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Buzz: Michael Bay's 'Transformers 3' Sounds Like it Will Be Awesome
by Alex Billington
April 15, 2011
Hold onto your hats, this might get a 'lil heated. Even bigger than ever before giant effin' robots are coming! Though we haven't seen anything more than the great Super Bowl spot and last year's teaser trailer, a few lucky folks were shown 20 minutes of footage from Michael Bay's Transformers: Dark of the Moon and apparently it looks quite awesome. Paramount hosted an editing room presentation with Michael Bay, which we were not invited to, where they saw a few action scenes (some in 3D) that blew them away. Could it be possible?! Could Transformers 3 actually be really good? At least it seems like it'll be a visual spectacle!
We all know Michael Bay has a long, long way he must go if he is truly going to recover from the disaster that was Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, which even I despise, but it sounds like it might be possible. And yes, I know it's probably a travesty to some that I'm even saying good things about Transformers at all, but it's summer blockbuster entertainment, I can't say no to that. Michael Bay is a visual mastermind. He apparently spent eight months working on the script and also perfecting the technical use of 3D, which I've heard looks great in this. Transformers 3 was shot with 3D cameras when he was doing wide, action scenes, but he used film for close-ups (like for Rosie Huntington-Whiteley), which they will then stereograph later.
That said, it sounds like this footage impressed everyone there. A number of media outlets got to see roughly 20 minutes, which included a skydiving sequence where the camera follows divers in 3D as they jump out of a plane, plus a scene where a gigantic Decepticon robot wraps around an entire skyscraper, tearing it to the ground. I'm easily sold on visuals, especially during the summer, so I'm in. Here's a few of the best quotes:
Peter Scireta from SlashFilm:
"Imagine following these guys in 3D (from a real 3D camera rigged to one of these guys heads) with Decepticons flying after shooting, destroying buildings in their aftermath. It looked insane."
"And talk about insane, another sequence we saw, which you will see briefly in the next trailer, features a huge sandworm-like Decepticon wrapping itself around a skyscraper, squeezing, tearing it apart. At the same time, our heroes are in an upper floor fending off Decepticons while the building is collapsing. Chairs and furniture are sliding as the building slowly falls over, and our heroes must find a way to survive, but can they? The whole sequence is worth the price of admission alone. Dare I say that the visuals outdo some of the more mind-perplexing stuff we saw in Inception. Bay had outdone himself on this one."
Melissa Molina from Latino Review:
"The footage looked pretty sweet, especially the visuals. I had my gripes about how hard it was to follow the Transformers with the past two films so I was really nervous about how it would all look in 3D. It flows along nicely and I can't wait to see more from Ken Jeong, John Malkovich and Patrick Dempsey's characters. Rosie isn't dumb-sandy-blonde like most people think she'd be and Shia doesn't seem as ultra-fidgety this time around (his acting was one of the things I didn't dig about "Transformers 2"). The action sequences look really badass (pardon my fangirl language) and fans will definitely soil their pants when they see Optimus and the others rip into the Decepticons."
Anthony Breznican from EW.com:
"There’s no way to judge Transformers 3 yet based only on these scenes (which Bay admitted choosing because they revealed little about the plot). But what we saw: Craaaazy!"
"Spaceship crashes on the moon. Squads of American fighter jets casually shot down in the sky over Chicago like flies sprayed with bug spray. LaBeouf’s Sam Witwicky brawling, man against machine, in a back alley with the Decepticon jet Starscream. (Hint: When fist-fighting a giant robot, it helps to have a grappling hook. And aim for the eyeball.) Wounded V-22 Ospreys slamming into each other as soldiers skydive between the colliding tiltrotor planes, then swooping through the city's canyons on wingsuits, like flying squirrels, dodging Decepticon fire …"
Hugh Hart from Wired.com:
"Aerial sequences, crumbling skyscrapers, streams of robot spittle and shots of LaBeouf’s Witwicky being hurled through the air while tethered to a bloody-eyed Decepticon are among the shots that benefit most obviously from the stereoscopic depth of field offered by Dark of the Moon’s 3-D treatment."
"Working with the same camera crew that shot Avatar, Bay said that with the third chapter in his scrambling-bot saga, 'I wanted to make up for Transformers 2.'"
