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Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

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Transformers:
Revenge of the Fallen
File:Revengeotfallen.jpg
Countdown image on Michael Bay's website
Directed byMichael Bay
Written byRoberto Orci
Alex Kurtzman
Ehren Kruger
Produced bySteven Spielberg
Lorenzo di Bonaventura
Tom DeSanto
Don Murphy
StarringShia LaBeouf
Megan Fox
Josh Duhamel
Tyrese Gibson
John Turturro
Peter Cullen (voice)
CinematographyBen Seresin
Edited byRoger Barton
Distributed byDreamWorks
Paramount Pictures
Release date
June 26 2009
Country United States
LanguageEnglish

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen[1] is an upcoming science fiction 3-D film scheduled for release in 2009.[2] It is the sequel to the 2007 film Transformers, which was the first live action Transformers film. Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg return respectively as director and executive producer, while Shia LaBeouf reprises the role of Sam Witwicky, the human caught in the war between the heroic Autobots and evil Decepticons. Shooting began in May 2008 for a June 26 2009 release date.

Bay desired to give the sequel a bigger budget for a global scale and better characterization for a larger cast of robots. The main hurdle in getting the film produced was overcoming the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, as well as possible strikes by the Directors Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild. Bay met his shooting date with the help of previsualization and a scriptment by his writers Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, and series newcomer Ehren Kruger.

Premise

Roberto Orci described the film's theme as the robots confronting "being away from home",[3] with the focus between the robots and humans "much more evenly balanced".[4] The tone will be similar to the first film, but "the stakes will be higher",[5] (with a more global sensibility),[6] and there will be more focus on the science fiction elements. Orci also said "we'll be better at modulating [the humor] this time". Structurally, the plot will be "more organically interconnected in that the first had the structure of 3 story lines coming together at Hoover. Transformers Revenge of the Fallen will have a different structure."[5]

Production

Before Transformers was released, producer Tom DeSanto said he had come up with "a very cool idea" to introduce the Dinobots and Constructicons,[7] while Bay was interested in an aircraft carrier, which he considered for the first film.[8] In September 2007, Paramount announced a June 26 2009 release date for Transformers 2,[9] and Bay began creating animatics of action sequences featuring characters rejected for the first film. This would allow animators to complete sequences if the Directors Guild of America went on strike in July 2008.[10] The director considered making a small project in between Transformers and its sequel, but knew "you have your baby and you don't want someone else to take it".[11] The film was given a larger budget than the first film, which cost $151 million,[12] and some of the action scenes rejected for the original were written into the sequel.[13]

Writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman originally passed on the sequel because of a busy schedule. The studio began courting other writers in May 2007, but as they were unimpressed with their pitches, they convinced Orci and Kurtzman to return.[10] The studio also signed on Ehren Kruger, as he impressed Bay and Hasbro president Brian Goldner with his knowledge of the Transformers mythology.[14] The writing trio were paid $8 million.[10] Kurtzman created the film's title.[15] Orci was dismissive of the Dinobots, although after filming began he became fonder of those characters, because of their popularity.[16] Screenwriting was interrupted by the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, but to avoid production delays the writers spent two weeks writing a treatment, which they handed in the night before the strike began.[17][18] Bay expanded the outline into a sixty-page scriptment:[19] Orci explained Bay "came up with some really fun gags and a few descriptions of the kind of hardware he will need for production".[20]

The Bethlehem Steel site in Lehigh Valley represents a Chinese city

Filming began in Los Angeles, California in May 2008.[21] From June 2,[19] three days were spent on an action sequence at the Bethlehem Steel site in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, which represented a fictional Chinese city.[22] Afterwards, they shot at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.[23] The crew moved to Philadelphia on June 9, where they shot at the Exelon plants in Delaware; the University of Pennsylvania; the Eastern State Penitentiary; Fairmount Park; Rittenhouse Square (which represents Paris); and Wanamaker's.[24][25][26] They moved to Princeton University on June 22.[27] Filming there angered some students at the University of Pennsylvania, believing Bay had chosen to reshoot scenes at Princeton, the school's historical rival, and script Princeton's name in the movie. However, neither the University of Pennsylvania nor Princeton gave Bay permission to be named in the film because of a "funny 'mom' scene" that both felt "did not represent the school".[28]

A total of $5 million will be spent during filming in Philadelphia, Bethlehem, and New Jersey.[22] Bay scheduled a break for filming beginning on June 30, focusing on animation if the 2008 Screen Actors Guild strike happens.[29] Orci joked "Optimus and company are also the stars, and fortunately for us, they are not part of a union!"[30] They will shoot at the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group in Tucson, Arizona in July.[31] Filming will also take place in Jordan,[32] and New Mexico (which stood in for Qatar in the first film).[33]

