ROTTEN TOMATOES: Writing Team Penning Fast-Tracked Transformers 2 Comments

Writing Team Penning Fast-Tracked Transformers 2

by Jeff Giles | October 04, 2007

Summary

It looked like a long shot, but give 'em credit for moving quickly when they needed to -- DreamWorks/Paramount is getting its ducks in a row for the fast-tracked Transformers 2. Back to Article

(1-37 of 37 posts) | Reply

frogleg writes:
on Oct 04 2007 07:35 AM

Wow. Since when was rushing a movie to production a good thing, especially when rushing the writing? Not like anyone expected Citizen Kane, I guess.

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blank blank writes:
on Oct 04 2007 08:27 AM

who's happy about this? transformers sucked major monkey balls in the "writing" department. having these two douchebags write watchmen makes me really, really nervous...

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DanielLee8793 writes:
on Oct 04 2007 08:40 AM

I guess this one is gonna suck major **** just like the first one.

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nathanpoitras writes:
on Oct 04 2007 09:10 AM

All those Transformers writers getting together with their crayons for another go-around. If it's true that sequels are never as good as the original, I guess we're in for one of the worst movies of all time.

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dahluzz writes:
on Oct 04 2007 09:44 AM

this thing is optimus primed for utter failure... well, aside from its $300 million domestic gross.

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renodc writes:
on Oct 04 2007 09:47 AM

Rushing any movie into production is never a good thing creatively. Of course, this has nothing to do with putting out the best possible product. This is all financially driven, and is simply about striking while the iron is hot and before the potential writer's strike.

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DanielLee8793 writes:
on Oct 04 2007 10:07 AM

It doesnt matter how much the movie made, people usually dont know whats good or not. If your smart and edcuated you will know what to look for in a movie, rather than just fancy special effects...

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dahluzz writes:
on Oct 04 2007 10:21 AM

"if YOUR smart and educated... blah blah blah" shut up, you've been owned.

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opTIMus Nerd writes:
on Oct 04 2007 10:39 AM

I was not aware they are adapting the Talisman...Does TNT mean for the cable channel?

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arendr writes:
on Oct 04 2007 10:55 AM

Aren't these the same guys that Bay had eviscerate the original script for The Island?

I fully admit it: I am a Bay hater. Which means you can guess my opinion on this story.

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DanielLee8793 writes:
on Oct 04 2007 10:59 AM

In reply to this comment (#1168060)
what the hell are you talking about? How was I owned?

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sickofitall writes:
on Oct 04 2007 11:04 AM

In reply to this comment (#1167969)
you suck dick *******

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sguy78 writes:
on Oct 04 2007 11:05 AM

I just don't understand how this is being pegged as a good thing. I'd rather wait for them to put a good script together than rush it. Transformers wasn't meant to be Shakespear, it's supposed to be robots kicking the hell out of eachother. Even so, the original script wasn't that great. If they rush the second script it doesn't look good.

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sickofitall writes:
on Oct 04 2007 11:05 AM

In reply to this comment (#1168057)
once again ******* shut the **** up

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Heath H. writes:
on Oct 04 2007 11:41 AM

This, 'The Mummy 3' and 'Terminator 4'? I wonder if the world is going to explode? Everyon get ready for the Apocalypse.

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hewpot writes:
on Oct 04 2007 12:57 PM

TRANSFORMERS OWNS ALL YOU **** HEADS!!! CANT WAIT MOTHER ****ERS! WOOO!!!!

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harrismonkey writes:
on Oct 04 2007 01:30 PM

Yeah, I didn't want that team back to begin with let alone writing four different scripts at the same time in about a month before the strike hits.

As much as I'm not a Bay fan, the writing was ALREADY the worst thing about the first one.

Ouch.

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Damon687 writes:
on Oct 04 2007 01:52 PM

I really don't get it, its like this site has a bunch of haters that just WAIT to read an article that has nothing to do with them and then post crap. If you hated Transformers to the level that it sucked bad, why are you even reading an article about a sequel? Just to make other people miserable who really enjoyed the movie? I am still not even sure why these people saw the first transformers at all considering you got exactly what was advertised (maybe not what you wanted but they didn't hide what it was).

Also, I personally like all kinds of movies except for chick flicks and sometimes I'm in the mood for brain candy, sometimes I just want pure fun entertainment. To say people that just like to sit back here and there and enjoy awesome special effects and have a few laughs aren't smart or educated is just plain ignorance.