Head over to any of those websites linked above to read their full write-up about the exclusive event, which sounds like it impressed everyone. This is the kind of footage that I love seeing to get hyped up for the summer movie season. As for Bay and recovering, well, he is determined to make amends for Revenge of the Fallen, and it may be with Transformers 3. "A lot of people on the third one would just check out, get a paycheck," Bay said. "I've been working every day for two years, every single day, because I want to make-up for the second one. And I want to leave this franchise as best I can." I hope that means that Transformers: Dark of the Moon will be the smartest movie in the franchise, as that would be incredibly satisfying to see.
"This one is a more mature storyline. It's definitely darker," Bay said. "When people see the movie, they feel it's more emotional at the end. The stakes are higher because it takes place in an American city." Let's hope he's put some more thought into the story than that, though honestly I'm mostly seeing this for the visuals. Though, to be honest, from everything I've heard and all of these early quotes and reactions, it sounds like Bay has potentially made the best, and unquestionably the biggest, Transformers movie in the series. The first trailer hits April 28th, until then, watch the Super Bowl spot again via the banner below!
64 Comments
1
All I can say at this point: "We'll see....." :/
Brandon on Apr 16, 2011
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I hope so. I Bay get his redemption with this film.
xamel on Apr 16, 2011
4
I mean, I HOPE Michael Bay get his redemption with this film.
xamel on Apr 16, 2011
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I hold out no hope.
Frank on Apr 16, 2011
6
I liked Transformers 2 so obviously I'm seeing Transformers 3 but those reactions are from fanboys/girls so salt accordingly people.
ate on Apr 16, 2011
7
I'm just not interested in the slightest for this. I mean unless a trailer comes out and wows me I'm just not gonna care...The Bay and Fox falling out will bother some, and I know Transformers isn't about the plot but removing the character she played and introducing this new character (as a possible love interest) ruins the entire romantic subplot of Transformers 2.
Anonymous on Apr 16, 2011
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It had my attention but I quickly forgot about it...I'm willing to give it a chance, but I'm still bitter about it...I know its such a small complaint but dammit I'm gonna yell it out!
Anonymous on Apr 16, 2011
10
hey nice picture
zachary belinsky on May 6, 2011
11
Michael Bay can direct action. I will give him that. And his visuals are stunning. I have liked what I have seen so far from the movie. But when he takes creative control over certain parts of the the storyline (The Twins, Wheelie anyone? I doubt Orci/Kurtzman came up with that trash!) and dialogues in movies, it just ruins everything! And thats what ruined Transformers 2 for me. I just hope it doesn't happen to this one as well.
Anonymous on Apr 16, 2011
12
The trailer was the first Transformers movie looked insane. The trailer for the second Transformers movie looked insane. These movies sucked my ass. The trailer for the third Transformers movie looks insane... How on earth can anyone think this movie will be "awesome"? 😛
SV7 on Apr 16, 2011
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But I'm still going to go see it... Sigh 😛
SV7 on Apr 16, 2011
15
second one sucked...yes, but the only thing "sucking your ass" about the first one was your mom...
R Ratnayake on May 20, 2011
16
Transformers 3 Optimus dies...Again, Again. Its a good thing the robots are CGI cause that would have been a lot of careers killed. So Bay used 2 spices of 3D, so a double dose of dung.
Anonymous on Apr 16, 2011
17
I quite enjoyed the first 2 movies (I must be crazy right?). I am really hoping this one is more epic than the last 2 combined, because the forest scene in IMAX was superbly animated. It must have been a nightmare to render that scene. I can't imagine how complicated it is to animate just one robot. Alex, was this another press screening? I remember hearing about an event like this months ago.
Chris A. on Apr 16, 2011
18
there is nothing wrong with enjoying these movies.
Anonymous on Apr 16, 2011
19
Sounds like a bunch of fanboys/girls that watched it. Besides if the Twins are involved in this film I won't even see a pirated version.
Yourmaker on Apr 16, 2011
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Well that's a step in the right direction. Not sure about the new "love interest" though... could have done without that. Maybe a new trailer will get me more excited about it. I enjoyed the first film but the second one was a huge disappointment.
