A Transformer Wrap Poem

Diabetes over at the Don Murphy forums has posted a rather odd poem marking the wrap of principle photography on Transformers. If your not a fan of the movie then the poem is probably for you. In short, its blames Director Michael Bay for bad decisions and Dreamworks Head of Production Adam Goodman for giving Bay total control, resulting in making a movie that is "still loads of crap." An example would be indications that Bay has final say on all casting decisions.

While the film script I read and Bay's recent history isn't exactly a confidence lifter, I have hopes he will tap his "The Rock" past and create a kick-butt movie and abandon his attempts to prove what an artist he is when trying to explore the human condition. That isn't his thing and he needs to quit trying to make it so. Any case, I still have hope for the film. There may be more to the poem but it seems a bit insider for my understanding so if people have a clue, please share.

The poem:

The film is a wrap?
Wow how about that!
It’s still loads of crap.
And the Stooges swallow this pap?

Murphy and Desanto lead the cheerleader charge
While Skorponok takes credit by and large.
The fact is today
There is nothing okay
The content of the film’s not fit for a barge.

Let your sugary friend answer the clamor
All you sweet kiddles want in on the drama?
The trouble beginning to end
Is named A-D-A-M Goodman

New studio head Snider
Decided him to fire
But then in a Hail Mary pass
Goodman kissed the right piece of ass

“Do not fire me, no do not please”
The chubby young Goodman said on his knees
I can do something you don’t want to do
I can control Michael Bay just for you.

New studio head Snider
Knew he’s a liar
But decided to stay out of the mess
“Sure Mr. Chubwon, you control Bay-san
And keep this boy’s movie shit off my dress”

Then dumb Mr. Goodman
As only a dunce can
Proceeded to hide in the sand
For the first time in history
It was a complete mystery
How one director had ALL of the power!!!!!!

The film is what it is and that’s all that it is
Most trufans will want to take a long whiz
And though valiant and Brave Tom Ian and Don slaved
Fact is Goodman gave the keys to the Kingdom to Bayed.

If you hate the dumb story
And realize the characters are a worry
And wonder how Bay could screwup so bad
Remember the missive that Sugarboy brought you
It wasn’t just Michael but Goodman too!

Thanks Shan for the link.

Bunches Of Move Related Pics

There is a pool of Transformers pic over on Flickr. The pool is a mix of old, new, of set visits, vehicles in the wild, and so forth. Really its probably the current one shop stop for pictorial viewpoint on all the TF movie related info out there.

The most recent pics is of the Optimus Prime trailer being filmed out in the desert or at least in an large area of sand.

The pool of pics is here.

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Casting Call in Detroit for Extras

Transformers production is holding casting call in Detroit. The article info:

Paid extras needed for major motion picture "Transformers".

The movie is directed by Michael Bay with Steven Spielberg acting as executive producer.

Extras 16 years of age & older are needed to work outside for the 2-day scene currently scheduled for the first week of Oct. 2006. If you are interested in possibly working as a paid extra in the film, please send information immediately.

Mail To: Wendy Washbrook/Extra Casting
"Transformers"
5600 Campus Center Drive
Bungalow 1
Playa Vista, CA 90094

Or Email Photo and Info To: Wendy Washbrook/Extra Casting: wwashbrook@verizon.net
No phone calls. Photos will not be returned.

Good luck to those that try out. Thanks SR for the link.

Brief Michael Bay Update

Nelson over at the official website for Transformer director Michael Bay has posted an update.

Spoke to Bay...

1.- Movie will finish filming in four days.

2.- Bay & small unit will go around the country to film stuff in DC, Boston, Detroit, Chicago, Alaska, and other places.

3.- The animations are looking awesome. He's very confident with what they've done so far.

4.- And...

...there is no "Razor". Shia meant to say "Raptor". The F-22 has been filmed very little (or not at all) for the big screen.

I guess referring to the AICN interview with Shia from a few weeks ago. I think the F-22 is the alt mode for Starscream. This bit also supports the recent report of a bus terminal in Detroit being used for filming.

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Optimus Prime's Back End

TFormers.com has posted two pics of the vehicle mode of Optimus Prime sitting out in a parking lot on 6th and Broadway (LA I guess). Apparently it was being cleaned and a reader of the site took a few cell phone pics (hence the pic quality). Thanks Julio M for the link.

