Transformers (film)

Movie
German title	Transformers
Original title	Transformers
Country of production	United States
original language	English
Publishing year	2007
length	143 minutes
Age rating	FSK 12 JMK 12
Rod
Director	Michael Bay
script	Roberto Orci , Alex Kurtzman
production	Ian Bryce , Tom DeSanto , Lorenzo di Bonaventura , Don Murphy
music	Steve Jablonsky
camera	Mitchell Amundsen
cut	Paul Rubell , Glen Scantlebury , Thomas A. Muldoon
occupation
Shia LaBeouf : Sam Witwicky Megan Fox : Mikaela Banes Josh Duhamel : Captain William Lennox Tyrese Gibson : Sergeant Robert Epps Rachael Taylor : Maggie Madsen Anthony Anderson : Glen Whitman Jon Voight : Secretary of Defense John Keller John Turturro : Agent Seymour Simmons Zack Ward : First Sergeant Donnelly Michael O'Neill : Tom Banachek Kevin Dunn : Ron Witwicky Julie White : Judy Witwicky William Morgan Sheppard : Archibald Witwicky Bernie Mac : Bobby Bolivia Brian Reece : "Mustache Man" (Decepticons hologram) Glenn Morshower : Colonel Sharp Transformers (voices / original): Peter Cullen : Optimus Prime Hugo Weaving : Megatron Mark Ryan : Bumblebee Jess Harnell : Ironhide / Barricade Robert Foxworth : Ratchet Jimmie Wood : Bonecrusher Darius McCrary : Jazz Charlie Adler : Starscream Reno Wilson : Frenzy
synchronization
chronology
Successor  → Transformers - The Vengeance

Transformers is an American action and science fiction - feature film from 2007, of the same toy series the manufacturer Hasbro is based. The film was directed by Michael Bay , the main human roles are played by Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox . In the United States , the film opened on distribution from Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks SKG on July 4, 2007, in Germany and Austria on August 1, 2007.

The production was supported, among others, by the toy manufacturer Hasbro, the armed forces of the United States and numerous companies, which in return were able to place their products in the film by means of product placement , including the vehicle manufacturer General Motors .

The film launch was accompanied by a gigantic marketing campaign which, in addition to the Hasbro toy figures, also included comics, books, video games and an alternate reality game .

The film grossed over $ 700 million at box offices worldwide; Transformers was also the most successful DVD release of 2007 in the United States. The film won several Scream Awards and was nominated for an Oscar in several subsidiary categories . The film was continued with Transformers - The Revenge (2009), Transformers 3 (2011) and Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014). The fourth sequel followed in 2017 with Transformers: The Last Knight . In 2018 a prequel called Bumblebee was released , which tells the story of Bumblebee.

action

A race of intelligent machine beings lived on the planet Cybertron, self-acting, mechanical beings with the ability to transform their bodies into other forms. Once Optimus Prime and Megatron ruled the planet together, but the power-hungry Megatron secretly rallied an army of loyal followers, the Decepticons , with the aim of gaining power over the entire universe. However, Optimus Prime and his followers, the Autobots , opposed the Decepticons , which eventually led to civil war. Megatron was after Allspark , a cube-shaped artifact that had given life to the machines on Cybertron. The Autobots finally saw only one way out and decided to shoot the Allspark into space.

Thousands of years later, an Arctic expedition led by Captain Archibald Witwicky encounters the lifeless, frozen body of Megatron, who crash landed in search of the Allspark on Earth. Accidentally Witwicky activates Megatron's navigation system, which results in the coordinates of the Allspark being engraved on Captain Witwicky's glasses. Over a hundred years later, the Decepticons, under the leadership of Starscream, search the Earth for their leader Megatron and the Allspark. With this they want to create a new army from the earthly machines. The Autobots are also looking for the Allspark, but to rebuild their civilization on their homeworld; In contrast to the Decepticons, they try to avoid killing or injuring people in the process.

The film begins with an attack by the Decepticons Blackout, which occurs in the form of a helicopter that has been missing for a short time, on a US base in Qatar , with the aim of obtaining secret military information. Almost all soldiers were killed in this attack, with the exception of a small group that managed to escape, including Captain William Lennox and Technical Sergeant Robert Epps. However, they are followed by Blackout's partner Scorponok. Lennox and Epps finally manage to call for air support from a village and use two A-10 Thunderbolt and an AC-130H Specter Gunship to drive Scorponok to flight.

In the meantime, the seventeen-year-old Sam Witwicky, Captain Witwicky's great-grandson, has received his first car from his father Ron as a reward for good school grades, but Ron is only willing to spend 4,000 US dollars. The Autobot Bumblebee, sent to Earth as a vanguard to search for the Allspark, manages to manipulate the sales pitch in the disguise of a used Camaro in such a way that Sam decides for him. While Sam tries to use his new car to impress his classmate Mikaela, Bumblebee makes sure that Sam is in possession of the glasses and then informs his Autobot comrades that the Allspark is indeed on Earth. However, he is observed by Sam.

In the meantime, the Decepticon Frenzy has penetrated Air Force One in order to install a computer virus there that is supposed to paralyze all radio connections worldwide, and at the same time to search for clues to the Allspark, which also made it aware of Captain Witwicky and his descendant Sam is. Barricade, another Decepticon, attacks Sam, but Bumblebee comes to his aid and Mikaela. After overpowering Barricade, he takes Sam and Mikaela to the agreed meeting point with the rest of the Autobots who have landed on Earth in the meantime. After Optimus Prime Sam explains the situation, Sam agrees to hand over the glasses to the Autobots.