Yourmaker on Apr 16, 2011
22
Let me sum up this latest Michael Bay "gem." Hackneyed dialogue... EXPLOSION... Characters devoid of any character... EXPLOSION... A plot that goes in an infinite loop of idiocy... EXPLOSION... Stereotypical racial slang... EXPLOSION... Camera that shakes more than a crack addict... EXPLOSION... EXPLOSION... EXPLOSION!!! There, I saved you a good $20.00. Que the standard Michael Bay excuses. "It's not supposed to be an Oscar film." "It's supposed to be a summer blockbuster... What did you expect." "It's supposed to be an action film... What did you expect." "It's based on a kids cartoon show... What did you expect." "It's Transformers... What did you expect." "It's Michael Bay... What did you expect."
Voltage10120012000 on Apr 16, 2011
23
Thank you for saving me $20. I will spend it on more worthy films this summer. I agree with you completely.
Raj on Apr 17, 2011
24
Jealous much?
DoggyD2 on Apr 19, 2011
25
When the likes of Brett Ratner and McG start to look like veritable masters of filmmaking by comparison, jealousy, should be the least of your concerns. Oh, where are my manners. Let me just take out my handy Bay translator to try and decode it all into something monotonously simple: EXPLOSION!!!???!!!
Voltage10120012000 on Apr 19, 2011
26
Has Alex been drinking or is this post inexplicably full of horrible, incorrect, grammar?
MegaMan3k on Apr 16, 2011
27
Don't forget the writers' strike - he blamed ROTF's bad script on the freakn writers' strike! Cause if there was no writers' strike, ROTF would have been gold! I'm actually a big fan of the first Bad Boys and The Rock. These films have great action and are not filled with stupidity that makes you want to walk out of the theatre. But the first Transformers didn't even give us good action because the action was often not shot well. In ROTF, the action was so over done, drawn out and badly paced that I found it mind numbingly boring. Also, if you don't care about the characters, you don't care what happens to them. I truly hope this time we have action we can see and edited to be tight and exciting, not massive and unending. And please let the "humour" be toned down. I can't see how it will be a great movie, but at least this will help it be watchable.
SV7 on Apr 16, 2011
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This movie will be garbage. Hopefully Bay manages to avoid the intense racism this time though, that would be nice.
Lebowski on Apr 16, 2011
30
i loved the first one purely for the tremendously loud sound editing that went into it. the sequel was horrible from all possible angles. but this, with the strange cast choices, the lessons hopefully learnt from revenge of the fallen and the hype has made me, an avid Bay hater, wonder if he can make something "good".
peter on Apr 16, 2011
31
this is the LAST one with transformers, yes I do belive its the last one, I cant miss it! First one was GREAT MOVIE second one acualy was really good till the middle of it, movie was to long, but overaly it oculd work out really way with just cutting off some parts of it and without adding new one. In third one, we got diffrent screenwriter it change a LOT, I do think its a must see movie in this summer
Xvg on Apr 16, 2011
32
Can't say I am looking forward to the biggest propaganda film of the year.
Silencio! on Apr 16, 2011
33
I don't trust what they say. Of course they're going to say it's awesome. They just want our money. But with all due respect I'm not going to reward Michael Bay's fumble by helping make the third one a success so he can move on to ruin another franchise and live like a rock star. No way. No how. PASS.
Rpin on Apr 16, 2011
34
Come on, you know you are gonna watch it, I mean is your $10 really gonna affect Bay's bank account? Not likely cuz he probably pays more than that for a cup of coffee.
Mayhem on Apr 16, 2011
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Collectively we have power over Bay. Look at what happened with Sucker Punch. Look at what happened with the 1st Green Lantern trailer. Comments were harsh. Public said the costume is too shiny and where is the oath? They put it in in trailer 2. I guarantee you that the studios read our comments and worry about whether we buy tickets.
Rpin on Apr 17, 2011
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@voltage....2 funny xD "what did u expect"
fiyahman on Apr 16, 2011
37
as a fan of this franchise. i gotta say u guys are judging da book by da cover. let the movie come out THEN decide. the outcome of the past two movies shudnt be any consolation of the 3rd. i mean b4 the saints or the cheese heads won da big dance....did anyone think they wud win it based off past seasons???
fiyahman on Apr 16, 2011
38
as a fan of dis franchize. i gotta say u guys are judging da book by da cover. let da movie come out DEN deside. da outcum of da past two movies shudnt be any consolation(shocked you spelled that correctly) of da 3rd. i mean b4 da saints or da cheese heads won da big dance....did any1 think dey wud win it based off past seasons??? There, I fixed the grammar in your post. You're...err...your welcum.
