"Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" Talkback (Spoilers)

[The Penguin]

Revenge is coming.

"Fate rarely calls upon us at a moment of our choosing." - Optimus Prime

Release Date: June 24, 2009 (conventional theaters and IMAX, with June 23rd advanced screenings at 10pm and 12 midnight)
Studio: DreamWorks Pictures (Paramount)
Director: Michael Bay
Screenwriter: Ehren Kruger, Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Kevin Dunn, Julie White, John Benjamin Hickey, Ramon Rodriguez, Isabel Lucas, John Turturro, Peter Cullen

Plot Summary: In the highly-anticipated "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," debuting June 24, 2009, Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) again joins with the Autobots® against their sworn enemies, the Decepticons®. Michael Bay directs from a screenplay by Ehren Kruger & Roberto Orci & Alex Kurtzman.

Visit the official movie site here.

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Tonight is the night! Once it officially becomes Wednesday you can see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen!! My hometown is having four showings tonight and three of them were sold out by mid-afternoon (I'm going to the fourth one). We're up just a little early because I need to leave to get a good seat at my showing. Some of our international friends have already seen the movie so we'll throw this up now for them and we'll see the rest of you after probably 2:30 a.m. And be sure to check out our Toon Zone News review: "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen": Pretty Much What Meets The Eye by HellCat.

"This isn't my war."
"I fear it soon will be."

[Hanshotfirst113]

"Fate rarely calls upon us at a moment of our choosing." - Optimus Prime

"This isn't my war."
"I fear it soon will be."

I would have gone with "You don't stop, you don't hide, you RUN!"

[mr.happy]

I would have gone with "You don't stop, you don't hide, you RUN!"

I also liked "Megatron wants what's in my mind". I wonder what Megatron's diabolical plan has to do with naked images of Megan Fox?

[Hanshotfirst113]

I also liked "Megatron wants what's in my mind".

There's something in Shia LeBouf's mind ?

I wonder what Megatron's diabolical plan has to do with naked images of Megan Fox?

Those are probably in the mind of the majority of the male population. Of course, he could always check Maxim. Or GQ. OR just about any other magazine, since she seems to be in all of them lately. Or anywhere on the Internet. Maybe I should shut up?

[Discloner]

Caught this last night.

If you like the first Transformers - you'll probably like this one. And for those of you who enjoyed the first one alright - but wanted more bots...you'll probably like this one. It's got all the same beats with none of the exposition and introduction (The Fallen isn't even really introduced, per say).

I vastly enjoyed all the mechanical mayhem - in particular ravage's little paper-thin nanobot helper was pretty sweet. The teenage-slut in disguise thing was kinda bizarre; but it fit's into Bay's hyper-masculine/all-women-are-half-strippers world pretty well (I might be going out on a limb here, but I think it's worth mentioning that most frat parties don't look like upper-scale gentleman's clubs). The end battle was rather fun, as was the forest brawl.

The twins pretty much ruined the movie for me though - ugh. What an awful idea. One of them even has a gold tooth....I can't even form into words how awful they were. As I said in the other thread, I'd much rather they just had brought Jazz back, complete with his break dancing, ebonic spouting awfulness. At least then there would only be one of them.

Along the same lines - I have no issues with Tom Kenny doing voices in the film; except with the fact that his voice is the same in every robot throughout the film. Could they not hire anyone else to voice some more of the bots? Or was it required of Kenny to lend his voice to every annoying sidekick present in the film?

I also couldn't shake the notion that the film was insulting my intelligence in the fact that it wasn't a particularly well MADE film. The special effects are wonderful - but the continuity and logic throughout aren't even remotely kept track of. Anyone catch that they entered the Air and Space museum in D.C. - but exited in some California-esque Airplane shipyard with mountain-ridge landscape? What about when Shia's tag-along annoynace of a roommate got tazed and knocked out by Simmons, then in the next cut was just standing there with the rest of them?

Also....giant robotic testicles. What? What the hell?

[TheVileOne]

Horrible movie. Michael Bay has DESTROYED the summer spectacle with this movie.

The movie was a mess. I want to like it. But the robots still aren't characters. None of the Autobots are relevant to the story or what happens in the movie at all really.

[Kaveh77]

Just saw the midnight premiere and If you liked the first one you'll like this. Action, cars, and megan fox. I only hated two things about the movie the twins which were so annoying and the giant robotic testicles.

I give it a 4/5

[Tapout]

It was about the same as the first one with a few more groan worthy moments and without 20 years of self-induced nerd hype going in.