The producers expect that with a bigger budget and the special effects worked out, the Transformers will have a larger role. Peter Cullen recalled, "Don Murphy mentioned to me, 'Only because of the tremendous expense to animate Optimus Prime, he'll be in just a certain amount of [the first film].' But he said, 'Next time, if the movie is a success, you're gonna be in it a ton.'"[34] The director hopes to include more close-ups of the robots' faces.[35] Scott Farrar returned as visual effects supervisor, and anticipated moodier use of lighting as well as deeper roles for the Decepticons. He stated that with the bigger deadline, post-production will be a "circus".[36] Hasbro became more involved in the designs of the robots than in the first film.[5] They insisted on keeping the alternate modes of some of the returning characters similar, so people would not have to buy toys of the same characters.[37]

Cast and characters

Humans

  • John Turturro plays Reggie Simmons, former agent of the terminated Sector 7 unit, which monitored the Transformers activity on Earth.[21]
  • Kevin Dunn and Julie White play Ron and Judy, Sam's parents. Orci wrote, "Love them! Gotta have them back."[42] He confirmed they learned the truth about the Transformers while off-screen in the last film.[43]

Rainn Wilson cameos as a university professor,[21] while Kym Whitley has an unnamed part.[44]

There had been speculation that Jon Voight would reprise his role as Secretary of Defense John Keller, with the actor stating "This is a big one. It's gonna happen, we're getting ready to go",[45] but he has confirmed that he will not be appearing in the film.[46]

Transformers

The voices of the other Transformers are unconfirmed
  • Arcee, an Autobot motorcycle with a feminine personality and appearance.[41] Arcee was dropped from the first film, as the writers felt there was not enough time to explain her "gender".[50] Orci stated the issue could just be ignored in the film.[51] Arcee has been redesigned from the concept art used for her toy and comic book appearances.[52]
  • Soundwave, Megatron's most loyal lieutenant.[54] Orci "duly noted" his minions Ravage and Laserbeak would need to appear as well.[55] In the 1980s toy line, Soundwave was a tape deck. The filmmakers had tried to work him into the first film twice, and these roles eventually evolved into Blackout (a MH-53 Pave Low helicopter) and Frenzy (who changed into a CD Player and later into a mobile phone). The latter character was particularly thought to be too different from the original.[56][57]

Other robots include the Autobots "Stinger"; "Wheels"; twins who combine into an ice cream van; an Autobot Chevrolet Trax;[58] a Frenzy-like character;[59] and a Decepticon Audi R8;.[41] Names of the individual twins and Constructicons will be determined in post-production,[60] as the dialogue can be re-recorded with the animation.[61] There will be some robots who can transform into weapons.[62]

Hasbro stated "a key character from the first movie [would] make a dramatic comeback and attempt to settle a score": Megatron (Hugo Weaving) was among those killed in the first film.[1] Orci confirmed the Decepticons will have whole dialogue scenes to themselves,[5] and before he began writing he had envisioned there being around ten robots on each side.[63] Bay also promised a geriatric robot.[19]

