Hey there Stooges---
There’s a lot of good stuff to tell you about showing SHOOT-EM-UP to the studio and them loving it… about another project that looks like it will happen… about something I so desperately wanted to do in 2002 but got wronged by a friend, and now the karma turns. Like I say there is a lot of good stuff to tell you.
But let’s talk Transformers shall we? There has been a lot of leaks of photos, scripts, tidbits both true and false. Roberto and Alex spoke on a webcast this week. Lots of things coming out which are costing people their jobs. Good stuff, bad stuff.
But you know what? You haven’t actually SEEN a damn thing yet.
Now the negative ninnies out there, the people like Bowspearer who just live in a cesspool of hatred, will say “We’ve seen enough. This isn’t my Transformers.” To those people who are so old school and stuck in their ways I say the following- Go away. Seriously. We don’t need you here. You hate and you haven’t SEEN a damn thing yet.
Oh sure, Prime doesn’t look EXACTLY like he did in the cartoon. The Autobots are only five. The Decepticons don’t have Soundwave. There are complaints out the wazoo. Well you know what?
I have complaints too. There are things I wanted in this film which are not going to be in there. But I know what some of you know- filmmaking is not a democracy. Hell, Adam Goodman is in charge of production at Dreamworks. He’s the guy who BOUGHT this film. He is working day and night to get this ready for July 07. There are things I know he wishes were in the film. But they aren’t. You’ve talked online here to Brian Goldner. He owns the property but everything is not EXACTLY as he wishes. Tom Desanto is the most devoted producer out there- I know there are things he wishes were in there. You saw that Alex and Bob didn’t get everything they wanted. And Michael Bay, who spends 16 hour days shooting this mega-film? Michael Bay who sets up every shot himself and oversees to the point of operating the camera at times? He’s made a zillion compromises to get a great film he can be happy with.
No, filmmaking is a series of happy accidents. When Tom and I shopped this project around every studio passed, including Dreamworks and Paramount. When those two studios and others came around, we ended up with Dreamworks because Steven Spielberg and Adam Goodman (and creative VPS John Fox and Marc Haimes) knew that this was a BIG cool idea for a franchise. Hell, those guys wanted it in cinemas THIS summer. It’s now 07 because everyone wants to get it right. No one is trying to make anything but a great film here.
When I say you haven’t SEEN anything, think about it. You’ve seen a toy mold. A truck still. A Bumblebee model with a guy underneath it.
You haven’t SEEN Bumblebee transform. You haven’t SEEN Optimus walk or Megatron awaken. You’ve seen sketches, designs and stills. Most of you get it when Brian Goldner says “We are doing something here that has never been done.” He’s right. The technology is there to make a LIVE ACTION Transformers film. To make several of them. But this is not a cartoon. There are cartoons already. Hasbro is making more. This is something new and different. LIVE ACTION robots.
So you negative ninnies- I’d like you to give us a break. And if you don’t, I’d like you to go away for a while. Seriously. Come back in six months. Wait until you SEE something that Michael and ILM and all of us have done. Not some leaked bullshit from some coward. Wait till you SEE the magic that I believe will be Transformers the Live Action Movie. Then if you don’t like what you see, hate away. Till then, I challenge you to be a grown up and reserve judgment. Even the majority who seem to like what you see have a right to hate later on.
We’re trying to do this right- to appeal to the fans and the rest of the world. Cullen is hired. Welker is going through the process. Other things are being reviewed and considered.
There will always be someone who wants to hate. That’s so easy.
But I challenge the haters to wait until they SEE a Transformer in Live Action.
And the rest of you, most of you, thanks for the many suggestions and kind words. It continues to be a surprising and fun ride.
Hang Tight Stooges, Hang Tight.
I have to agree with Murphy (and no not kissing butt cause frankly why bother) on this one. Patience is the watchword. Its simply to early in the process to have all this hatred. Look at X-Men, Superman, Spider-Man, Lord of the Rings, well the list goes on. The more the fans seem to think they know what is best, the more we seem to be wrong.
I personally like what I have been seeing so far and I was not just come lately fan. I have a collection of G1 on up toys that would make many green with envy. I also have the original DVD collection of the G1 Transformers cartoons and the movie. Trust me, they are not nearly as good as you remember them to be. Go back and watch them with the eyes of an adult. The very LAST thing you want them to do is copy the cartoon and those designs. If did that, then it might as well be the Brady Bunch, why waste the effort if you can just pretend its 1984 and basically make the movie a joke.
All involved are in this weird delicate balance where on ooriginalof the pendulum swing is orginial cartoons and its universe. Lots of great ideas in there. Lots of bad ones to. On the other end of the pendulum swing you have this massive "re-imagining" of crappy worthy proportions (say Miami Vice or Batman and Robin). The goal is the middle of the swing. You take the idea of the orginial that work (real world objects that change to robots at war with each other lead by Optimus Prime and Megatron) but add a modern beat to it (current objects, sharper, deadlier, realistic designs) with what I hope is an entertaining story. So far I have faith that this is being done.
Now to the movie folks I add this, don't assume the vocal minority speaks for the majority. Also, as the Snakes on the Planes (and Serenity) box office showed, the internet does not a success make (anymore then a $20 million a movie star does). The hype machine of the internet is maturing and eventially it will become all that us netizens hope, but that age has not yet arrived. You still have to satisfy John Couch Potato and trying to listen to all of us fandom suggestions is a sure way to fail in that goal. No one being told that but I say again mimicing the 80s cartoon would be an insane mistake.
In the end, thanks for your diligence, I all appreciate the input we are allowed and I hope the vocal minority doesn't cost us that peak we are currently enjoying in the movie making process of this movie. I just want the best damn movie talent and money can buy and from what I have seen, it seems we might just be getting. Us fans just need to have patience to see what unfolds and the movie folks need to have patience with our passion.
- Updated link back to original source of message, Don Murphy's message board. Note to self, tfans.com not fans of sourcing.
