In Defense of “Transformers 3”

Okay before we start I’ll get one thing out of the way and state: I am totally fucking biased in favor of this franchise. How could I not be? I’ve been a fan of Shia LaBeouf since he was on “Even Stevens,” I love action films, I’ve loved the Transformers toys since I was a kid, and Optimus Prime is the most badass non-human movie character ever. So even with all that said, I totally understand the criticism of “Dark of the Moon” --- the bad dialogue, the ridiculous story-lines, the gratuitous shots of Rosie Huntington-Whiteley ----- I get all that.

But you know what, I don’t care about any of that. Look at it this way. Michael Bay has to make a movie that appeals to the masses of people all over the world, many of whom never played with a Transformer toy in their lives and are only going to the movies and because that’s what they do in the summer. He has to blow up a ridiculous amount of shit to please people, and in that respect he succeeds.

Let’s be honest with ourselves for a moment, who went to see this film looking for an Oscar winning script? Probably no one. What we all wanted to see was Optimus Prime being a badass, Shia being funny and heroic, Chicago getting blasted to smitherines, and of course, to see that beautiful model in action. Check, check, check and check. Also, you’d be hard pressed to find a cooler aspect of any action film this summer than the sky diving scene when the NEST team descends on Chicago from above amidst some exploding shit and a possible crash landing. What makes that scene even more amazing is that Bay strapped a camera to a guys head and ACUALLY HAD GUYS BASE JUMP OFF BUILDINGS IN CHICAGO.

Say what you will people, that was fucking dope. So this probably isn’t the best defense of the film that you can find out there, but my point is that I wanted to see some dope Transformer action, have some laughs with my friends, a hot babe and a conclusion to a trilogy that had me pretty skeptical when it was first announced. In that respect, the man delivered.

Go see the movie, the hour and half long climax battle scene is totally worth the price of admission. And if you don’t like it? Take it up with the Autobots, see what they think about it.

And Just Like That...Summer is Upon Us

Big ups for warm days, long nights, the beach, beers and bbq's.
Definitely go see "Super 8" this summer. Imagine a mix of "The Goonies," "Close Encounters," "E.T." and "Stand By Me," filled with great story, suspense, mystery, wonder and fucking dopeness.
Watch a season of a TV show you missed over the year this summer. I recommend this one. Or this one.
Have fun at the movies this summer. Pick one: "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" (June 29), Horrible Bosses (July 8), Captain America: the First Avenger (July 22), 30 Minutes or Less (August 12).
Watch some good television this summer. It's called "BREAKING BAD."
Also good on TV this summer: "White Collar" (USA), "Falling Skies" (TNT), "Real Time With Bill Maher" (HBO), "Entourage" (HBO), "Curb Your Enthusiasm" (HBO).
Go to a baseball game this summer. Or two. Or three. Or four. Go to one in a city where you're not from. Like this one.
If you've never watched "The Godfather" before in your life, watch it this summer.
....Or do nothing. Fuck it, it's summer right?

Rodriguez Is Bosley In "Charlie's Angels"

While "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" was a muddled mess, one thing that was as consistent through the film as the explosions was the comic relief coming from Sam Witwicky's college roommate, played by Ramon Rodriguez.

I thought Rodriguez played his part perfectly in the film and now it looks as if he's brining his comedic chops to another project, this time on the small screen.

According to TV Line Rodriguez ("The Wire”) is set to play the role of Bosley in ABC’s new take on “Charlie’s Angels.”

David Doyle played the role in the original series, while Bill Murray and Bernie Mac starred in the role in the two film versions. This new take on the character is described on the site as a “charming and funny guy with GQ looks and Peter Pan smile who has great hacking skills and technical knowledge.”

Minka Kelly, Rachael Taylor and Annie Ilonzeh star as the "angels," while Robert Wagner is providing the voice of the never-seen Charlie.

The three lead stars are all extremely beautiful and should make for some good comedic chemistry with Rodriguez. Both Bill Murray and Bernie Mac brought their own personas to the character, so it will be intriguing to see exactly how Rodriguez plays it.

The series will shoot later this year.

End of the Year Update: Trailergasm Edition

Okay, Trailergasm has been slacking as of late, so here it is, the end of the year massive update on the best trailers out there for movies still to come in the future (in no particular order):

"Transformers: The Dark of the Moon" - July 1, 2011

The third installment of Michael Bay's franchise has got to be better than "Revenge of the Fallen". No Megan Fox? Sure, we'll miss that face, but not that acting. This third act is going to be a huge improvement over the second film, count on it.




