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I'M SO PUMPED IT'S OUT TODAY

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/27/movies/transformers-age-of-extinction-is-fourth-in-the-series.html

— “Age of Extinction” makes clear what has always been true of the Transformers movies: Although they may look like soulless corporate studio product, they are really examples of personal cinema, expressions of the will and imagination of their director, Michael Bay. The narrative incoherence is a feature, not a bug. (The screenplay is by Ehren Kruger.) Mr. Bay’s strongest films (with the partial exception of “Pain and Gain”) are those in which the battle between sense and sensation ends in a rout. If you spend any time thinking about why the C.I.A. and an Apple-like technology corporation would be in cahoots with an intergalactic bounty hunter in an anti-Autobot pogrom you are missing the point.
If, on the other hand, you are bored by the sight of giant robots fighting, this will feel like a very long art film. Which, in effect, it is, albeit one that was made with unlimited resources.

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http://www.nj.com/entertainment/ind...s_age_of_extinction_review_metal_illness.html

One-hundred-and-sixty-five minutes. Think about that.

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You can find much more at Rotten Tomatoes.

Charlie Don't Surf said:

One-hundred-and-sixty-five minutes. Think about that

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$16.5k/sec, and don't you forget it.

--Patrick

Trans4mers? Goddamn, even the title makes me angry

Thith ith a travethty.

Not bothering with the movie, but this thread should be fun.

Ravenpoe said:

Trans4mers? Goddamn, even the title makes me angry

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I don't think that's the real title, just my contribution

I'm catching this at 3:30 in 3D today. I'll post my thoughts here.

It sounds as unbearable to watch as the other movies.

Frank said:

It sounds as unbearable to watch as the other movies.

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Sadly I've heard it's guilty of the worst crime: Being really boring. At least the other 3 were spectacles and kind of insane. Almost every review I've read has said that everything in this movie feels like no one cares at all. Even the big "fights" feel boring and like Bay couldn't be bothered to find a way to make them exciting. One reviewer said they were shocked that any director could find a way to make the DINOBOTS uninteresting. Thats pretty bad. I've seen all 3 of the others and look, they aren't "good" movies but they have their merits and they certainly weren't "boring". Hearing that about this film has definitely encouraged me to not go see it. I'm cool with crazy spectacle, but I'm wasting money and time on boring.

I still stand by that 2 is an unholy intolerable / insulting thing to sit through that isn't even really visually interesting, and is on top of it, the most crass / racist / stuffed with inane subplots out of the three by far.

3 actually looks a lot better in my opinion - even not seeing it in 3D, it seems like it calmed Bay down a little, and makes the setpieces tend to... have more weight to them so to speak.

2 was an abomination of cinema itself and should've been nuked from orbit.

1 was okay, but it ran too long and had FAR too many secondary human characters and subplots that no one gave a shit about (the military guy(s), the hackers). If it had cut them out, it would've shaved off the stupidly long running time and focused more on the boy and his car. Still would've had problems, but it would've had LESS problems.

3 was slightly worse than 1, but at least had some great action at the end.

Even still, I only saw the first one in theatres and even then regretted paying for. The second one I rented through work when I used to work at Blockbuster and the third I pirated. I'll probably do the same with this one whenever it makes it to home video.

I'll likely see it, because my best friend likes big, dumb movies.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/vid...st&utm_medium=index_carousel&utm_campaign=all

Huh. So MovieBob actually liked it. I mean, he still admits it's got far too long a running time, it's still dumb as hell, but it's second to the animated TF movie (which he - and even I'll admit was dumb). He says it's dumb, bloated nonsense, but the inoffensive kind.

Still, that's a change from before because he always slagged the movies. Given that I tend to agree with most (not all; I didn't hate the Amazing Spidey movies like he does), I may actually give this a theatre chance, after all. I do like that the designs for the bots are much more distinctive and recognizable this time around.