Jazz Robot Designs

The news drought, for now, has ended. TFW2005.com has posted a pic of a potential design for the robot mode of Jazz. White is apparently his favorite color. Actually I am liking the design, its not bad at all. Now if only tfw2005 would stop with the enormous watermarks that mess up the actual picture visuals. The images are not theirs anyway (technically they are Dreamworks) so to mark them up to ruin is overkill. Use a watermark, just stick it somewhere it doesn't cover a chunk of the pic visuals.

Emperor Optimus Prime

Its not movie news, but its interesting none the less. Turns out it isn't just the United States or Japan that loves Transformers. China has also felt some love for them, even going so far as to build a giant 40 foot statue of the Autobot leader Optimus Prime.

Apparently back in the 80s, the communist regime decided that Transformers was suitable for public consumption since it was non-political and generally non-geographic in nature. So now located in southern China, in a province of Yunnan, sits a statue of the great leader waiting for others to visit. Or you can save a crap load of money and look at the pictures.

The full article is here.

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John Rogers On Transformers

John Rogers, in an interview with Newsarama (great site btw) briefly talked about Transformers. He was the original writer for the movie before current writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman took over.

NRAMA: On the subject of your films, you wrote a script for the upcoming live-action Transformers movie. Knowing that screenwriting is a particular sort of collaboration, how much resemblance will the finished movie bear to your original concept?

JR: Yep, I wrote the first draft. I've seen the shooting script, and it's about half and half. They've moved one of the storylines a little earlier, and they've increased the big military aspect, whereas I had focused on some of the smaller, personal stories. Yeah, you know, I get a credit, we'll see. We'll see what it looks like eventually. It goes from me, to the other guys, who work quite extensively with Michael Bay, so using what he needs to get his vision across. The characters are the same, the rough plot's the same, and I've seen the mock-ups of the battles and it's gonna be frickin' huge. It'll be a lot of fun to see.

Thanks to Joe P. for the tip.

Transformers Shooting in Detroit

An old, abandoned train station off Michigan Avenue in Detroit, Michigan is going to be used for shooting for the Transformer movie. Dreamworks just recently signed a deal with the city for its use. Apparently the building and area in front of it will be used for a chase sequence but exactly in what way or what scenes wasn't disclosed. I guess time will tell. Thanks Julio M for the tip.

The full article is here.

Bumbleebee on Cover of Hot Rod

The Camaro that is the vehicle mode for Bumbleebee is the cover car for the November 2006 issue of Hot Rod Magazine. Almost no spoiler movie wise, but decent info about the car itself as provided from "rtype" on the Shoot for the Edit site and provided by tformers.com.

It's not really a camaro but a pontiac gto with fiberglass molds from the concept. Built by Saleen, it has faux wheel covers/rotors and anything else that is "billet aluminum" is also made of fiberglass. pretty cool stuff. they have pics of the chassis, camaro - fresh out of the paintbooth masking paper still on it, and prelim test fits of the white fiberglass molds.

The dash, and outer body panels are from the concept. the chassis, LS-2 V-8 engine, and suspension are GTO.

- Barricade (still referred to as Brawl in this article) is considered a Saleen, not Mustang, Ford not wanting the Pony touted as a villain. They alluded that this will make it easier for Hasbro to license it as a toy.

- Bumblebee's side windows are plexiglass and won't roll down.

-Even though Saleen modifies Mustangs, it was tapped due to it's expertise in building show vehicles.

- GM, not Saleen applied the final racing stripes, to closely resemble the '69 camaro stripes.

- "Old" Bumblebee was originally gonna be a '69, but ended up being 3 1976 camaros. the team was going for believability in terms of spike finding a crappier camaro as opposed to the more sought after '69.

- new movie camaro is automatic (Heard this is quite common for stunt driving purposes. -bwbm)

- the new camaro trunk fills up with smoke when doing burn outs, it's bare bones hollow and houses the fuel filler cap.

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Transformers Toy Stuff

Another day, another day without movie news. So instead I will recommend some links to check out upcoming Transformers toys.

My favorite is the must have "Masterpiece Starscream". Sucker just looks great and probably fun to play with to. Its designed the same way as the 20th Anniversary Optimus Prime from last year was. Besides, who can pass up a version that features that Starscream smirk. Pics are here and here.