"Green Lantern" - June 17, 2011

Most casual fans aren't as familiar with this hero as let's say a Spider-Man or Batman, but that is no reason to shy away from this film. While the suit leaves a bit to be desired (they'll make it look much better as post production moves along), the cast is fantastic with Ryan Reynolds leading the way and a stacked supporting cast of Peter Sarsgaard, Blake Lively and Mark Strong backing him up.



"Thor" - May 6, 2011

This is Marvel's next huge film, having dropped "Iron Man 2" last summer in anticipation for 2012's "The Avengers". "Thor" takes the reigns this time around with director Kenneth Branagh at the helm, which is one thing the film has going for it. Branagh wasn't the most obvious choice to direct, he has a distinct theater background, but rememebr, Jon Faverau wasn't the seemingly perfect choice for "Iron Man", and that turned out pretty good. Natalie Portman..hot. This is one not to miss.



"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" - May 20, 2011

Jack Sparrow may be one of the best characters ever to grace film screens and the reason for that is Johnny Depp. I don't care what crazy type of trouble the pirates have gotten themselves into this time, because no matter where Captain Jack Sparrow rides I'll gladly follow.



"Cedar Rapids" - February 11, 2011

This one may seem a bit out of place with all these action and superhero films, but this might be my favorite one to see of the bunch. Honestly the only reason I say that is because Andy Bernard, aka my boy Ed Helms is starring in this film, and he is one of my favorite actors and finally he is getting the chance to show off as a starring man. Sure, this won't be a perfect movie, but Dunder Mifflin's favorite employee is starring in it, and I know it will be hilarious. At least he will be.

Shia LaBeouf As A Young Karl Rove?

Once "Transformers 3" wraps, Shia LaBeouf has yet to lock down any films to star in and The L.A. Times reports that the actor is keen on the comedy/drama "College Republicans" as Anonymous Content.

If he selects it, LaBeouf would play a Karl Rove, or rather the younger incarnation of the former Bush advisor as he vies for the position of chief campus conservative under the guidance of Lee Atwater, his campaign manager (and of course future Republican National Committee chairman). Wes Jones penned the script but no director is yet attached though Richard Linklater's name has emerged as a possibility.

LaBeouf has also been previously mentioned in conjunction with an adaptation of the John Grisham legal thriller "The Associate," however that project has been stuck in development for two years and has no director attached.

Loved Shia since "Even Stevens". I love that he wants to take on challenging roles, he's a solid performer, brings some great chops to any movie he's in. Although I'm not a Karl Rove fan, I'll keep an interest for my boy LaBeouf.

Michael Bay Talks "Transformers 3" Story

USA Today recently visited the set of the third "Transformers" movie and Michael Bay revealed several new tidbits on the film, including some aspects of the plot.

Bay plans to debut the movie next summer. He admitted some missteps with the last film and aims to upgrade the shape-shifting robot franchise with a more coherent story, less goofball humor and a pledge that characters who die will stay dead.

Bay partly blames the rush to churn out the first sequel so soon after the writer's strike to blame for "Revenge of the Fallen" not being quite up to par with the original.

Also, despite Bay not being a fan of 3D, the film will be released in 3D--though it's unsure as of yet if it will be shot that way or converted in post-production.

“Revenge of the Fallen” was the No. 2 movie of 2009 (behind only "Avatar"), earning $836 million worldwide — very popular, though complaints from moviegoers and a negative barrage from critics made the filmmakers take notice.

Plot details are under wraps, but the new film will delve into the space race between the U.S.S.R. and the U.S. At the same time, Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf) is taking his first tenuous steps into adulthood while remaining a reluctant human ally of Optimus Prime.

Bay also spoke about the film’s new villain, who will be Shockwave, a character from the original '80s cartoon. The robot cyclops-turned-laser-cannon, became dictator of the Transformers home world of Cybertron after the other Autobots and Decepticons journeyed to Earth.

Megan Fox, who played Mikaela, was dropped just before shooting, so LaBeouf's character also has a new love interest, played by Victoria's Secret model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.

I really loved the first “Transformers.” I was excited for “Revenge of the Fallen,” but after I saw it, I felt as if I had just sat through two hours of crap blowing up. Which is pretty much exactly what it was. While the original wasn't a cinematic masterpiece, it at least had a story you could follow.

But clearly Bay and the other filmmakers heard what fans and critics were saying, and it looks as if the third “Transformers” film might just be the best of the bunch.

More Go 3D Including "Transformers 3"

It comes as no surprise that the third "Transformers" film looks to be happening in 3D with Michael Bay, Paramount and Industrial Light & Magic all in talks to discuss going the extra dimension with the film reports Variety.

According to Variety: Michael Bay's next project is "Transformers 3," and there have been discussions among Bay, Paramount and Industrial Light & Magic about going 3D with the picture.

