Friday, January 26, 2007

New Transformers Movie: The Autobots

 
In July 4, 2007, the whole movie industry will again witness the release of a second Transformers sci-fi movie. The film is directed by Michael Bay and produced by Steven Spielberg. Robert Orci serves as one of the screenwriters. Although the story line of the new film was not based on the first movie released in 1986, the new film still features some of the famous Transformers characters.
 
The production staff made some changes on our favorite Autobots. All of them are now GM-branded vehicles except for Optimus Prime:

* Optimus Prime (Semi-trailer truck) - Orci described Optimus as a noble king, similar to King Arthur. His robot mode contains an arm cannon, and a retractable faceplate, similar to Optimus Primal from the Beast Wars series and the Transformers: Cybertron incarnation of Prime. His alternate mode, which has red flame artwork upon blue paint, is a close match to one of the Generation 2 Optimus Prime toys, and two versions were built. Lorenzo DiBonaventura said that Optimus is scaled to be 9.7m (32 feet) in robot form, and a semi in vehicle form. However, Michael Bay has said Optimus is 8.5m (28 feet) tall. A blue version of Optimus’ head with motion capture points was used.

* Bumblebee (1974 Chevrolet Camaro, later reformatted as a 2008-2009 Chevrolet Camaro) - Bumblebee is the underdog character and a scout for the Autobots, as well as the Transformer most connected to humans. He ends up being purchased by Spike Witwicky, who is looking to buy his first car. His robot mode has been constructed as a physical prop in addition to a CG model. Bumblebee is 5.1m (17 feet) tall. Bumblebee’s arsenal includes an arm cannon and shoulder missiles.

* Ironhide (GMC Topkick pickup truck) - Ironhide is one of Optimus’ oldest friends, and has some cowboy characteristics, being the first in battle. While Ironhide was a van in G1, he was a truck in the Transformers: Robots in Disguise series from Japan. Ironhide will be 7.9m (26 feet) tall.

* Jazz (Pontiac Solstice) - Jazz is a “rock-and-roll” type character who lives by his credo of “If you can’t do something with style, it’s not worth doing at all.”[35] He will be 4.6m (15 feet) tall. He has pronounced antennae on his head, and is either holding a gun in his left hand, or has a gun barrel in place of his left hand.[46] Another picture of him features fingers, although this may be art for the IDW comic adaptation of the film.

* Ratchet (Search & Rescue vehicle based on the Humvee design) - Ratchet’s role in the movie is the familiar one of Autobot medic, and is 7.3m (24 feet) tall. His robot mode lacks the head fins seen in the traditional animated version of the character.

Meanwhile, quality GM-branded auto parts like Pontiac Parts are found at OEM stores online.

Posted by rob at 07:23:11 | Permalink | Comments (2)

Saturday, November 18, 2006

Of transforming Xbox 360’s, battle of Los Angeles, and others

I know all of you fans of the Transformers out there are DYING to get at least a sneakpeek or some tidbits of info about the movie. Browsing through the Net was an enjoyable ride getting to know different sites (official and unofficial) that feature topics relevant to the showing of Transformers the Movie next summer. Well, some may be accurate. But some may be rumor-mongerers riding on the bandwagon of the Transformers hype, I think.

For example, there is this site that tells that the popular Xbox 360 is featured and could transform itself. Or there are some spy footages from the movie obtained while shooting in  Los Angeles. There are also reports about an interview with director Michael Bay on what is to be expected in the upcoming film.

The reports are rather intriguing, with lots of stuffs deviating from the animation version. The Movie Blog got a report from Ain’t It Cool that it got an interview gig with Bay divulging some changes for the upcoming film. Like all of the transformers won’t be as “blocky,” so they are redesigned. The original voice actors in the animated program will be screened but not necessarily cast. He wanted to make sure that their voices won’t age that much. Also, exciting scenarios are in the offing like: the fight between and Optimus Prime and Megatron in downtown Los Angeles; a vivid picture of Cybertron; action; and, much, much more action!

There are also reports on modifications with the characters themselves, morphing from one original toy to another in the movie. Bumblebee, a classic Volkswagen Beetle, is reportedly being conditioned to be a Camaro. Decepticon leader Megatron, who takes the form of a gun, takes an alternate form of a ship. Also, Soundwave the boombox, will morph into CD-slinging Soundbyte.

At Youtube, there are some spy footages that leaked while shooting the movie in Los Angeles. Member “ValleyKnight” uploaded 2 clips with the first video catching an ongoing movie shoot.

There will be more to come as soon as I get my bearings together. My work week was HELL, literally. This brain has been flooded by an endless flow of information overload. Now, I am having a hard time thinking what part of work I have to attend to.

If you got the touch, you got the power. ‘Til the next posting, Transformaniacs!

 

 

 

Posted by rog at 07:08:47 | Permalink | Comments (2)