According to /Film, director Michael Bay has attended the launch of a Victoria’s Secret Show because he shoots their commercials and (for some reason) discussed the issue that is Megan Fox, claiming that “I love her.”

In addition to the preliminary ideas for Transformers 3 that Bay talked about in the secret video on the Transformers 2 Blu-ray, he has apparently also given thought to Fox’s character, stating:

“She’s got a great part in Transformers 3”

With all the controversy and the Hitler comment she made, it is surprising that he wouldn’t kill her off, but apparently it was all in good fun? Andrea Mandell of USA Today got Bay to discuss the comments made by Fox.

She called me [after the Hitler comment] and goes, ‘It’s all bullshit, Mike.’ The press, they just like to prey, and stalk, and pounce and find a good little juicy thing. But she’s always wanted to do these crazy comments. That’s just her. She’s great.

So you’re not going to kill her off?

“No, no, no. She gets enough of that already”

Right. Well, at least we know he is already contemplating the sequel. I’m glad he has decided to not kill her off, but I hope he stays true to his claims here and gives her a better role. I think the film needs just a tad bit less action and some more character development and interaction. Cut the bloat!

We will continue to keep you informed with everything that is Transformers 3 as news becomes available.

Alright, people generally tend to love to hate director Michael Bay. I mean I’ve read harsh criticisms that say he has no directing ability, he doesn’t know how to shoot action scenes, his action scenes consist of too much close up movement, etc.

However, Bay’s Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen raked in a heavy amount of cash, despite his directing reputation. One can’t deny that fans are completely split between loving or hating Transformers 2. Some say it is exactly what they expected, an action movie done on a gigantic scale, while some knock it for its lack of storyline and cheesy characters and one-liners.

So, in a secret video unlockable on the DVD and Blu-Ray versions of Transformers 2, Michael Bay discusses his preliminary ideas for Transformers 3. You can see the video followed by my thoughts below.

Note that he begins the video by saying something along the lines of “I’m going to tell you a bunch of lies,” and then goes on to discuss his thoughts for making Transformers 3 a success. He tosses around a few words that most critics of the first two films will rejoice over. Things like “emotion,” “smaller-scale,” “darker,” “less exposed,” and “more undercover.”

While these early words will probably be music to the ears of die hard fans, Transformers 2 did considerably well without any of those things. So, why would he want to change his formula completely? I think one reason that the movies were such successes is because of the large scale CGI work and the action-packed plot.

I am all for a better storyline, but he needs to find a way to balance the action and story enough so that he doesn’t alienate A) die hard fans (again) and B) the fans that actually enjoyed the first two.

What do you think?

When X-Men Origins: Wolverine is arguably the best the blockbuster season has to offer, you know it’s been a pretty weak blockbuster season.  But where Wolverine succeeds (and that’s not often) and where Star Trek fails is in terms of faithfulness.  Wolverine at least tries to pull from the source material, but Star Trek actually makes the point to completely disregard its roots in four main failures.

Failure #1:  Spock.  Where to begin… Well, let’s start with all the whining.  For a Vulcan, he sure does do a lot of it.  Instead of being presented as the weirdly calm, rational voice of reason he represented in Leonard Nimoy’s depiction, Zachary Quinto is only as good as the awkward writing will allow – awkward as in a makeout session with the over-used Lt. Uhura, whose mommy-complex is among the creepiest surprises the movie has to offer.

Failure #2:  No Trek.  The charm of the original Star Trek premise was the concept of exploration – “to seek out new life and new civilizations.”  This alternate reality version doesn’t go anywhere, both in terms of plot and space.   There’s nothing learned, no social commentaries made, no lessons taken away.  It’s simply just action, which is definitely surprising coming from director J.J. Abrams who co-created one of the most complex, character-driven TV dramas of all time, Lost, in which something new is learned every 2 minutes.

Failure #3:  Kirk.  There’s only one and it’s not Chris Pine.  William Shatner made saving the universe a game of strategy and machismo all the while keeping a cool about him that made him appealing to the hip 60’s generation, but Pine’s Kirk is even whinier than his Vulcan best friend/most bitter/sexual rival. (They both pine after Uhura and with the way she dresses, who could blame them?)  He’s so self-loathing (as opposed to the self-aggrandizing Shatner) that he deserves to be in a padded room more than a captain’s chair.   Of course, that doesn’t stop him from (kinda) graduating Starfleet Academy and being promoted to captain THE SAME DAY.  Wouldn’t it be nice to go to that school…

Failure #4:  No real villain.  Sure there’s Eric Bana as Captain Nero, but who cares?  He takes up about 10 minutes of screen time and lacks any real motivation or development.   Compared to the calculating, tragic and obsessed Khan from Star Trek II, Nero might as well be an extra on Stargate.

