushed steel. The animation is fluid without being too slick and there's a good sense of weight and movement. The bots aren't as chunky and clumsy ... ...the whole origin of the Transformers in a single monologue. The peripheral characters lack depth; there's a bunch of computer geeks who exist solely to chivvy along the plot or provide comic relief. The army unit is just there to provide muscle when the big fight comes and Agent Simmons is intended to obstruct the characters and inform the audience. The plotting is obvious, there's never any doubt in your mind what the outcome will be and though ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Great CGI! Disadvantages: Aimed at the younger audience!
...now over twenty years later Transformers are having a bit of a revival, with the second film being produced at the moment. So after seeing the Renault adverts that "borrowed" heavily from the premise of Transformers, the ability to make a car transform into a robot was finally achieved via CGI, so expectations were indeed high and knowing what calibre the CGI would actually be meant that the time was right for a film of this nature to be made.
The ... ...will hold the key to Transformers evolution and human life on Earth. The plot is good and acts as an introduction between the battling factions of Transformers. The factions are called Autobots who transform into vehicles such as cars and trucks and Decepticons who transform into jet planes and helicopters as well as police cars. All of which are utilised in a good and believable manner within the story as they all have their own individual assignments.
...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Amazing CGI and special effects, Shia LaBeouf Disadvantages: Storyline pushed aside for action, stupid small robot
...the only decent actor. In Transformers I felt that it was LaBeouf who kept the film together with his brilliant acting and this was the main reason I kept watching. Megan Fox was simply laughable with some not so brilliant acting skills. Even when a car transformed into a gigantic robot in front of her eyes for the first time she didn't even look the slightest bit surprised. I think she was only cast in the film as a bit of eye candy really which, ... ...Transformers is a film all about CGI and action really rather than plot and storyline, which is intended to make you go 'wow' at the CGI and special effects rather than really following what is supposed to be happening. I'm still going to see the second film as I did enjoy the first and I'm going to be expecting myself to say 'wow' but also to be nudging my husband asking him what's going on! Running time: 144 minutes Certificate rating: 12A Release ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
I know what you have been thinking recently, and that is how come I haven't written a review for the last few days? Well I couldn't possibly have wrote one last Tuesday because I happened to be revising for my German MOCK exam and that all paid off luckily, but to be totally honest I wasn't busy the day after and therefore should have written a review, and the other days too, but I think I've been really tired recently! Problem is, is that I avoided ... ...good, but from my oblivious avoidance towards writing a review on this DVD, proves to me that I probably didn't enjoy watching it as I thought I had.
Now when I saw the trailer to this film being released in the cinema, I thought it'll be the worst film ever, considering it's a 12A as well showed that if I was interested in seeing it then it'll be filled with little kiddies because this film is based on the kid show "Transformers" Which is a computer ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: A great family movie for the new generation Disadvantages: Action sequences can be a bit tedious
...from the opening hour of Transformers I realised that the kids of today could now have that same feel that I had.
When Transformers were big first time round I was a bit too old, I was at the stage when kids my age stopped playing with toys, and I was gutted; a whole period of my childhood was spent playing with seemingly bad toys, then all of a sudden these amazing toys that were in fact two toys for the price of one appeared on our shores. I'd ... ...had the opportunity to enjoy Transformers without stigma attached; after all it was pretty much THE film of the summer.
Transformers opens with two separate stories that connect as the movie progresses; in the Far East in a US army camp Captain Lennox (Josh Dummal from Turistas AKA Paradise Lost) is looking forward to his return home to see his newly born daughter. But the arrival of a long missing helicopter brings this dream to an end; more or ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: good film | its the transformers | great battles | great music | keeps you entertained Disadvantages: Its getting a bit old
...This review is about The Transformers: The Movie, I will give information about everything about Transformers the Movie, and hopefully some background on the episodes so you know the movie better. So here I go, about to start the review...
The Transformers, are these robots that can transform into a vehicle, there are 2 different races, Autobots, and the Decepticons, they are 2 races trying to destroy each other. The Decepticons are the evil ones, and the Autobots are the good ones. It is a robot bruel. There are loads of Transformers, not all of them like to fight, but they must to defend themselves. You have some Transformers that have loads of different uses, like Perceptor (voice of Paul Eiding), who can transform into a telescope. There are loads that can do things like this, but they all have different uses. There is this one...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Retro classic, starring all your favourite Autobots and Decepticons in an epic storyline Disadvantages: The movie could of been on longer
...Director: Nelson Shin
Genre: Animation, Action, Adventure
Format: DVD
Runtime: 86 minutes
This title needs no introduction - well shouldn't anyway! If you have never heard of Transformers, you've not lived a life worth living! If this is the case, I send you my pity and gift you my love enclosed with this review of an all-time classic. Prepare to live...again! In a world where more than meets the eye!
INTRO:
What can I say, I was eight years old when this was released and it is the type of movie that would make or break a childs heart if the movie was a letdown. Almost every child brought up in the 80s and 90s were fans of the Transformers cartoons, comics and toys. If you didn't have Transformers in your toy collection you were a social outcast doomed with no friends. Yes, this is how much this movie meant to kids...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Brilliant movie, great effects! Disadvantages: Hardcore fans mightnot appreaciate changes to characters appearances
...disappointed, in fact I loved it so much I couldn't possibly wait until the DVD release to review the movie.
A Little Background-
There are going to be many people who have never seen Transformers in either cartoon, toy or movie form, it was a hugely successful 1980's cartoon and toy line which has now reached cult status. The Transformers are alien life forms in the form of robots, they are able to transform into different forms usually vehicles. The Transformers are split into two factions "Autobots" are the side fighting to protect the innocent, the "Decepticons" are the evil side determined to wipe out the Autobots and any other beings who stand in their way. Optimus Prime is the leader of the Autobots while Megatron leads the Decepticons, the battles between the two are legendary and the characters are what held the show together...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Based on the Hasbro toy line that initially captivated kids in the 1980s, director Michael Bay's TRANSFORMERS finds two warring bands of shape-shifting alien robots renewing their intergalactic conflict on Earth. While the Decepticons, followers of the malevolent Megatron (voiced by Hugo Weaving), strive to take over the planet, the Autobots, led by the valiant Optimus Prime (voiced by Peter Cullen), are intent on protecting humanity. When young Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) discovers that his new car is really the Autobot Bumblebee (voiced by Mark Ryan), it sets the stage for a massive giant-robot showdown. A shining example of the Hollywood summer blockbuster at its best, TRANSFORMERS combines stunning CGI effects and thrilling action sequences with drama, humour, and a touch of romance. Featuring a large cast that includes Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Jon Voight, John Turturro, Anthony Anderson, and Rachael Taylor, the film is anchored by LaBeouf, who always displays an engaging Everyman charm, whether he’s running from colossal robots, interacting with his well-meaning parents (hilariously played by Kevin Dunn and Julie White), or pining for his gorgeous classmate (Megan Fox). While some TRANSFORMERS purists may be dismayed by certain aspects of this bold big-screen adaptation (Bumblebee is a Camaro instead of a Volkswagen), the movie balances its spectacle with an admirable amount of substance, giving it an appeal far beyond pre-teen boys and their nostalgic Autobot-loving elders.
Professional reviews
Review: It's a kiddie dream come true to groove on the heavy-duty sci-fi transformations (Entertainment Weekly, 19/09/2007)
The ideal summer blockbuster with its simple good guys-vs-bad guys plot, cheeky humor and flawless special effects (USA Today, 19/09/2007)
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Listed on Ciao since : 16/10/2007
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