Michael Bay briefing some soldiers at Holloman Air Force Base

The matter is made more difficult, however, by the fact that with the secret organization "Sector Seven", which decades ago took possession of the Megatron discovered by Captain Witwicky and used it by means of reverse engineering to advance the technical progress of mankind, a third party came on the scene occurs. Unable to differentiate between friend and foe, they capture Bumblebee and bring him to their secret headquarters inside the Hoover Dam , where Megatron and the Allspark are also located. That's where they finally bring Sam, Mikaela, Lennox, Epps and the computer specialist Maggie Madsen, her hacker friend, Glen Whitman, and the US Secretary of Defense John Keller.

While Frenzy also infiltrates Sector Seven's headquarters, frees Megatron, and summons the rest of the Decepticons, Sam manages to convince the army soldiers that Bumblebee is no threat. When the Decepticons attack the dam, Sam, Mikaela, Bumblebee, Lennox and Epps flee with the Allspark and meet the rest of the Autobots on the way, while Maggie, Glen, Keller and Sector Seven agent Reginald Simmons holed up in a radio room inside the dam and alert the US Forces.

In the (fictional) city of Mission City, there is finally a decisive conflict between the Autobots, the Decepticons and the US Army. After Megatron kills the Autobot Jazz, he engages in a fierce battle with his archenemy Optimus Prime. In the end, Sam succeeds in destroying the Allspark by pressing this Megatron into the chest and killing the latter in this way as well. Only a fragment of the Allspark remains, which Optimus Prime takes. Without the Allspark and the opportunity to revive their world, the Autobots decide to live on earth from now on, and Bumblebee asks to be allowed to stay with Sam. The dead bodies of the Decepticons are sunk by the US government in the Laurentian Trench .

In the credits you can see how Starscream leaves the earth's atmosphere and flees into space.

main characters

People

Shia LaBeouf , the leading actor in the film

Actresses Megan Fox and Rachael Taylor at the film premiere in Sydney , Australia

The focus of the action is the 17-year-old Samuel James "Sam" Witwicky ( Shia LaBeouf ), who gets his first car from his father without knowing that it is an alien robot. As a descendant of Captain Archibald Witwicky, Sam is in possession of his glasses, on which a map for the position of the Allspark cube is engraved. Sam is based on the character of "Spike" Witwicky, a human friend of the Autobots from the Transformers cartoon series from the 1980s. Sam's parents are Ron Witwicky ( Kevin Dunn ) and Judy Witwicky (Julie White). While Spike's mother was never mentioned in the original Transformers animated series, his father was only known there by the nickname "Sparkplug", which was also not used in the film.

Mikaela Banes ( Megan Fox ) is Sam's classmate and is adored by him. As the film unfolds, she actually becomes Sam's friend. Carly, Spike's girlfriend and future wife from the original Transformers cartoon series, can be seen as a model for the character of Mikaela, with whom she also shares technical knowledge.

Captain William Lennox ( Josh Duhamel ) is a member of the US Army Rangers and leads a team of soldiers from different departments of the US armed forces who are stationed at the fictitious SOCCENT Forward Operations Base in Qatar . Lennox's team is the only survivors of an attack by the Decepticons Blackout on the base in the film. Lennox is married and has a newborn daughter. Under his command, Technical Sergeant Robert Epps ( Tyrese Gibson ) of the US Air Force , whose job is to coordinate air strikes from the ground.

John Keller ( Jon Voight ) is the Minister of Defense of the United States and at the time of the making of the film reigning US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld modeled. He reports to the Australian computer expert Maggie Madsen ( Rachael Taylor ), who is the first to recognize a pattern in a signal from the Decepticons. Disregarding Defense Department security regulations, she calls in her friend, the hacker Glen Whitman ( Anthony Anderson ), for advice, which gets them into trouble with Maggie's boss. The background of Maggie and Glens is explained in the book adaptation Transformers: The Junior Novel , with Maggie's last name here and in the book Transformers: The Movie Storybook - based on an early script version - instead of "Madsen" with "Marconi".

Agent Seymour Simmons ( John Turturro ) works for the fictional government organization "Sector Seven", which has set itself the task of tracking, documenting and keeping secret from the public the activities of aliens on Earth. Further details on the character's history were revealed in IDW Publishing's comic book history . At the time of the film's action, Sector Seven's head is Tom Banachek (Michael O'Neill).

Autobots

Optimus Prime as Peterbilt 379

The autonomous robots , called Autobots for short , are led by the independent mech Optimus Prime , who regards freedom as the right of all sentient beings. Once a forward-control - truck with trailer, considered director Michael Bay a resulting robot form for the film to be too small and decided instead for a Langhauber, the Peterbilt 379. In the Transformers -series Generation 2 (1995) and Armada (2002 ) Optimus Prime's vehicle shape was already a long-nosed car. There is also no trailer in the film.

Bumblebee as a 2009 Chevrolet Camaro

Bumblebee , originally sent to Earth as the Autobot vanguard, acts as Sam's protector throughout the film. Due to a combat injury, he cannot talk most of the time, but communicates over his car radio. The vehicle shape of the original Bumblebee figure from 1984 was based on a VW Beetle , but since Michael Bay wanted to avoid unwanted associations with Disney's Herbie , he instead turned into a Chevrolet Camaro in the film - first a 1976 model, then later the brand new 2009 model. In the film, however, there is a VW Beetle, at the used car dealer Bolivia there is a copy of this type next to Bumblebee. Bolivia wants to sell Sam the Beetle, but Bumblebee thwarts this.