Fuck da lerning on Apr 16, 2011
39
This made my day.
Yourmaker on Apr 16, 2011
40
They are all raving about the visuals! On another note, Where is the trailer?!?
Day on Apr 16, 2011
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in the words of my fren Docta Doom "YOU HAVE NO HOPE" muhahhahahahahaa
Anonymous on Apr 17, 2011
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"America doesn't come in second place." - Captian America, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2
Quazzimotto on Apr 17, 2011
45
Bay has the ability to create some of the most brilliant action spectacles ever conceived, and make them seem real. Too bad his stories hardly ever match the quality of his graphics. I'll see this for what it is, a summer popcorn movie. If you go in without expectations, you're rarely ever let down.
Quazzimotto on Apr 17, 2011
46
I went in to Transformers 2 with low expectations and was let down. Nothing can prepare you for how bad a Michael Bay film can be. I will NOT support him on this last one so that he can go on to ruin another franchise. PASS.
Rpin on Apr 17, 2011
47
Rpin hit the nail on the head. I'm tired of the same old "go in with no expectations" excuse. How much longer do we have to suffer that bullshit? When can I have expectations for a Michael Bay film? When can I have expectations for a summer blockbuster? When can I be wowed by visuals and story again? Why do all of us have to keep lowering or expectations for this drivel? I'm not saying no one can make a "popcorn" movie...but if every action movie has the fanboys or action whores tagging with "turn off your mind" or don't go argument when can the REST of us benefit?
Simple question on Apr 17, 2011
48
The only expectation I had was a transformers movie, pretty bad when that cant even be brought to fruition.
Anonymous on Apr 17, 2011
49
with michael bay is explosions, visual effects and occasional a scene stolen from someone else, but nothing more as james cameron
Jack White on Apr 17, 2011
50
I'm just glad this is the last one. Fuck.
Cracky on Apr 17, 2011
51
im more interested in HP7 atm....ill pass...
Nans2693 on Apr 17, 2011
52
No one is questioning the visuals, ILM does an excellent job every time. The question is, will we care about the movie? or is it just another Bay explosion fest?
Almartart on Apr 17, 2011
53
The question is will they reboot this in let's say the next 5 to 10 years?I hope not..so next question is, since we all know cgi robots make alot of money, what will be the next robot fighting franchise? My vote would be for ABC Warriors, Hammerstein would be huge!
jah p on Apr 17, 2011
54
I'm interested the first trailer spot actually gave me something I wanted. I'm not expecting a great story (just great visuals), but a nice story would help. I'm also glad they got rid of Fox she's not that great looking or an actress. At least this Victoria secret modle is nice to look at.
Rv on Apr 17, 2011
55
Will not fall for the hype this time. They said the same thing with Transformers 2 and all the hype that followed it. This time I will not be able to get my money back and at higher 3d prices, I mean come on. Since when did Michael Bay come up with a movie with a good story and decent dialouge,......ummm never. The sy pcial effects will be brilliant but they are also bringing back the two hip hop cars that are pretty offensive to me just because they are bad!
Dee on Apr 18, 2011
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i dont understand how you can hate on bay seeing as hes the one making the big bucks not you so get over yourself they are good movies your just jumping on the bandwangon with the rest of the people.
tfsallday on May 31, 2011
57
cannot wait!
A5J4DX on Nov 13, 2018
58
cannot wait!
A5J4DX on Nov 13, 2018
61
I think this will be better than Transformer 2. I didn't think T2 was that good. So shouldn't be hard to follow through on it.
Koowie on May 6, 2011
62
hey you don't have a picture
zachary belinsky on May 6, 2011
63
I actually loved TF2. I never understood people's hate on the movie and saying michael bay fell off etc...It's a michael bay film. Things blow up. what do you expect right? Plus as far as I know bay is getting MORE gigs from TF2 as it was a financial success. (budget @$200 mill, gross domestic @$400 mil, worldwide @ $800 = anything but "failiure") The article writer should probably stay in touch with the industry more.... Regardless TF3 should be great! looking good so far in traditional michael "everything must blow up" bay fashion.
Eric Sung on May 13, 2011
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i for one love all the transformers movies and i know this will be an amazing movie and i cant wait for it to come out so i can see then next bay special. 🙂
taviscooke on May 31, 2011
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