The writing wasn't great for the 1st one but it was perfectly fine for the movie it was (a summer popcorn action flick). Frankly, the only writing I disliked was Anthony Anderson's character who I normally find funny enough; the rest of it was perfectly FINE. The rest of the movie rocked though and I loved the special affects / battles. Clearly LOTS of people also really enjoyed the movie or it wouldn't have gotten the referrals and super long legs at the box office.

That all being said, the writing strike is a while away so I am not sure why you guys are acting like this is super rushed. They just put it to the top of the priority list before they can't get it done. It's not like its super hard to write a movie script in the amount of time they have when you have 3 guys working on it, especially for a sequel to a Michael Bay action flick (not super complex). I personally don't think this acceleration will mean anything bad at all, it will just mean they'll have a script before the strike, that simple.

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Uradik Smoke writes:
on Oct 04 2007 02:13 PM

And let the Transformers hating begin , again lol ...

What has it been like 2 weeks since a forum on Transformers ? All the haters have a couple weeks of hate buil up and are ready to unleash it ...

Like it or not the movie made close to 700 Million worldwide and that automatically puts it on the fast track for a sequel ...

I expect a similar movie to the first , maybe a lil more robot action and hopefully alot less human plot , some news Transformers , a better plot , some major new action sequences and this will be better than the first one , If anything it will be bigger and louder and have more flash than the first , thats enough for the kid and fan in me ...

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AcE! writes:
on Oct 04 2007 02:57 PM

I dont think the dialogue or plot of this movie is going to be the strong point no matter what happens now. As long as the dialogue and acting doesnt get worse, and theres more action, ill be satisfied. The idea of the sequal being a great movie with a rich story is pretty much gone, might as well get to the explosions and make another popcorn movie. Which isnt really a bad thing, for me anyway. =)

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Heath H. writes:
on Oct 04 2007 02:57 PM

I didn't hate the first 'Transformers' actually. I even liked it, in the same sense, I liked '300'. Completely mindless, but fun none-the-less. If I can get a good deal on 'Transformers' when it comes out, I may even buy it. Afterall, I own '300'.

It's just that details don't sound to good on this project so far, so I just wanted to express my opinion. Although, I much more enraged over the recent talk of a 'Terminator 4'.

So, to the point, I come here to learn about developments in the film world and state my opinion on them. You don't have to like my opinion, and I honestly couldn't care less. I won't be brash on others opinions, and I will respect yours even if we hold different perspectives.

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GreenBastard writes:
on Oct 04 2007 03:09 PM

In reply to this comment (#1168057)
What an utter Retard! Yes, everyone except you isn't smart enough or educated enough to pick and watch a movie for themselves. I know, lets only make movie's written and directed by you. Or waybe you could pick what everyone else can watch since your so utterly amazing.
Why the F%^K would you buy a ticket to a movie based on a toyline if you wanted smart and educated you ****! Oh ****, I just watched the "Cat in the Hat" for the first time, Oh the Departed was so much better. Why didn't they get the writer and director from Departed to do the Cat in the Hat?
I thought it was fantastic and I can't wait for the next one! I'm sick of hearing doosh-bags moan about how crappy it was and how the writing was bad. It was a movie about giant robots from another planet based on a toy line for F%^K sake,what do you expect you complete cocks! And if I was going to earn another $300,000,000 I'd fast track it to! That is what any share-holder would want.

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AcE! writes:
on Oct 04 2007 03:50 PM

Cat in the Hat does not equate to the seriousness of the Transformers movie. Its a movie about giant robots killing each other, regardless of whether or not it has a toyline the concept and storyline itself has a serious tone. Unfortunately that serious tone wasnt applied to the movie, instead it was made to be a fun action flick. Which isnt a bad thing but that doesnt mean its a little kid movie. It wasnt advertised as one and it wasnt one. It was a serious movie that went over the top with bad puns and jokes.

Yes I liked transformers, it was okay, but saying you expect transformers to have good story is the same as comparing cat in the hat to the departed is rediciulous. Transformers was like Live Free or Die Hard, some silly moments were added in to keep it from being too dark but Transformers tryed to add that element in so much that ended up being cheesy.

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lpbreeze writes:
on Oct 04 2007 04:17 PM

they killed off the black robot man. thats the only thing i remember from the movie. oh and he wither shrunk or the bad guy got way bigger for some reason

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AmazingAndrex writes:
on Oct 04 2007 05:01 PM

Transformers 2, Dragonball Z, Terminator 4, and Mummy 3...