What prevents this movie from being a colossal failure is one thing – it looks really, really cool.   While I still advise the smarter fans looking for something deeper to stay away, those of you who like explosions and cool CGI effects (and who doesn’t?), feast your eyes because there’s a lot to take in.  There’s even a sword fight on a satellite!  Hey, no one saw Transformers for the plot and this movie should be treated the same.   It’s just unfortunate that for a franchise who claims to have gone “where no man has gone before,” it sure seems an awful lot like Michael Bay beat them to it. 

 

**1/2 (Two and a half stars)

Tom Gavin

10-23-2009

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen has received a lot of negative feedback on many blogsites across the web. However, I got the chance to see the movie last Wednesday and, in my opinion, many of those comments are unwarranted.

While the film is indeed long, it didn’t feel drawn out to me. It was a solid action film with some great film work from director Michael Bay. Anyway, let’s jump right in.

Be warned that the rest of this entry includes spoilers.

Some of the highlights of the film for me included the great fight scenes. I think that Michael Bay may have taken some of the harsh criticism about his scenes being too quick to heart because I could tell more of what was going on this film during the action cuts.

The best battles were definitely the one in the woods and the huge, very long battle at the end involving the transformers and the human military.

The CGI was handled pretty well and looked great compared to many other films.

The downside of the film was some of the corny jokes toward the beginning and the awful way Sam (Shia LeBeouf) injured his hand to account for his real life hand injury. I guess they wanted to make it subtle but I would have liked to have scene it smashed by a Decepticon or something.

Other than that, the plot was decently solid, but not focused on The Fallen very much-which the film’s title implies. I do think it was odd that Megatron seemed kinda like a wimp in this sequel, compared to how hard he was to defeat in the first film, but it wasn’t that big of deal.

Overall, I enjoyed the film and I recommend seeing it if you have a few hours to burn (about 3). It’ll be awesome on Blu-Ray, but you should probably see it on the big screen while you can. In my opinion, the constant action will not leave you bored!

According to MovieTickets.com, Michael Bay has made his last Transformers film.

Unfortunately, the director of Transformers and this summer’s Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is set to quit the action franchise because he has “had enough” of making big budget blockbusters.

Bay, who is known for his explosive action sequences, is reportedly sick of all the negative reviews from critics who dislike his movie-making style and is determined to move away from the genre.

He states,

It’s easy to go shoot an art movie in a winery in the South of France. But people have no idea how hard it is to create something like Transformers. They (the critics) review me before they’ve even seen the movie.

Sadly, Bay says that if the franchise bosses give the okay for a third Transformers installment, they will have to seek another director.

He adds,

After the three and a half years I’ve spent making these movies, I feel like I’ve had enough of the Transformers world. I need to do something totally divergent, something without any explosions.

I don’t know about you, but I liked the first Transformers film and I can’t wait to see the sequel this summer. It is pretty disappointing that Michael Bay would actually let what the critics have to say get to him and ignore the fans’ opinions.

Either way, MuveePRO will let you know if Mr. Bay decides to change his mind or any other news regarding the Transformers franchise as it becomes available.

Thanks to Spoiler TV, we have acquired a new scene from Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen leaked from the film’s premiere in Japan.

There are minor spoilers here, but the scene shows Mikaela (Megan Fox) having a slight scuffle with a small Decepticon while trying to protect something for Sam (Shia LeBeouf).

While the scene is somewhat amusing, I don’t know if the voice fits the robot. Perhaps it was dubbed in English.

Anyway, have a look at the scene and let us know what you think in the comments below!

We have several new high quality promotional photos from Michael Bay’s Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen focuses on Sam Witwicky (Shia LeBeouf) going off to college. However, it is not long before the Autobots ask Sam to help them battle the Decepticons and a resurrected Megatron.

Have a look at the new promotional photos below and be sure to catch Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen this summer!

Thanks to Spoiler TV, we have a new international promotional poster for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen!

Transformers 2 is directed by Michael Bay and follows the story of Sam Witwicky (Shia LeBeouf) as he goes off to college. However, it is not long before Optimus Prime and the Autobots ask Sam help them battle the evil Decepticons with a resurrected Megatron and a new enemy, The Fallen.

Here is the new international poster, be sure to leave a comment or two!