Jazz as Pontiac Solstice

Jazz , Optimus Prime's deputy and at the same time a great admirer of earthly culture, instead of a Porsche 935 in the film turns into a Pontiac Solstice , making it the smallest of all Autobots - for this reason Michael Bay was with General Motors Vehicle shape provided for Jazz also not really happy.

Ironhide as GMC Topkick

Ironhide is Optimus Prime's weapons expert. Instead of a red minivan it turns the film into a black GMC Topkick -Pickup.

Ratchet at the IAA 2007

Ratchet , the chief physician of the Autobots, is transformed into a modified Hummer H2 - Search and Rescue ambulance instead of an ambulance version of a minivan .

Life-size dummy Bumblebee that was used for the film at the IAA 2011

Instead of Ironhide, a “female” Autobot named Arcee was originally intended to be transformed into a motorcycle, but the authors ultimately decided against this figure. Hasbro nonetheless released an Arcee toy figure based on the unused film design. Arcee appears with a changed appearance in the sequel Transformers: Revenge .

Decepticons

Megatron , the power-hungry leader of the Decepticons, spends most of the film in a frozen state, which is why he is the only Transformer that does not have an earthly camouflage, but transforms into a kind of alien jet . The original 1984 Megatron was transformed into a Walther P38 pistol, a shape that would not only have been difficult to explain in the film, but would also have posed major problems for Hasbro due to tightened American laws governing realistic toy guns.

Megatron's deputy is Starscream , who is being transformed into the current model, an F-22 Raptor , instead of an F-15 Eagle fighter jet . This was Starscream's transformation form in the Transformers series Energon (2003), but the robot form was completely redesigned for the film. Traditionally portrayed as a cunning opportunist who would like to take Megatron's place himself, the tense relationship between the two is only hinted at in the film.

Bonecrusher , a Buffalo MPCV troop transport vehicle, has little in common other than the name with the original Bonecrusher, which turned into a bulldozer .

The remaining Decepticons are Barricade , a Saleen S281 "Extreme" Mustang - police patrol car ; Devastator aka Brawl , a heavily modified M1 Abrams tank; Frenzy , a GPX Portable CD / MP3 / WMA / AM / FM - Ghetto Blaster ; Blackout , an MH-53 Pave-Low - transport helicopters ; as well as Scorponok , then and now a mechanical scorpion , whereby the film version has a symbiotic connection with Blackout and at the same time forms part of the drive of its helicopter mode. Hasbro's toy figures also have a robot mode, which is never used in the film. All robot names have been used by Transformers characters in the past, but in many cases they have little in common with the characters in the movie other than their names.

Some of the Decepticons also changed their identities in advance: Frenzy was originally based on a Decepticon called Soundwave, which was once transformed into a tape recorder . Hasbro also named the toy version of the tank "Brawl", while it was named "Devastator" in the film.

Director Michael Bay would also have liked to use another robot in the film, which turns into an aircraft carrier, but gave up this idea very quickly for reasons of cost.

background

Emergence

The Hoover Dam , one of the locations in the film

Originally, producer Don Murphy had planned to make a movie based on the Hasbro toy series GI Joe , but decided to make a Transformers movie instead , following the start of the Iraq War in March 2003. The Transformers brand was profitable for the time, with Hasbro making around 30 million US dollars from Transformers toys in 2000 , and Transformers was also one of Hasbro's most successful own brands in 2003 . Tom DeSanto joined the project as the second producer and wrote a treatment that ultimately played no role in the finished film.

In June 2003 the film was officially announced. Steven Spielberg took on the role of Executive Producer in 2004 , while John Rogers was confirmed as the screenwriter in November of that year. In February 2005, Rogers was replaced by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, who revised his script. Spielberg tried in late July 2005 to convince Michael Bay to take over the director's chair. He was initially not interested in a "toy film", but changed his mind after a visit to Hasbro. However, Bay decided to make the film "realistic" and accessible to adults.

The focus of the film plot should be the so-called "matrix", which is an integral part of the Transformers myth. However, since the name was already used for the Matrix trilogy, the cube was renamed “Allspark” in the film.

Due to the large lead time in production of the toy figures, Hasbro Bay urged to make a selection of the Transformers characters appearing in the film and their transformations as early as possible, as well as to complete the associated robot designs, although the script was not yet complete at the time. As a result, some newly invented characters appear in the film, which apart from the name have little in common with previously existing Transformers characters.

The idea that Bumblebee cannot speak in the film and only communicates through his car radio was inspired by Steven Spielberg's film ET - The Extra-Terrestrial and is intended to illustrate that the friendship between Bumblebee and Sam goes beyond mere words.

Shia LaBeouf was confirmed as the first cast member for the film in March 2006 .

The transformers' robot forms were largely computer-animated, three-quarters by ILM and one-fourth by Digital Domain . However, dummies were also built by some robots.

Transformers was filmed in Boston , Los Angeles , New York City , on the premises of Universal Studios Hollywood , Holloman Air Force Base , the White Sands Missile Range and at Hoover Dam, among others . For the camouflage forms of most Transformers, with the exception of Megatrons, real vehicles or airplanes were used.