The big stumbling block is the extra time required to do production and visual effects in 3D, as the movie's release date is already set. Due to the time factor, Bay's filming style and the complexity of the visual effects, it may just be 'converted' rather than shot and produced in 3D.

The move comes amidst a '3D conversion' boom with many upcoming and catalog titles getting the 2D-to-3D treatment. Korean company Stereo Pictures for example is at work on converting the upcoming "Cats and Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore" into 3D as well.

Michael Bay has said in the past that 3D is a gimmick and that his agressive filmmaking style is not conducive to 3-D filming but it seems Paramount does not agree.
I don’t think the disagreement between Bay and Paramount will have much effect on the film. The first two have made a ridiculous amount of money and there is no reason to think that the third won’t as well, 3D or no 3D. In my opinion I think it would be pretty sweet to see Optimus Prime transform and defend Shia LaBeouf’s Sam Witwicky in three dimensions.

Paramount has set a July 1st, 2011 release for Transformers 3, which will begin shooting in May.

Damaged Goods?...and Lost!

A couple of really great articles over at io9 I happened to stumble upon:

In the post "Which Summer Movies Did the Writers' Strike Hit Hardest?", they go over some of the warm season's biggest releases and if the writer's strike affected them for better, or for worse. They start off by showing how the strike affected many TV shows, for example: Lost survived unscathed, Heroes...well not so much. Star Trek, Terminator and Transformers are just a few of the movies they asses the damage of the strike for.

















The other article was a succinct, great review of the first two episodes of the new season of Lost, without giving away spoilers. Great to hear that my boy Danny Faraday will be getting some more screen time, apparently a few with Sawyer. I can't wait to hear the nicknames Sawyer will come up with in the banter between him and Jeremy Davies' brilliant but skittish physicist.

Transformer Sequel Details... Finally!

By Matt Jussim

Finally, after all the trailers, exclusive photos, and footage of Watchmen, Terminator: Salvation, and Star Trek, that have come out over the past six months, there’s something we all can get REALLY excited about.

The buzz is finally starting to grow on one of 2009’s biggest releases: Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen has finally gotten the “exclusive” treatment with Empire Magazine releasing the first official images of the film, and in USA Today with a report from the set. And the pictures look fantastic.

A gallery of pics from Empire shows Shia LaBeouf (bandaged hand and all) running with the always stunning Meagan Fox away from what looks like certain danger. There’s a pic with a car flying through the air, and awesome tank fight, a badass shot of Optimus Prime and a couple with some army rangers and more tanks. The best ones of all though are shots of the crew filming at the Pyramids in Giza, which will serve as the climax of the film. The Great Pyramids look unbelievable, and it is a definite upgrade in location from the first films climax, which took place at the Hoover Dam and the creatively named Mission City.

The sequel to 2007’s blockbuster Transformers looks to be bigger and even more explosive than its predecessor. The USA Today article describes the plot and some details of the story.

This time around, Sam (Shia LaBeouf) has learned a secret about the origins of the Transformers and their ancient history, which leads to the Decepticons to pursue him rather than wanting to kill him. The rest of the world meanwhile is still dealing with the aftermath of the events in the first film, and tries to figure out which of the creatures to trust, while an international coalition has allied itself with the Autobots.

The movie will introduce new characters, including some important Deceptions: Soundwave, a communications expert, and Devastator, whose arms and legs are built from other Transformers (can’t get any more poetic than that). The good guy Autobots will have Jetfire, a former villain whose age and failing physical state leads him to help Optimus Prime’s crew.




















The film’s action sequences seem as if they will be extremely realistic due to the fact that the movie has the seal of approval from the U.S. Department of Defense. This allowed director Michael Bay and his crew to film at the Army’s New Mexico missile range, and also to follow jets and fighter planes as they navigated through the skies. Some of the equipment used were two A-10 Thunderbolt II “Warthog” tanks; six F-16 Fighting Falcons; 10 armored Humvees; the Army’s Golden Knights parachute team, two armored personnel carriers and two missile launcher vehicles.

The near $200 million dollar production will feature 40 robots, and as I mentioned before the filmmakers were granted permission to shoot not just around, but also actually on the 5,000 year old Great Pyramids for the first time ever.

I was a huge fan of the first movie, and from the looks of it, the sequel is going to be even more exciting and action packed. Along with LaBeouf and Fox, the sequel will star returning cast members Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, and John Tuturro. Newcomers include Matthew Mardsen as a Special Forces ranger, Isabel Lucas as a girl at Sam’s college and The Office’s Rainn Wilson will have a cameo as a university professor.

The first teaser trailer for the film will possibly debut in February during Super Bowl XLII. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen will be released on June 26th, 2009.