Watching Godzilla movies (average length between 80 and 90 minutes) lately has got me questioning why action movies today need to be 2 and a half to 3 hours long. Hollywood needs more editors.

The fact TheBeef isn't in it is already an improvement.

ThatNickGuy said:

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/vid...st&utm_medium=index_carousel&utm_campaign=all

Huh. So MovieBob actually liked it. I mean, he still admits it's got far too long a running time, it's still dumb as hell, but it's second to the animated TF movie (which he - and even I'll admit was dumb). He says it's dumb, bloated nonsense, but the inoffensive kind.

Still, that's a change from before because he always slagged the movies. Given that I tend to agree with most (not all; I didn't hate the Amazing Spidey movies like he does), I may actually give this a theatre chance, after all. I do like that the designs for the bots are much more distinctive and recognizable this time around.

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I had a similar response to MovieBob.

Is it bloated, over-long with more plot strands than it really needs? Yes.
Is it really dumb? Yes.
Is it the awful mess that some of these films had been before? Not really. It's a mess to be certain, but it's not a hate-inspiring force. It's more like the sort of thing "junk food cinema" would describe: a big lot of nonsense that is ultimately disposable and kind of enjoyable.

The over-the-top slapstick, excessive amount of comic relief characters, and crude humor of the previous films is gone from here, with the story and characters playing the whole film much straighter than before. In fact, the one pure comic relief character in the form of T.J. Miller is one that actually works. It also helps having Mark Wahlberg as your main protagonist instead of Shia LaBeouf. In addition to the change in attitude, dialogue that might have been grating coming from Shia works when delivered by Wahlberg.

That said, it is still overloaded with numerous plots that it has going. You have a CIA group led by Kelsey Grammer (who plays his part more like an '80s R-rated action movie villain and actually works well with it) who is hunting down all Cybertronians, killing them and having them be scrapped by a billionaire inventor played by Stanley Tucci, who is harvesting from them a substance known as transformium (yes, it is called that). Stanley Tucci is then using the transformium to build man-made Autobots to control, which goes as well as you can expect when the main one is called Galvatron. Galvatron is trying to take down Optimus Prime for his own ends. Then there's Lockdown, a Cybertronian bounty hunter called in by the mysterious "Creators" of the Cybertronians to capture Optimus Prime. Suffice to say, there's a lot they crammed in and they could have trimmed some of it out. Personally, I would have saved the Lockdown business for another film.

Also, for those excited for the Dinobots, they are unfortunately underused.

Anyway, would I recommend this? It feels a bit much to out and out recommend it, but it may be worth giving a chance. It's not the rage-inducer some of this film franchise's entries have been, but it is still an overly bloated and stupid mess.

That said, I got to see a sword-wielding Optimus Prime ride a fire-breathing Grimlock into battle on the big screen. That is freaking awesome, logical complaints and issues be damned.

ScytheRexx said:

The fact TheBeef isn't in it is already an improvement.

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See also: Fox, Megan. (or more like DON'T see! LOL)

That's interesting to hear, but after watching the first of Bay's Transformers movies, I swore off the series. I've stuck to that, and it'll take more than "not rage-inducing-ly horrible" to change that.

Reverent-one said:

That's interesting to hear, but after watching the first of Bay's Transformers movies, I swore off the series. I've stuck to that, and it'll take more than "not rage-inducing-ly horrible" to change that.

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Oh hey, I did the exact same thing.

I've been all the happier for it. But I still like to sit back for a good nerd rage about their existence every now and then.

Reverent-one said:

That's interesting to hear, but after watching the first of Bay's Transformers movies, I swore off the series. I've stuck to that, and it'll take more than "not rage-inducing-ly horrible" to change that.

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That's sort of why I said that "recommending" the film was too strong of a term. It's still a dumb, bloated mess, but the worst elements of the previous films have been cranked back or removed. This film probably wouldn't change your mind on the film franchise if you don't like the others, but it's at least not the miserable experience that the others have been.