Eh, I'll buy tickets to all of them. I may think they're POS's as far as the actual movie goes, but I'm excited to see how they move the characters forward, and of course, the action.

But I'll also be buying a ticket or two for The Dark Knight, so that makes up for it, right?

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Heath H. writes:
on Oct 04 2007 05:41 PM

Well, kinda. 'TDK' will most likely be fantastic!I'm not gonna see DBZ though bro, that's just too rediculous. I might check out 'T4', but I am very mad at the recent developments. I'll be checking out 'Mummy 3' and 'Tras 2' depening on what we see and here over time

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jackkovack writes:
on Oct 04 2007 07:03 PM

It's never good for any movie to be fast tracked. Fast tracking is always wrong. The quality decreases and the dialouge in the first film wasn't exactly great. I expect the dialogue to be much worse and of course the action to be much better cause it's a sequal you always have to up the anty with sequals when it's an action film. This movie will be crap.

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knowingtoast85 writes:
on Oct 04 2007 09:45 PM

Kurtzman and Orci are living the dream, so good for them. You'd be surprised how difficult it is to write a good action screenplay as opposed to a deep character drama. I look at the number of solid character dramas there are and the number of solid action films, and the former outweighs the latter, don't you think? That's what I see, anyway.

There are a lot of good reasons why that is, among them the fact that the human element (crucial no matter what genre you're in) is so much harder to nail down and make believable when product-placement robots are blowing up buildings. It's also tough when your director would rather make a dud gay joke than go for the unexpected.

And in their favor, Kurtzman and Orci made a pretty good screenplay out of M:I-3. Granted, Abrams did a rewrite, but there are touches and twists of genre invention in the script that are all theirs - including the human element revolving around Ethan Hunt's marriage and his past with Keri Russell's character. Based on the page, it could have been a better movie than it ended up being, I'm positive of it.

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Daniel Aaron writes:
on Oct 05 2007 12:59 AM

i'll write it for 2 million plus make it a good film but im not in the writers guild sooooo. Anyhoot the 700 milllion gross was becuase it was the Transformers not because it was a great film

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harrismonkey writes:
on Oct 05 2007 03:38 AM

In order for Tformers to have a better plot, they can't pull a screenplay out of their *** in five minutes. Maybe I'm wrong, but last I heard the writers guild might go on strike at the end of this month (it had been moved up from last year- again, maybe I'm misinformed on this point).

The above article says they are currently writing on Star Trek, Nightlife, and may still be tweaking The watchmen. That's already three scripts in one month, plus a Transformers Script from start to finish in the next 27 days as well. Does that sound like they'll be able to do even as well as last time, let alone make any improvements?!?!

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TheAncientEnemy writes:
on Oct 07 2007 11:00 AM

I understand the frustration in seeing "bad" movies do really well. It just so happens that the lowest common denominator tends to sell the best because it's very easy to appeal to the casual consumer.

Look at the top 40 music charts. Is there anything on there that isn't just corporatized, over-produced ear fluff? Usually not. People like instant gratification and there will always be someone there ready to sell it to them in a Michael Bay or Timbaland-produced fashion.

I didn't see Transformers for the same reasons I don't ever listen to the radio: it doesn't give me what I want. I'm usually not a fan of sensory appeal on such a shallow level and, as long as people are honest about it, I have no problem with them enjoying things of that nature.

So far here I have seen people showing that honesty. The people that liked the flick admit that they liked it for what it was: just a bunch of robots beating the hell out of eachother. No one is hailing it as a cinematic masterpiece, so I am confused as to why people are acting as if they are.

Don't like it? Don't buy it.

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Vitamin M writes:
on Oct 09 2007 10:17 AM

While I will admit the writing and some of the direction could have been better but after paying to see Transformers twice this summer I will be there again for the sequel. I mean Transformers was the ideal popcorn summer film. The action and visuals were amazing and although the writers may have left out the brains they still packed the film with fun. And yes if you are smart and educated you shouldn't watch a fun movie like this you should just watch the next Lars Von Trier film...I'm just joking, Dogville was horrendous...no one should watch his films. All I'm trying to say is DanielLee8793 and many of the haters on here are pretentious pricks.
Transformers rocks my socks.