Optimus Prime is voiced in the film by the animated actor Peter Cullen, who already played this role in the original Transformers cartoon series . This should be a "gift" to the fans. Originally, his former Transformers colleague Frank Welker was also considered again as the voice of Megatron, but in the end Bay preferred Hugo Weaving .

The film contains numerous allusions to other films and television series such as Armageddon , ET - The Extra-Terrestrial or Star Trek, as well as film and comic characters such as Freddy Krueger or Wolverine . There are also numerous allusions to and quotes from the original Transformers cartoon series , the toy and comic series, and the 1986 cartoon Transformers - The Battle for Cybertron .

The director Michael Bay has a brief appearance in the film as a passer-by, who is thrown against a taxi by Megatron with the comment “Disgusting!” (“Disgusting!”).

Sponsors and partners in production

Blackout disguised as an MH-53 Pave Low transport helicopter lands on SOCCENT base in Qatar; The scene was partly filmed with real soldiers at Holloman Air Force Base

The US armed forces not only supported the film and the entire production financially, but also provided the filmmakers with several vehicles and airplanes as well as some soldiers who trained with the actors. Also, Transformers , the first film in which F22 can be seen -Kampfflugzeuge that were not created on the computer. In return, Bay gave the armed forces a say in the final version of the film. They hoped that this would improve their slightly battered reputation in the USA and a modern, unconscious way of recruiting young people for recruitment purposes.

Soldier actors Josh Duhamel , Tyrese Gibson , Amaury Nolasco and Zack Ward join real soldiers during the exercise at the National Training Center on Fort Irwin

In addition, a large number of product placements are used in Transformers . The largest role played the toy manufacturer Hasbro , who as the rights holder of the Transformers brand was not only licensor, but also directly involved in the development of the film and had a say in the portrayal of the Transformers in the film and other details. Hasbro put pressure on Michael Bay due to the production lead time for the toys, so that he made a selection of the Transformers characters appearing in the film as early as possible and had the corresponding character designs completed. Based on the robot designs developed by Industrial Light & Magic , Hasbro and its Japanese partner company Takara (now Takara Tomy ) then developed the toys. For many of the toys, Hasbro had to purchase a license from the vehicle manufacturer. Hasbro was not directly involved in the film revenues, but as the owner of the rights to the Transformers brand, it had the advantage of earning more from the toy figures than with third-party licenses such as Spider-Man or Star Wars , although Bay himself had an 8 percent stake in Hasbro's income from the toy figures for the films. In addition, Hasbro was able to grant over 240 licenses to third-party companies. The toy dealers initially underestimated the demand, which meant that many figures were regularly sold out for months. In the USA, the success was so great that Hasbro had sold three million Transformers toy figures by July. In total, Hasbro earned $ 482 million from the toys for the movie, about 13% of total annual sales. However, no information is available on sales in Germany.

The vehicle forms of the Autobots, all of which are transformed into vehicles of subsidiaries of the US manufacturer General Motors , represent a form of product placement. Michael Bay was able to save three million dollars of his budget in the procurement of vehicles. In addition, brands such as Nokia , a Microsoft Xbox 360 , Burger King , Mountain Dew , Apple , Cisco and the Hasbro brands Mein Kleines Pony and Furby were promoted at various points in the film. A total of $ 40 million could be saved in production. The Internet auction house eBay was also involved in the film as a partner and is mentioned by name several times in the film, but according to producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura this was included in the script from the start, and eBay did not pay the producers money for naming the brand only acted as an advertising partner.

synchronization

Reiner Schöne, the German dubbing voice of Optimus Prime

The German synchronization was based on a dialogue book and the dialogue direction by Tobias Meister on behalf of Interopa Film GmbH in Berlin.

People

role	actor	German voice actor
Sam Witwicky	Shia LaBeouf	David Turba
Mikaela Banes	Megan Fox	Luise Helm
Captain William Lennox	Josh Duhamel	Dennis Schmidt-Foss
Sergeant Robert Epps	Tyrese Gibson	Tobias Kluckert
Maggie Madsen	Rachael Taylor	Anja Stadlober
Glen Whitman	Anthony Anderson	Tobias Müller
Agent Seymour Simmons	John Turturro	Stefan Fredrich
John Keller	Jon Voight	Hans-Werner Bussinger
Tom Banachek	Michael O'Neill	K. Dieter Klebsch
Colonel Sharp	Glenn Morshower	Kaspar Eichel
Ron Witwicky	Kevin Dunn	Frank-Otto Schenk
Judy Witwicky	Julie White	Katharina Koschny
Captain Archibald Witwicky	W. Morgan Sheppard	Hasso Zorn
Jorge "Fig" Figueroa	Amaury Nolasco	Sebastian C. Jacob
Sergeant Donnelly	Zack Ward	Gerrit Schmidt-Foss
Bobby Bolivia	Bernie Mac	Jan Odle
Trent DeMarco	Travis Van Winkle	Robin Kahnmeyer

Transformer

role	Original speaker	German speaker
Optimus Prime	Peter Cullen	Pure beauty
Megatron	Hugo Weaving	Hans-Jürgen Wolf
Bumblebee	Mark Ryan	Many, including Helmut Gauß
Ironhide / Barricade	Jess Harnell	Oliver Siebeck
Ratchet	Robert Foxworth	Jan Spitzer
Bonecrusher	Jimmie Wood	Thomas Albus
jazz	Darius McCrary	Torsten Michaelis
Starscream	Charlie Adler	Axel Lutter

Promotion and other media

The Transformers film was promoted in a variety of ways:

Hasbro released the toy series developed in collaboration with Japanese partner company TakaraTomy (Tomy outside of Japan). In contrast to earlier Transformers series, it wasn't the characters who came first, but the film designs developed by Industrial Light & Magic . In addition to toys for the film robots in various sizes and designs, the series also included characters that did not appear in the film. Hasbro's product range ranged from "classic" transformable figures to elaborately designed figures for older collectors to role-play accessories and comparatively simply designed toys aimed at a younger target group. In some cases, the minimum age recommendation was just three years. Due to the great financial success in the USA, the toy series continued well into 2008. Many of the figures were also available in Germany.