I read a bunch of spoilers because I knew I wouldn't bother seeing this till it's on HBO or something. It doesn't sound as awful as 2, but it doesn't sound like it's managed to be any better than 1 or 3.

What should be done, if anything, is let the guys who wrote the War for/Fall of Cybertron games and/or Transformers Prime handle the movies. They're the best TF IPs since the animated movie, really.

Cinema Snob makes it sound like this is "hilarious bad" instead of "enraging bad". Still not gonna see it, but Mark Wahlberg sounds like he gives a funny over-the-top performance.

Good news: The movie made $100M in its opening weekend here in the states!!! And added an additional $200M internationally!!! What a huge success, can't wait for the Cinco.

Also I noticed it opened to $90M in China. So its little gambit with pandering to the Chinese market not only worked, but produced the highest opening weekend ever.

Charlie Don't Surf said:

Good news: The movie made $100M in its opening weekend here in the states!!! And added an additional $200M internationally!!! What a huge success, can't wait for the Cinco.

Also I noticed it opened to $90M in China. So its little gambit with pandering to the Chinese market not only worked, but produced the highest opening weekend ever.

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Other great news! Thanks to pieces of shit like this 3 hour movie, no one is paying attention to what is supposed to be a truly fantastic little action flick, "Snowpiercer", or letting it play in many theaters! Go America!

Charlie Don't Surf said:

Good news: The movie made $100M in its opening weekend here in the states!!! And added an additional $200M internationally!!! What a huge success, can't wait for the Cinco.

Also I noticed it opened to $90M in China. So its little gambit with pandering to the Chinese market not only worked, but produced the highest opening weekend ever.

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Most of the reviews I've seen on this movie have been bad and comments from friends who have seen it have supported it not being a good movie. Then I saw how much it made and thought "Charlie was right about the mindless masses." I'm all for a mindless popcorn flick but there is nothing about this movie that makes me even remotely interested enough to rent it on Redbox. As far as Hollywood execs go Michael Bay is a genius. Transformers 4 is not a movie we need. It's a movie we deserve.

Espy said:

Other great news! Thanks to pieces of shit like this 3 hour movie, no one is paying attention to what is supposed to be a truly fantastic little action flick, "Snowpiercer", or letting it play in many theaters! Go America!

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Actually, that movie's getting completely buried due to internal struggles with the distributor / director. It's a miracle the director's cut is even getting out, originally Weinstein was going to release a fucked up, most likely much worse version he cut.

Charlie Don't Surf said:

Actually, that movie's getting completely buried due to internal struggles with the distributor / director. It's a miracle the director's cut is even getting out, originally Weinstein was going to release a fucked up, most likely much worse version he cut.

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I think Weinstein wanted to cut out like 20 minutes and add introductory and closing voice-over on the assumption that American audiences wouldn't understand the movie. The director, understandably, got pissed at the idea.

I did a bit of research to make sure that I had my facts right.

I'd still like to see a director's cut of The 13th warrior.

filmfanatic said:

add introductory and closing voice-over on the assumption that American audiences wouldn't understand the movie.

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Yeah, 'cuz that worked so well for Dark City.

Maybe we're just too smart for our own good?

--Patrick

Blade Runner.

CynicismKills said:

What should be done, if anything, is let the guys who wrote the War for/Fall of Cybertron games and/or Transformers Prime handle the movies. They're the best TF IPs since the animated movie, really.

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Prime? I mean, it isn't even the best animated series, which is clearly Beast Wars.* I would love to see a movie with Simon Furman (aka pretty much THE guy on the comics front) as the idea guy though.

*Disclaimer: Despite the exaggerated objectivity of this statement, it is understood to simply be one poster's opinion and is not intended to claim other opinions aren't allowed.

Charlie Don't Surf said:

Actually, that movie's getting completely buried due to internal struggles with the distributor / director. It's a miracle the director's cut is even getting out, originally Weinstein was going to release a fucked up, most likely much worse version he cut.