[HellCat]

I'm hearing that for American showings, entire audiences are clapping at the end.

.........

[GWOtaku]

It almost surely depends on where you go.

I also couldn't shake the notion that the film was insulting my intelligence in the fact that it wasn't a particularly well MADE film. The special effects are wonderful - but the continuity and logic throughout aren't even remotely kept track of. Anyone catch that they entered the Air and Space museum in D.C. - but exited in some California-esque Airplane shipyard with mountain-ridge landscape?

............

You know, I wondered why that silly facepalm meme got started. Now I know. It's for situations like that (note: this is not an invitation to post any pictures).

What the hell! There are no mountains in DC! I've been to the museum! Auuuuugggggggghhhhhh.

[HellCat]

On the same note, my sister who has been to Egypt pointed out that apparently most of the locations the movie shows as being quite close are apparently a good number of miles away from each other.

I guess the locations use the standard of Hollywood convenience.

[Cabel]

Micheal Bay is essentially what you get when you take a porn director, give him 200 million dollars, and tell him to film anything he wants, except actual sex. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is proof of this.

[dmxx116]

Transformers Opens with $16 Million!

Source:Variety



Michael Bay's Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen grossed an estimated $16 million in midnight runs, the third-best ever after The Dark Knight and Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith.

The Dark Knight earned $18.5 million in midnight showings, while Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith opened to $16.5 million.

The Transformers sequel played in roughly 3,000 runs beginning at 12:01am on Wednesday. The film expands today into a total of 4,226 theaters.

[Rud]

ok, i was going to watch this movie, but after hearing the spill review, i just don't know anymore, cause it made it sound horrible, is there really a transformer who transformed into a hot chick??, cause that's just the stupidest thing ive ever heard.

[HellCat]

ok, i was going to watch this movie, but after hearing the spill review, i just don't know anymore, cause it made it sound horrible, is there really a transformer who transformed into a hot chick??, cause that's just the stupidest thing ive ever heard.

There is. She's roughly based on Pretender Transformers. Pretenders were a line with the backstory that the Transformers had perfect their tech enough they could now disguise themselves as living creatures. The same technology pops up again in Beast Wars.

[Lelouch]

Caught the movie last night and thought it was pretty awesome. They certainly stepped it up a bit with the fighting, which made the movie all the more entertaining. And although the humor during some points went a bit too far, for the most part I thought it was well placed and made me laugh most of the time. I also thought that while the movie was rated PG-13, it seemed to certainly be pushing the envelope.

Now, that being said, this movie was far from perfect. The plot wasn't particularly strong, nor was it terribly weak. It could have certainly been a bit better, but I'll let that slide. The pacing towards the end was a bit quick, I think that perhaps they could have shortened some of the battles up in the beginning, but that too didn't ruin the movie for me. Sam and Mikaela were alright, but the rest of the characters in the movie were kind of flat. They played their part, but they were sort of just there. Specifically I am talking about Lennox, what exactly happened to that family of his? Simmons was hilarious, but he and the other guy (Sam's roomie) were getting a bit annoying at the end.

I also think The Fallen could have been developed a bit more, and I feel as if he should have been a bit more menacing. Megatron also wasn't as menacing as he was in the first movie, but I think that abundance of badass Decepticons made up for that.

I also wish Bee was in the movie more, along with some of the other Autobots, the movie seemed to focus way more on the Decepticons (and humans, obviously).

All in all, was I entertained? Yes. For me, I go to see movies for entertainment so Transformers did an excellent job in doing just that. I am excited for a third part, I just hope the plot is a bit stronger.

(Oh, and hehey, the Robot Girl is in the movie, and it's kind of odd, but it's not as bad as you'd think)

[GWOtaku]

I really wanted to like this. I enjoyed the trailers. I was doubtful at first but I had convinced myself to give this a chance. No longer. I will not see this movie in theaters, and neither should you. Not even for Peter Cullen's always-epic Optimus Prime.

I had hoped for a movie that would be at least a slight improvement on the first with more action and characterization for the Transformers. But my search for reviews that would give me a shred of hope for that quickly left me stunned and dismayed in equal measure. All of my worst fears about it have been confirmed by just about every critic. Most compellingly, no one has anything good to say about it besides the obvious fact that it's a special effects spectacle.