Hasbro has recently updated its site with news of the next planned Alternator, the Honda Civic SI, called Rumble. Yes its named after the cassette Transformers Rumble and when in robot mode is clearly modeled after him with the chest plate and the hammer arms. The Alternator line is simply Transformers at its best. Is a perfect model of the car that turns into a fully articulated TF robot that usually looks awesome in any mode. If a fan from the past, its worth your while to hit a toy isle and give them a look-see. The info on Rumble is here.

For you Generation One (G1) fans (original TF from the 80s), comes the Classic Line for the holiday season. Its basically the original Transformers updated using current toy technology which means more detailed look, better articulation and even better no stickers! Click here for a few pics of Hot Rod, Starscream and Bumblebee.

A final bit of news is a rumor that the planned release of the Transformers movie toy line is June 2nd 2007. The site claims its direct from a Hasbro rep but I have my doubts. One reason is usually movie line toys are released 2 to 3 months ahead of the movie. Another is toy lines are not like DVD release schedules where they only get put on sale after a certain date. In fact I have never heard of a "release date" for a toy. Basically the manufacturer (Hasbro) makes then and ships then and its entirely up to the stores on when they stick them on the shelves. Toys R Us is famous for sitting on entire toy lines while it tries to clear out the old (rather then just put em on sale and get rid of them). Its one of the many reason why that company has been hurting for years. Even now, its really not recommended to look for the latest release there but instead hit the local Wal-Mart and Target. Any case, I say keep an eye out starting in May.

As the above shows, the next year in Transformers toys is bright and sweet with no less then three lines planned for the fans and the nephews alike. Oh and a warning for the TF newbies, don't be fooled by different colors. Hasbro is famous now for releasing the every Transformers about 3-4 different times and the only difference is its name and color scheme.

Bumblebee in a Truck

The leaks continue to not occur from the Transformers movie set. No news but here you go, a headless Bumblebee sitting in a truck from superherohype.com. Not really news but figure it would interest some.



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Someone's Photoshop Fun with Seekers

No news for last couple days, so figured post a link of someone having some fun with the F16's, TFs and Photoshop. Click here for a few other pics.

No Ark Appearance?

Based on a leaked script and unconfirmed rumors, its looks like the Ark, the ship that brought the Transformers to Earth, is not apart of the movie continuity. As one of the script writers Roberto Orci asked "One of the questions we always had about the ark: Why would aliens who moonlight as vehicles need other vehicles to travel inside?"

I could come up with many of reasons. One being that interstellar travel isn't really apart of the Transformers capabilities. Another is power and speed. Bigger ship, bigger weapons, faster the travel, usually things that those at war like to have. Finally, the original ark was both a home, base, repair bay and recharging station. Even robots need that.

Final reason is it would explain that annoying hole in the script of why Megatron gets iced in the 1800s but the rest of the Transformers don't go looking until the 100+ years later. The Ark crash landed and everyone was in stasis. Nice, neat and would make a pretty nifty opening pre-credits.

I am sure fans could come up with dozens of practical and not so practical reasons for the use of a spaceship by transforming sentient robots from another world. Have at it in the comments.
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More Transformers On-Set Footage

Additional footage of the LA shooting of Transformers has shown up on YouTube. At first might think its fake but really its just been spruced up a bit. The footage clearly matches previous pictures and television footage of the same set. It shows just a hint of the Bumbleebee robot and a few stunts involving crashing a tow truck into a car along with a view of the various set pieces on the street. Spoiler wise didn't really see much of anything but figured the curious might find it interesting.

Click here for the video and here for the site of the person that posted it.
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Ironhide and Ratchet Pics; Bumblebee Face Closeup

Seibertron.com has once again scored some more pics of the Transformers. One of the back side of Ironhide and one very nice pic of Ratchet. I am envious of the Autobot engraving on the back of the truck and that search and rescue logo on Ratchet is a nice touch. Also check out the closeup of Bumblebee's furby face with the outcroppings on his skull that are analogous to his horns from the cartoon days. Thanks to the TransformersLive blog reader for the vehicle tip in the comments and Joey Cagle for the Bumbleebee link.




Update: Additional pics of same things, only really big and great quality is here.