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CoUcH ToMaToE DoUgIe writes:
on Oct 09 2007 11:34 PM

wait wait, has megan fox resigned yet?!?!?! without her unbelievable

hottness how will be able to get through another michael bay torture filck! cmon,

folks the hottest ride in that robot fest was the perfect hump of miss fox who is on her

way to becoming a sex goddess and unfortunately someone who people think can act:(

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XxMayhemxX writes:
on Nov 19 2007 01:41 PM

the rush has to do with the Writers strike in hollywood.
Alot of movie ideas in the script writing process had to be pushed.. or there wouldnt have been any 2009 movies...

As quoted from Entertainment Weekly magazine in an article about the writers strike,
"Experts agree: 2009 is going to stink, at least at the movies. But thats how the film business works. It's like starlight: Whats happening in hollywood right now wil take a year or two to trickle onto screens.

Like the networks, the studios prepared for the strike by hurrying screenplays into production."

G.I. Joe is another example.

Later on down in the article,
"Unless Peter Jackson is planning to let his actors improvise all of the movie Tintin or Michael Bay can shoot Transformers 2 without any plot or dialogue(hey, it worked for the first one), they may have to wait until 2010."

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XxMayhemxX writes:
on Nov 19 2007 01:45 PM

I mentioned the writers strike in another thread about a 2009/10 movie
Does no one on this site know about the writers strike?
A few writers may secretly cross over for potential blockbusters and big name directors and producers however. Whatever the case may be for this film, we may never know.

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Dead_but_Dreaming writes:
on Dec 12 2007 03:42 PM

In reply to this comment (#1289551)
Just an unsolicited thought from someone none of you know or deal with. I hear this kind of trash talk alot these days with adaptation after adaptation being thrown upon the screen for the "amusement" of all. The truth of the matter is quite simple, this is a thread about a potential sequel to a film that some of you enjoyed and some did not. To those that enjoyed the film, kudos, you got your money's worth, to those that did not, sorry to be the one to break it to you pal, but you're not going to see your money back anytime soon nor will you recover the time you apparently lost in watching it in the first place. Why given all of that would you want to waste more time on a film you clearly didn't enjoy in the first place. That is what you are doing is it not, or are you trying to make certain that your voice of displeasure sounds loud enough for the audiences in the theater down the street to hear you. You're not going to convince people of anything they don't want to be convinced of by complaining and griping endlessly about something that is far beyond the scope of your control. If you want a better product on the screen, pick up a pen and start writing, farm your ideas out to Hollywood or stay independent. Do whatever you want to do. But do something. Bitching about it here isn't going to change anything. If you have something specific to say about the film and its prospective sequel that you think might suddenly remove the blinders from all of us in the "ignorant unwashed masses" community that might have actually enjoyed the film, then state it plain, there's no need to spit it at us. Your perspective on film is no more or less valid than anyone elses here, or anywhere else for that matter, including all of those some of you seem to loathe so much in Hollywood. Film-making is a business fueled the elusive concept of entertainment. What pleases one crowd may well completely alienate and offend another. Your reactions are your own and no one can take that away from you. If you think that you can do better, than get out there and do it. Whats stopping you? No ones saying its going to be easy, in fact it will probably be hard as hell, but if you think you can do better instead of talking about doing better or talking about other people doing it better, then prove it. Just remember that some people are always going to disagree with you and what you believe is entertaining. The film industry was founded on the principle of entertaining people. Well, considering people keep buying tickets depsite the rising cost of a night at the movies or even a rental, some of those people must be entertained. If you aren't one of them, go watch something else. No one's holding a gun to your head and telling you that you have to watch the sequel to Transformers, so take the round out of the chamber and listen to yourselves for a second. What use is there in debating something that is entirely based on opinion in the first place, opinions are, by there very definition and nature, not facts. So be careful where you swing that "sword of truth" you might end up making an *** of yourself instead of getting your point across. And if you really think that you have the resources and wherewithall to do a better job, then get out there and prove it. The audience is waiting.

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Pagliacci writes:
on Jan 03 2008 10:10 AM

My main problem with the first one is that the movie focused more on humans and less on the robots in disguise. It is called Transformers right? We have human movies all the time. I really just want to see a lot of juiced up robots beating the crap out of each other. The sequel needs more robots, more action/fighting. . .less humans! The only human i'd be willing to see is Megan Fox pole dancing. Also, why the hell were the Decepticons hiding through most of the movie? The sequel should show more of the Decepticons as well. If they bring Megatron back, i'd love for the movie to show interaction between him and Starscream.

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