Transformers (2007)

An ancient struggle between two Cybertronian races, the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons, comes to Earth, with a clue to the ultimate power held by a teenager.

Director:

Michael Bay

Writers:

Roberto Orci (screenplay), Alex Kurtzman (screenplay)

Stars:

Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 21 wins & 44 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shia LaBeouf	...	Sam Witwicky
Megan Fox	...	Mikaela Banes
Josh Duhamel	...	Captain Lennox
Tyrese Gibson	...	USAF Tech Sergeant Epps
Rachael Taylor	...	Maggie Madsen
Anthony Anderson	...	Glen Whitmann
Jon Voight	...	Defense Secretary John Keller
John Turturro	...	Agent Simmons
Michael O'Neill	...	Tom Banacheck
Kevin Dunn	...	Ron Witwicky
Julie White	...	Judy Witwicky
Amaury Nolasco	...	ACWO Jorge "Fig" Figueroa
Zack Ward	...	First Sergeant Donnelly
Luis Echagarruga	...	Ranger Team
Patrick Mulderrig	...	Ranger Team

Storyline

High-school student Sam Witwicky buys his first car, who is actually the Autobot Bumblebee. Bumblebee defends Sam and his girlfriend Mikaela Banes from the Decepticon Barricade, before the other Autobots arrive on Earth. They are searching for the Allspark, and the war on Earth heats up as the Decepticons attack a United States military base in Qatar. Sam and Mikaela are taken by the top-secret agency Sector 7 to help stop the Decepticons, but when they learn the agency also intends to destroy the Autobots, they formulate their own plan to save the world.

---

Plot Keywords:

belly button | obscene finger gesture | supervillain | evil alien robot | uh 60 blackhawk helicopter | 

---

Taglines:

Most have come to destroy us. Some have come to protect us.

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action violence, brief sexual humor, and language

Did You Know?

Trivia

(at around 1h 40 mins) In the AllSpark chamber, Epps (Tyrese Gibson) asks if "A Nightmare on Elm Street" anti-hero Freddy Krueger had been around. Michael Bay went on to produce A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010).

---

Goofs

(at around 2h) In the city fight scene, a large piece of a building falls onto the left side of the street, yet when a citizen passes by (and probably accidentally kicks it) the piece appears to move as if it weighed nothing.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Optimus Prime: Before time began, there was the Cube. We know not where it comes from, only that it holds the power to create worlds and fill them with life. That is how our race was born. For a time, we lived in harmony. But like all great power, some wanted it for good, others for evil. And so began the war. A war that ravaged our planet until it was consumed by death, and the Cube was lost to the far reaches of space. We scattered across the galaxy, hoping to find it and rebuild our home. ...
[...]

---

Crazy Credits

SPOILER: There are three scenes in the closing credits:

• the first two scenes are of Ron and Judy Witwicky, who were told about the Transformers, trying to bluff their way through an interview about the recent alien events.
• The third and final scene is of Starscream flying into space.

---

Alternate Versions

An extended version of the film was released on September 21, 2007 to IMAX theaters. Among the additions scenes:

• Sam's interrogation by the police officers runs longer, ending the detectives showing Sam the famous "This is Your Brain on Drugs" PSA
• Upon arriving at the Hoover Dam, Agent Simmons gives a much longer speech about Sector 7 and what they do.
• When Capt. Lennox acquires the old walkie-talkies from the pawn shop, he's seen arguing with the pawn shop clerk about the price.

---

Connections

Referenced in Pokhishchennyy transformerami (2014)

---

Soundtracks

Sexual Healing
Written by Marvin Gaye, Odell Brown and David Ritz
Performed by Marvin Gaye
Courtesy of Columbia Records
By Arrangement with Sony BMG Music Entertainment

User Reviews

Best summer flick of 2007.

I watched this film at an advanced screening in New Zealand. I loved Transformers as a child, but was not a die hard fan, so I did not complain over the changes. However, I had decent expectations for this movie as people were saying it's better than expected.

I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. However, it did fall a little flat on what I expected it to be. It's Michael Bay, ladies and gents, don't expect anything more.

Transformers begins with the reason for the alien robots' existence. How the all important AllSpark (essentially the life giver) was lost into the vacuum of space after the robots divided between good and evil. Falling onto Earth, a handful of these entities travelled the galaxy to find this all important device. Great premise, but how about the execution? Visually, the film is astounding. ILM have outdone themselves once again and have created top notch visuals for others to measure up to. The robots look real, feel weighty yet elegant, and with every Bay movie, there are explosions. And what beautiful explosions they are. This is complemented with a hit-and-miss musical score. At times, the score is cinematic brilliance. At other times, you wonder why Linkin Park was included, when sequences with emotional pieces are suddenly juxtaposed with the current Billboard Hot 100.

The acting is competent. I thought that with a cast mostly compromised of underwear models and hip hop artists, I would be disappointed. Shia LaBeouf (Sam Witwicky), Josh Duhamel (Cpt. Lennox), Tyrese Gibson (Sgt. Epps), and even Megan Fox (Mikaela) delivered surprisingly well. Even with Jon Voigt in the cast, you cannot see a distinct line in ability between the seasoned vet and relative new comers. But although the acting was top notch, it was severely hampered by the script.

The script, to put it frankly, does not take itself seriously. At all. Firstly, there was a lack of story. Autobots and Decepticons want the AllSpark. One wants to defend it. The other wants to use it. Battle. Fin. Secondly, I could not remember one scene that did not have some humorous one liner put in to make the audience laugh. Even in the most grave of sequences, did some joker blurt out something (admittedly) funny, making you wonder "Wait.... Earth's in danger, and you're cuing for a crash on the drums?!" Some of the script was clever, and in the parts which were appropriately funny, hit the nail on the head (Shia LaBeouf is a child prodigy in comedy).

Transformers. Everyone wants to know "What about the Transformers?". Well, personally, they were simply awesome. They could have been more 2D than they were and I still would have liked them. Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Jazz, Frenzy, Ratchet... Megatron, Starscream, Bonecrusher, Barricade and Ironhide -- they were masterfully put on film.

However, only two of those actually got a decent amount of character development -- Bumblebee and Optimus Prime. Bumblebee, being the first Transformer Sam sees, and Optimus, of course gets plenty of screen time being the Autobot leader. It's a shame that the Decepticons were only there to be the "bad guys", even Megatron. It would have definitely benefited the movie if all the robots were fleshed out and given some emotional attachment to the crowd. It doesn't, and this does have a few repercussions towards the end of the movie. Nevertheless, it was enjoyable to see them wreak havoc in different countries, and with the inevitable sequel, one can only hope that we get to know more about these "loveable" mechanical beings.

It is definitely the must see summer flick of the year, and whilst not Oscar material, it is one of the best 'popcorn' movies of recent times.

7.5/10

**Upon a second screening, I found the impact of the movie to remain just the same as the first. In certain aspects, that impact heightened. New score 8/10

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Paramount [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

3 July 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Transformers: The Movie 2

Filming Locations:

Cesar E Chavez Avenue Viaduct, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$150,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$70,502,384, 8 July 2007

Gross USA:

$319,246,193

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$709,709,780

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dreamworks Pictures, Tom DeSanto/Don Murphy Production, Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

144 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1