The American comic book publisher IDW Publishing published several comic mini-series for the cinema, including a prehistory to the film plot, a comic adaptation of the film itself and a sequel entitled The Reign of Starscream . All of these miniseries were also published as anthologies. Additional comics related to the film appear in the UK in the form of the monthly Transformers magazine from Titan Magazines. In Germany, only the first 17 pages of the first issue of the comic book history to the film were published as part of the official film magazine published by Comma Publishing.

The publisher Del Rey Books, an imprint of the Random House publishing house Ballantine Books, published two books written by Alan Dean Foster , a prehistory to the film entitled Transformers: Ghosts of Yesterday and the novel adaptation of the film. Two other books for younger readers, Transformers: The Junior Novel and Transformers: The Movie Storybook , were published by HarperEntertainment, an imprint of the HarperCollins publishing house . Dorling Kindersley, in turn, published the book Transformers: The Movie Guide .

A video game developed by Activision entitled Transformers: The Game , which was available for the Nintendo Wii , PlayStation 2 , PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 and PCs with DVD-ROM drives and also in Germany in the trade came. A variant of the game was released for the PlayStation Portable , and two other games were also released for the Nintendo DS with the titles Transformers: Autobots and Transformers: Decepticons , developed by Vicarious Visions.

Finally, there were numerous online games that were often offered as part of promotional campaigns with partners such as Pepsi , the retail chain Target or General Motors . In addition, there was an alternate reality game called Sector Seven in the run-up to the film .

The original soundtrack for the film, Transformers: The Album , is a sampler of pieces from bands such as Linkin Park , the Goo Goo Dolls , the Smashing Pumpkins and many more that are included in the film or go with it. The actual film music with the orchestral pieces composed by Steve Jablonsky , Transformers: The Score , was not released until October 2007.

reception

Financial success

Transformers celebrated its world premiere on June 28, 2007 in Australia , followed later on the same day by other countries such as New Zealand , Singapore and the Philippines . On July 3, the film then also opened in the USA with 4011 copies. The film grossed US $ 28 million on its first day of play, making it the biggest Tuesday result ever. After The Simpsons: The Movie , this is the second most successful launch day of a film that is not a sequel. Transformers grossed 3 million US dollars in China on launch day, making it the most successful foreign film. He also managed to do this in South Korea. In October 2007, Transformers was the second most successful foreign film in China with the equivalent of $ 37.3 million at the box office. Overall, grossing US $ 319.2 million in the US and US $ 709.7 million worldwide. Transformers is one of 45 films that grossed over $ 700 million worldwide.

The film launch in Germany was postponed from July 4th to August 1st 2007 by UIP . Thus Germany, Austria and Japan are the last countries in which the film started. In Germany there was therefore no premiere party. As a result, Hasbro's toy series for the film started in Germany, as well as a promotional campaign at Burger King in the cinema well before the film started, and the hoped-for mutual advertising effect could not develop the desired effect. In Germany, a total of 1,511,643 visitors saw the film in the cinema during the ten-week period, making it 17th among the most successful films in Germany in 2007, the box office in Germany totaling 10.3 million euros.

Sales of the DVD and HD DVD versions in the USA also began very successfully, with the DVD version selling more than 4.5 million copies on the first day alone and more than 8.3 million copies in the first week, the latter being a new sales record; HD DVD sold more than 100,000 copies on the first day and more than 190,000 copies in the first week. In the US, Transformers was the most successful DVD release of 2007 with sales of 13.7 million copies.

Reviews

The media response was mixed. For Die Zeit , Katja Nicodemus described the film as the “triumph of brainlessness”, and according to Andreas Resch from the taz , the dialogues are “so heartbreaking stupidity that even Bay’s previous career low point, Armageddon, in retrospect almost looks like a Shakespeare drama.” Sebastian Handke from Tagesspiegel criticized, among other things, the “glorifying celebration of the US military” and the “shameless surreptitious advertising” and came to the final verdict: “It is a misshapen and terribly stupid film.” Hanns-Georg Rodek from der Welt complained, “ that with every additional gigabyte [Hollywood's] ability to tell a story decently shrinks ", it was further described as a" blatant failure of the director "that the individual Transformers in the" endless action scenes [...] can hardly be distinguished ", and Bay stated overall an "obvious disinterest in people" and an "adoration of machines".