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I'm willing to bet that would still be far better than Transformers 4.

I've tried to watch Beast Wars so many times, but the animation and slow start keep me from getting anywhere with it. From what I remember, Animated/Armada was pretty good, but all in all I think Prime is the more consistently solid series. Though I will admit finally having Frank Welker back as Megatron makes me kind of biased.

I'm one of the few people who loved the Transformers: Animated show that came out shortly after the first movie.

Guys, we all know Beast Machines was the epitome of Transformers. Don't deny it.

I haven't willingly seen new Transformers anything since Optimus lit their darkest hour and eliminated the rage plague.

Charlie Don't Surf said:

Actually, that movie's getting completely buried due to internal struggles with the distributor / director. It's a miracle the director's cut is even getting out, originally Weinstein was going to release a fucked up, most likely much worse version he cut.

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Still getting ridiculously good reviews and either way, it's a shame it's not getting on more screens either way. It should be getting tons of support.

Here's my favorite critic run down about the new Boringformers film:

Age Of Extinction’s sense of creative burnout is amplified by the fact that it follows on the heels of one of Bay’s best (and, not coincidentally, tightest) films, Pain & Gain, a nasty, vigorous movie about the big, dumb American Dream. If Pain & Gain—a long-gestating passion project that seemed to take its narrative and stylistic cues from Casino—showcased all of Bay’s strengths, Age Of Extinction plays like a catalogue of his weaknesses… ...A viewer can’t help but get the feeling that Bay is tired of making Transformers movies.

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Thats why I'm not wasting my money on it. The same review cites the "joy" found in the third film, where it was at least having fun with the destruction. Pain and Gain showed Bay actually can make a tight, strong film, this is just a giant cash grab and it's to bad Bay isn't' making more films like PAin and Gain, and less like Transformers.

Honestly, I think Michael Bay is a director who can make some good stuff, like The Rock and Pain and Gain. I just think he needs the right material along with a tight budget.

You know, I used to really like The Rock. Then I watched it again sometime last year, and thought it was garbage. I can never watch Bad Boys again lest nostalgia lets me down again.

Bowielee said:

I'm one of the few people who loved the Transformers: Animated show that came out shortly after the first movie.

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TFA was really good.

Frank said:

TFA was really good.

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True confession, I have a crapton of the toys. I have Starscream, Megatron, Bumblebee, Oilslick, Bulkhead, Black Arachnia, Optimus Prime, Prowl (a personal favorite, his toy was awesome) , Jazz, Soundwave, Grimlock, and Blitzwing.

I honestly don't remember much of Animated/Armada, outside of remembering I did enjoy them both. I should really see if I can dig those series back up.

Watched it last night, probably the weakest Transformers movie. At this point, humans have awesome weapons and a squad of them can kill off a transformer. *sigh* 'Murica.

Spoilers

I finally watched it.

I liked it approximately as much as I liked the first three. It's going on my list of guilty pleasures.

Could've done with less human stuff and more alien robot stuff, but then again that was probably to be expected.

Ok, I HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATED how Galvatron and the human made transformers transformed. HOW CAN THEY BE KILLED? THEY TURN INTO SHITTY BLOCKS OF FLOATING PIXEL MATTER. It looked like they were trying to be as lazy as possible with the transformations.

A

Far said:

A

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Weird. I wasn't even awake when that was posted. Looks like the dog is looking to join halforums now.

While I'm here I might as well say what I felt about the movie. There was a point where they switch from one major location to the next and if they had split the movie there and made two hour and a half movies instead of this tedious mess I think it would have been better. It was what I expected from transformers, but by the half way point it needed to end. Mark Wahlberg is better than Shia LaBeouf but that's not hard to do. The girl is super annoying and completely useless.

Far said:

Weird. I wasn't even awake when that was posted. Looks like the dog is looking to join halforums now.

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I just assumed it was one of those board-ate-my-posts bug things again.

--Patrick