22 June 2009 12:51 PM, PDT | Studio Briefing - Film News | See recent Studio Briefing - Film News news »
The opening of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen in Japan and the U.K. raked in an estimated $20 million -- beating the opening take for the original movie by 71 percent, according to Britain's Empire magazine. Reviewing the film in the London Independent, critic Nicholas Barber wrote that the movie "is the pretentious, nonsensical, sexist, jingoistic, militaristic, CGI-dependent, product-placement-packed, hectically edited, punishingly loud, wearyingly long, eye-wateringly expensive, and, I predict, phenomenally profitable exemplar of everything that is most repulsive about Hollywood today." In the Mirror, David Edwards wrote similarly, "Big, loud and definitely not clever, it's a giant, lumbering idiot of a movie that, were it not for all the explosions, would send the most devoted action fans to sleep." The movie, which opens domestically on Wednesday, had been greenlit by John Lesher and Brad Weston, who were ousted from their positions on Friday and replaced by Adam Goodman. Moreover, Paramount's Transformers release came at about the same time it was reported that director Michael Bay had sent a hotly worded letter to top Paramount executives, including Lesher and Weston, complaining about the publicity campaign for the movie. "I cannot figure if this is a cash issue with your company? Is there some clever idea why we are not spending? I'm not sure," he said. Meanwhile, Viacom, the corporate parent of Paramount, has denied increasing speculation that it is negotiating a sale of the studio -- possibly to competitor Universal. "Paramount is not for sale," a Viacom spokesman told the New York Post. »
Similar News Items
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)- Warner Bros. finds Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance remake (From Corona's Coming Attractions. 7 January 2010, 8:00 AM, PST)
- Blockbusters and 3D films boost Cineworld (From The Guardian - Film News. 7 January 2010, 7:51 AM, PST)
- Golden Idol: People's Choice, PGA, VFX, Ofcs (From Dark Horizons. 7 January 2010, 4:15 AM, PST)
Transformers (2007)
- Warner Bros. Remaking ‘Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance’ (From Screen Rant. 7 January 2010, 7:58 AM, PST)
- Screenwriter Hired For G.I. Joe Sequel (From Cinema Blend. 7 January 2010, 7:47 AM, PST)
- Megan Fox Misleads Health Regime (From Aceshowbiz. 7 January 2010, 2:08 AM, PST)
Michael Bay
- People's Choice Awards Choose Twilight Over And Over Again (From Cinema Blend. 7 January 2010, 12:18 AM, PST)
- Spider-Man 4: The Last Set Of Script Notes (From Movieline. 6 January 2010, 4:50 PM, PST)
- See Freddie Come to Life in A Nightmare On Elm Street Preview (From Collider.com. 6 January 2010, 10:41 AM, PST)