David Kleingers' verdict for Spiegel Online was more positive : "This visually impressive scrapping scenario is so loud, so colorful and so beautifully plummeting that overwhelmed viewers succumb to the charm of gigantomania for a long time." Bert Rebhandl from the Berliner Zeitung attested this Film even a “plausible story”, described the “humanization of the technical monsters” as “problem-free” and saw the “enjoyment value” or “escapism” of the film in “that here in a very big way in the dense architecture of a metropolis like Los Angeles is ravaged without the thought of an allegory of terrorist threats arising for a second. ”The special effects were also praised, for example, Jürgen Armbruster from Filmstarts.de described the action scenes as“ perhaps the best staged material battle of all time. "Lukas Foerster from critic.de concluded that Transformers, viewed impartially," is one of the most entertaining American films of late ”. The transformations of the Transformers themselves also received a lot of praise. Michael Althen from the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung spoke in this context, for example, of the “art of folding heavy metal on the computer”, even if the rest “hardly more intelligent than what a twelve-year-old child looks at thinks out ”and Transformers is a“ completely normal stupid Michael Bay film ”.

Matthias Schmidt's verdict for the star was similarly mixed: Although the "crude plot" and the "excess of action, stale songs of praise to soldiery and dialogues as viscous as engine oil" were criticized, they were nevertheless impressed by the "material battle beyond compare ”, And the main actor Shia LaBeouf was also rated as a“ passable figure ”.

Controversy

In the United States, following a motion from a lobbying group opposing advertising aimed at children, the Federal Trade Commission criticized the fact that Transformers was advertised on television for children despite being rated PG-13 . At the same time, Hasbro was also criticized for the toys for the film, as many of them had a significantly lower minimum age recommendation.

Bumblebee's fragrance dispenser, which bears the inscription "Bee-Otch", a play on words with his name, was later the occasion for a lawsuit because the fragrance dispenser that existed before the film was used without permission, including for promotional purposes prior to the film .

Awards

The film received the rating: valuable on the grounds that "Michael Bay has raised the bar for more CGI blockbusters again with this film ". At the MTV Movie Awards , Transformers won two years in a row, on June 3, 2007 in the “Best Summer Movie You Haven't Seen Yet” category and on June 1, 2008 in the “Best Film” category. In addition, the film was nominated for the Teen Choice Award in nine categories , and lead actor Shia LaBeouf was nominated three times. However, the trophy was only won once at the award ceremony on August 26, 2007: LaBeouf received it as “Best Male Newcomer” for the films A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints , Disturbia - Even Killers Have Neighbors and Transformers Together. On October 22nd, the visual effects supervisor Scott Farrar received a Hollywood award in the “Visual Effects of the Year” category, and Transformers won four Scream Awards in the same month : in addition to the “best science fiction film” and “Best special effects” for the film itself, main actors Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox were voted “Science Fiction Star” and “Science Fiction Siren”, respectively. In addition, the film was nominated for an Oscar in the categories of “best sound”, “best sound editing” and “best visual effects” , but could not win any of them.

Second evaluations and other versions

Transformers: The IMAX Experience

In September 2007, Transformers was shown in several selected IMAX theaters in the USA, and later also in IMAX theaters in Great Britain, Canada, Australia and the Netherlands. It contained six new scenes, most of which were longer versions of already known scenes. No additional CGI effects are used in any of the new scenes.

Publishing on DVD and Blu-ray Disc

On October 16, 2007, Transformers was released in the US on DVD and HD DVD , although initially not on Blu-ray Disc . Various stores offered exclusive bonus gifts with the DVD, including posters, a convertible DVD case, toy figures and even a bonus DVD or comic.

In Germany, the film was released on December 10, 2007, both on DVD and HD DVD, with the DVD version also being available in several versions with bonus DVDs, various DVD covers, etc.

On September 2, 2008, the film was released in the USA along with other special versions on DVD, and now also on Blu-ray Disc. On October 24, 2008, this version was also released in Germany.

Effects

Sequels

In 2009, Transformers continued with the film Transformers - Revenge . Michael Bay was again directing, and a large number of the actors in the first part were also part of the party.

The third part followed in 2011, Transformers 3 , which was filmed with stereoscopic 3D cameras. Michael Bay again directed. Megan Fox no longer appears as Mikaela in the third part, Sam's girlfriend is now Carly Spencer, played by Rosie Huntington-Whiteley .

2014 started the fourth part, Transformers: Era of Extinction , in which Sam can no longer be seen. Almost all actors from the previous parts no longer play. The film opened in German cinemas on July 17, 2014.

Transformers: The Last Knight was released on June 22, 2017 and the prequel Bumblebee on December 20, 2018 .

Transformers as inspiration

Already in 2007, the production company published The Asylum , known for Mockbuster films that lean is not only entitled to significantly large in productions studios, Direct-to-Video - low-budget film entitled Transmorphers , shot with a budget of just $ 300,000. A prequel with the title Transmorphers: Fall of Man followed in 2009. In Germany, the latter film was only released in 2011 under the title Transmorphers 3 - The dark moon , which refers to the original title of Transformers 3 (Transformers: Dark of the Moon) .

Inspired by the success of the Transformers film, the US channel beamed NBC in February 2008 as a continuation or remake of the television series Knight Rider -scale television film made, finally from a short-lived new series emerged.

Transformers' effects as well as the marketing campaign served as a model for the 2008 comic book adaptation of Iron Man .

In Canada there are 25 since 2019 $ -Sammlermünzen with motifs from the films.