References

  1. ^ a b "Transformers 2 News". Hasbro. 2008-06-05. Retrieved 2008-06-05.
  2. ^ "'Tintin', 'Transformers 2' getting 3D release". Comics2Film. 2008-05-13. Retrieved 2008-05-13.
  3. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-22). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-22.
  4. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-25). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
  5. ^ a b c d e "More on Transformers 2 From Writer Roberto Orci". Seibertron.com. 2008-02-18. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  6. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-18). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  7. ^ "Transformer Producer Wants Dinobots in TF2". UGO Networks. 2007-06-05. Retrieved 2007-12-16.
  8. ^ Patrick Kolan (2007-06-13). "Transformers Roundtable with Michael Bay". IGN. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  9. ^ Pamela McClintock (2007-09-26). "'Transformers' sequel sets 2009 date". Variety. Retrieved 2007-09-27.
  10. ^ a b c Jay Fernandez (2007-10-10). "'Transformers II' gets an A-Team of writers". Los Angeles Times.
  11. ^ Adam B. Vary (2007-07-04). "Optimus Prime Time". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2007-12-16. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  12. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-23). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
  13. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-05-31). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-06-05.
  14. ^ Borys Kit (2007-10-04). "Writing team built fast for 'Transformers 2'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2007-10-04.
  15. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-06-05). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-06-05.
  16. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-06-19). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-06-25.
  17. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-14). "More Bay Quotes". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-15.
  18. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-14). "More Bay Quotes". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-15.
  19. ^ a b c Anne Thompson (2008-02-08). "Oscar Watch: Bay Hosts Transformers Tech Show". Variety. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  20. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-14). "More Bay Quotes". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-15.
  21. ^ a b c d e Jay A. Fernandez, Borys Kit (2008-05-29). "Rainn Wilson in for 'Transformers 2'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2008-05-29.
  22. ^ a b Michael Duck (2008-01-17). "Officials fired up for Bethlehem filming". The Morning Call.
  23. ^ Keith Knight (2008-06-07). "More High-Fliers at Air & Space". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-06-09. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  24. ^ Michael Klein (2008-06-08). "Roll 'em". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  25. ^ Michael Klein (2008-06-17). "Inqlings: The big reach for an anchor". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
  26. ^ Aaron Scott (2008-06-23). ""Transformers" Sequel Brings Movie Studio to Wanamaker Bldg". CoStar Group. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
  27. ^ Tashin Shamma (2008-06-24). "'Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen' crash lands on campus". The Daily Princetonian. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
  28. ^ Nelson (administrator) (2008-006-27). "Regarding Penn's open letter to Michael Bay". Michael Bay. Retrieved 2008-06-27. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  29. ^ Gwladys Fouché (2008-06-17). "Hollywood prepares for the actors' strike". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
  30. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-07-02). "The 'Welcome Mr. Orci Thread'. You may ask questions!". TFW2005. Retrieved 2008-07-02.
  31. ^ Phil Villarreal (2008-06-05). "Moviemaking at local resort provides glitz, economic lift" (Registration required). Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved 2008-06-05.
  32. ^ Ali Jafaar (2008-05-15). "Jordan unveils projects, initiatives". Variety. Retrieved 2008-05-15. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  33. ^ "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen to be filmed in New Mexico". KVIA-TV. 2008-06-09. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  34. ^ Anthony Breznican (2007-07-12). "Fan buzz: Flesh out those 'bots". USA Today. Retrieved 2007-07-12.
  35. ^ Michael Bay's DVD audio commentary for Transformers, 2007, Paramount
  36. ^ Cindy White (2007-10-01). "Transformers 2 More Ambitious". Sci Fi Wire. Retrieved 2007-10-01.
  37. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-06-27). "The 'Welcome Mr. Orci Thread'. You may ask questions!". TFW2005. Retrieved 2008-06-28.
  38. ^ a b Robert Stern (2008-06-25). "Filmmaking goes to college". New Jersey Online. Retrieved 2008-06-26.
  39. ^ Larry Carroll (2008-06-02). "EXCLUSIVE: Matthew Marsden Joins 'Transformers 2' Cast". MTV Movies Blog. Retrieved 2008-06-04.
  40. ^ "Isabel Lucas To Appear in Transformers 2". TFW2005. 2008-05-07. Retrieved 2008-05-08.
  41. ^ a b c d "TF2 - Bethlehem Callsheets - BIG SPOILERS". TFW2005. 2008-06-05. Retrieved 2008-06-06.
  42. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-23). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
  43. ^ a b Roberto Orci (2007-07-06). "Orci and Kurtzman Questions: Post movie". Official site. Retrieved 2007-12-16.
  44. ^ "Barack Obama buzz sweeps through the BET Awards". My Way. 2008-06-25. Retrieved 2008-06-25. {{cite news}}: Text "Derrik J. Lang" ignored (help)
  45. ^ "Scoop On Transformers 2". Hollyscoop. 2008-04-22.
  46. ^ "Jon Voight Exclusive Video Interview – Saturn Awards 2008". Collider.com. 2008-06-28.
  47. ^ Heather Newgen (2007-10-13). "Peter Cullen Talks Transformers". Superhero Hype!. Retrieved 2007-10-16.
  48. ^ Tim Formas (2008-04-02). "Optimus Prime Vehicle Sighted, More Proof of Transformers Sequel Filming Setup?". TFW2005. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  49. ^ a b "Transformers 2 Vehicle Sightings - Ratchet and Ironhide". TFW2005. 2008-04-03. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  50. ^ Todd Gilchrist (2007-07-02). "Exclusive interview: Roberto Orci". IGN. Retrieved 2008-06-06. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  51. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-06-30). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-07-03.
  52. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-05-07). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-05-08.
  53. ^ "Transformers 2 Filming in Culver City and the Return of Barricade". TFW2005. 2008-03-28. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  54. ^ "Orci on Transformers 2, Trek". IGN. 2008-05-16. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
  55. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-18). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  56. ^ Their War: Decepticons Strike, 2007 DVD featurette
  57. ^ Roberto Orci (2007-05-19). "Roberto and Alex: Questions". Official site. Retrieved 2008-06-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  58. ^ "TF2 Photos from PA Penitentiary - Chevy Trax & Beat on Set". Seibertron.com. 2008-06-21. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |accesdate= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  59. ^ "New Transformer Prop at Princeton Shoot for Transformers Sequel". TFW2005. 2008-06-25. Retrieved 2008-06-25.
  60. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-05-07). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-05-08.
  61. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-05-08). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-05-08.
  62. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-06-16). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-06-16.
  63. ^ Roberto Orci (2008-02-21). "The All New "Hey Roberto" Thread". Don Murphy. Retrieved 2008-02-21.
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