With the odd exception of Variety magazine, I cannot find a positive review of this movie. Even Variety is rather even-handed, and it doesn't answer the numerous criticisms that have been made against Transformers II. HellCat's Toon Zone review is the kindest negative review that I've read, which is a testament to his obvious good faith effort to be objective and fair.

I wish I could offer some balance, but it really is that bad.

Rotten Tomatoes rates it at 20%. Dragon Ball Evolution, which was mocked and derided far and wide, achieved 13%.

In one of the most dismissive insults I've ever seen for a movie, Roger Ebert calls it "dumber than a box of staples." He refers to "bewildering" battle scenes, confirming that Michael Bay's trademark shaky cam once again makes it difficult to follow the ambitious action scenes. He also cites "unbearable length" and an "incomprehensible" plot, a criticism that has unfortunately been widespread.

One fellow writing for the New York Post comments that it has the "silliest climax in recent sci-fi/fantasy history." The best thing he has to say about it is that it "dazzles the eye."

The Wall Street Journal's Joe Morgenstern thinks it'll be embraced by kids, but this isn't meant as a complement so much as an acceptance of an unfortunate reality. "Compared to this sequel, the first 'Transformers,' which was released two years ago, ranks right up there with Kant's 'Critique of Pure Reason.'" He goes on that "...even for those who enjoy glittering pieces of machinery -- and I'm one of them, up to a point -- Michael Bay's 150-minute celebration of attention deficit disorder is like a July 4th fireworks display that doesn't end until July 8th and makes you swear off Roman candles for life."

Ray Bennett of Hollywood Reporter remarks that "Characters and comedy are in short supply in a plot that's basically an Indiana Jones-style search for a buried treasure..." He echoes that "the film is not likely to attract moviegoers who seek something more than a screen filled with kaleidoscopes of colored metal" and confirms that "it's as difficult to make out which machine is which as it is to tell what anyone is saying." But don't worry, he assures us that "Because nothing they're saying makes any sense, it's hardly important."

Lest anyone think this is just a parade of anti-Michael Bay crusaders, I present Caludia Paig of USA Today. She is no hater and has a more positive version of my own opinion about the first movie. You see, she considers the first Transformers "creative and funny." But she considers the second disappointing in comparison. "Where the first movie was a happy surprise, a comedy with engaging characters and spectacular action-filled escapades, the sequel lacks wit, charm, subtlety, restraint, humanity and clever dialogue. It has loads of spectacle but no soul."

Again, if it were possible for me to offer balance and reasoning to make this post more fair, I would do so. But I can't. The message here is that Michael Bay has basically completely taken over the franchise, squeezing out the good parts of the first in favor of more explosions, throwaway humor, and more of everything that Michael Bay gets criticized for.

So, screw it. The consensus is pretty clear. Nostalgia alone isn't enough to make me blindly trust Michael Bay a second time. I will see some other movie or buy a book with the money that I would have spent on my Transformers 2 ticket. I'm renting at the most. Owning it is out of the question. Until then, I'd just as soon not have my memory of the first tainted.

Maybe in another 20 years, someone else will give the franchise a shot and make all of this an amusing memory.

I'm really disappointed.

[NewcomerDC]

Here's the Spill Crew with their thoughts of this film which is now being hailed from what I read and heard as being worse than the first one. I need to see it for myself to see how bad it really is.

http://my.spill.com/profiles/blogs/t...enge-of-the-56

[sparkykandy]

Just got back from seeing it. Eh.....it was okay. Didn't particularly like the first movie, and this one didn't do anything for me either.

Some random thoughts:
-The major thing that bugs me is that they introduce all these new Transformers and the only ones that get any real screen time are the twins whom are comic relief at most.
-It's seems that Bumblebee wasn't as important or really do anything like he did in the last movie.
-What was the whole point of Sam's roommate?! He didn't do anything except be annoying, and they could have easily cut out his character without changing the story.
-Nice to know that plain to average females don't exist in college.
-The sex jokes were really unnecessary.

Mind's running a blank, so that's it for now. But there was more, like plenty of stuff in the movie just plain bugged me, but those are some of the main points.

Overall, eh, at least it was a way to waste time, though I won't be paying any more of my money to go see it in theaters again.

Oh, and as my friend said, there were too many humans/too much focus on the humans in this movie (as was in the last movie) and not enough focus on the giant robots. I paid money to see the Transformers, not to see a bunch of humans run around.

[ShadowGUN]

I am surprised no one complaining about the Simmons's butt scene. I am gonna have nightmares from that. Did we really needed that scene, Bay? Did we ?