Web links

Commons : Transformers (film)  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Transformers in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Transformers in the online movie database
• Transformers atRotten Tomatoes(English)
• Portfolios of various film designers: Ben Procter , Sean Haworth

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Release certificate for Transformers . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry , July 2007 (PDF; test number: 110 610 K).
2. ↑ Age rating for Transformers . Youth Media Commission .
3. ^ SG Wilkens: Transformers: The Junior Novel , HarperEntertainment, New York 2007, ISBN 978-0-06-088835-0 .
4. ↑ Kate Egan, Marcelo Matere: Transformers: The Movie Storybook , HarperEntertainment, New York 2007, ISBN 978-0-06-088836-7 .
5. ^ Alan Dean Foster: Transformers: The Veiled Threat , Del Rey Books, New York 2009, ISBN 978-0-345-51592-6 .
6. ↑ Simon Furman, Chris Ryall & Don Figueroa: Transformers: Official Movie Prequel # 1-4, IDW Publishing, San Diego 2007. Reprinted in Transformers Movie Prequel , IDW Publishing, San Diego 2007, ISBN 978-1-60010-066-6 . First 17 pages of issue 1 published in German in: Transformers (official magazine for the film), Comma Publications, Munich 2007.
7. ^ Scott Brown: The Rebirth of Optimus Prime: Behind the Scenes with Director Michael Bay . Wired.com, June 26, 2007; Retrieved September 25, 2007.
8. ↑ ^{a b c d} Optimus Prime Time . Interview with director Michael Bay. Entertainment Weekly, July 5, 2007; Retrieved September 25, 2007.
9. ↑ Exclusive interview: Robert Orci . , IGN.com, July 2, 2007; Retrieved September 25, 2007.
10. ↑ Hasbro product preview for "Arcee" toy character for the film, accessed June 17, 2009.
11. ↑ ^{a b} Portfolio of film designer Ben Procter. ( Memento of the original from December 9, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved September 24, 2007. 
12. ↑ Don Murphy at TransformersCon Toronto 2006. Retrieved November 22, 2012.
13. ↑ Hasbro product preview for Brawl toy character for the movie, accessed June 17, 2009.
14. ^ Patrick Kolan: Transformers Roundtable with Michael Bay . Report from the press conference in Sydney, Australia, IGN.com, June 13, 2007; Retrieved September 25, 2007.
15. ↑ ^{a b} Kellvin Chavez: "On Set Interview: Producer Don Murphy On Transformers" ( July 24, 2010 memento on the Internet Archive ), Interview with Latinoreview.com, February 21, 2007. Archived version of July 24, 2010.
16. ↑ Jessie Scanlon: Hasbro: Where Toys Are Still Serious Business . , Bloomberg Businessweek, November 5, 2009; Retrieved July 21, 2011.
17. ^ Hasbro Reports Strong Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2003 Results . Business Wire February 9, 2004; Retrieved July 21, 2011.
18. ↑ Kellvin Chavez: On Set Interview: Producer Tom De Santo On Transformers . Interview with Latinoreview.com, February 21, 2007; Retrieved July 21, 2011.
19. ^ Transformers Live-Action Announced . , Comingsoon.net June 10, 2003; Retrieved April 24, 2008.
20. ↑ Rogers Writing Transformers . ( Memento of the original from July 13, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. IGN.com, Nov. 3, 2004; Retrieved April 24, 2008. 
21. ↑ Exclusive: New Transformers Writers . IGN.com, February 18, 2004; Retrieved April 24, 2008.
22. ↑ ^{a b c} Audio commentary by Michael Bay and bonus material on the Transformers DVD.
23. ↑ Josh Horowitz: 'Transformers' Writers Talk Fanboy Pressure, 'ET' Inspiration, Sequel Ideas . MTV .com, March 13, 2007; Retrieved July 8, 2011.
24. ^ From I, Robot to Transformers . ( Memento of the original from June 30, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. IGN FilmForce, March 26, 2006; Retrieved June 13, 2008. 
25. ↑ Ethan Kaye: CGI ROBOT . ( Memento of August 10, 2007 on the Internet Archive ) Wizard Universe, July 3, 2007; Retrieved July 7, 2011.
26. ↑ Kellvin Chavez, "Interview: Tyrese Gibson & Josh Duhamel On Transformers" ( January 5, 2008 memento on the Internet Archive ), Latinoreview.com, June 25, 2007. Archived version January 5, 2008.
27. ↑ Alicia Garges: LAAFB personnel go Hollywood in new 'Transformers' movie . ( Memento of the original from June 27, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Air Force Space Command, July 24, 2007; Retrieved April 29, 2008. 
28. ↑ ^{a b c} Robots and Product Placement . ( Memento of the original from June 27, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ORF.at; Retrieved June 13, 2009. 
29. ↑ ^{a b} Robert Sanchez: Interview: Ian Bryce and Lorenzo di Bonaventura on Transformers and More! ( Memento of September 26, 2007 on the Internet Archive ) IESB.net, June 18, 2007; Retrieved September 10, 2009.
30. ↑ John Pearley Huffman: Inside the Cars and Trucks of Transformers . ( Memento of August 25, 2007 on the Internet Archive ) Edmunds Inside Line, June 26, 2007; Retrieved September 16, 2007.
31. ^ Dorothy Pomerantz: Michael Bay: Making Movies, Enemies and Money . Forbes Magazine, June 3, 2009; Retrieved June 6, 2009.
32. ↑ Christopher Palmeri: With Transformers, Hasbro Morphs Its Toy-Movie Model . Brandweek, June 12, 2009; Retrieved November 22, 2012.
33. ↑ Parija B. Kavilanz: Hasbro hints at 'Transformers' sequel . CNNMoney.com, July 23, 2007; Retrieved April 28, 2008.
34. ↑ Martin Weiß: Hasbro: The wait is over . The shareholder, June 24, 2009; Retrieved July 19, 2009.
35. ↑ Michael Bay on Transformers! Interview with Superhero Hype, June 20, 2007; Retrieved September 25, 2007.
36. ^ I Can Make Your Product A Star . ( Memento from February 10, 2013 in the web archive archive.today )
37. ↑ Audio Branding: Selling With Sound . ( Memento of April 13, 2014 on the Internet Archive ) Edge Online, June 20, 2008; Retrieved November 22, 2009.
38. ↑ Hanns-Georg Rodek: Car films illustrate the downfall of GM . Berliner Morgenpost, June 25, 2009; accessed on October 18, 2019.
39. ↑ Transformers in the German dubbing files; Retrieved May 3, 2008.
40. ^ Transformers at Box Office Mojo; Retrieved October 23, 2007.
41. ↑ Official: 'Transformers' hits No. 2 on China's all-time foreign film earnings list . ( Memento of January 14, 2010 in the Internet Archive ), sunstar.com.ph, October 1, 2007
42. ↑ Evaluation of the top 50 film titles of 2007 according to socio-demographic as well as cinema and film-specific information. ( Memento from February 27, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) ffa.de; Retrieved December 17, 2013.
43. ^ Analysis of Germany at the 26th weekend from June 30th to July 3rd, 2011 . Inside cinema; Retrieved July 13, 2011.
44. ^ Thomas K. Arnold: 'Transformers' sets yearly sales record . ( Memento of October 23, 2007 on the Internet Archive ) Hollywood Reporter, October 23, 2007; Retrieved October 23, 2007.
45. ^ Dent in '07 DVD sales smaller than expected . Reuters.com, Jan. 8, 2008; Retrieved January 8, 2008.
46. ↑ Katja Nicodemus: Triumph of the brainlessness . In: Die Zeit , No. 32/2007.
47. ↑ Andreas Resch: Mere Citroën clip: 'Transformers' . ( Memento of the original from June 27, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. taz.de, August 1, 2007; Retrieved September 28, 2007. 
48. ↑ Sebastian Handke: The firecracker feeling . In: der Tagesspiegel, July 29, 2007; Retrieved May 4, 2008.
49. ^ Hanns-Georg Rodek: Transformers - The fighting machines attack . Welt Online, July 31, 2007; Retrieved May 4, 2008.
50. ↑ David Kleingers: Blockbuster 'Transformers': The cart as a gun . Spiegel Online , August 1, 2007; Retrieved September 28, 2007.
51. ↑ Bert Rebhandl: Men and their dear toys . In: Berliner Zeitung , August 1, 2008.
52. ↑ Jürgen Armbruster: Transformers . Filmstarts.de, July 5, 2007; Retrieved September 28, 2007.
53. ↑ Lukas Foerster: Transformers . critic.de, July 25, 2007; Retrieved December 11, 2012.
54. ↑ Michael Althen: The art of folding heavy metal . FAZ.net, August 1, 2007; Retrieved May 4, 2008.
55. ↑ Matthias Schmidt: crackling and shooting society . ( Memento from March 9, 2016 in the Internet Archive ), stern.de, August 1, 2007.
56. ↑ Michelle R. Smith: Transformer movie marketing for kids criticized . TheStar.com, Jan. 9, 2008; Retrieved August 27, 2009.
57. ↑ Dareh Gregorian, Stefanie Cohen: Giant Robots Stole My Idea . New York Post, December 26, 2007; Retrieved December 29, 2007.
58. ↑ Decision of the film evaluation board ; Retrieved April 29, 2008.
59. ↑ MTV Movie Awards: 'Transformers' wins . Focus Online, June 2, 2008; Retrieved June 2, 2008.
60. ↑ 2007 "Teen Choice Award Nominees & Winners". chiff.com; Retrieved August 26, 2007.
61. ↑ Hollywood Awards Launches the Awards Season. ( Memento of May 11, 2008 on the Internet Archive ) Hollywoodawards.com, October 23, 2007; Retrieved May 2, 2008.
62. ↑ Scream 2007 Awards: Shia LaBeouf is the big winner . ( Memento of March 21, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Filmstarts.de, October 23, 2007; Retrieved November 22, 2012.
63. ↑ Andreas Borcholte: When the Oscars bear mourning . Spiegel Online , January 22, 2008; Retrieved April 23, 2008.
64. ^ Statement by Michael Bay on working with 3D cameras. ( Memento of the original from September 14, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Michael Bay official forum, September 10, 2010; Retrieved November 10, 2010. 
65. ↑ Benjamin Maack: Hollywood Müllenmeister . one day , February 3, 2011; Retrieved July 3, 2011.
66. ↑ Josef Adalian: NBC taps Liman for Knight Rider ' . Variety.com, on September 26, 2007; accessed on October 18, 2019.
67. ^ Iron Man Full Production Notes. ( Memento of April 29, 2015 on the Internet Archive ) Movies Central, 2008; Retrieved May 11, 2008.
68. ↑ TL Stanley: Tie-ins: LG, BK, 7-Eleven To Pump Paramount's Iron Man . ( Memento of March 13, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Brandweek, January 7, 2008; Retrieved February 25, 2012.
69. ↑ Pure Silver Coin - Transformers: Optimus Prime .