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Transformers (film)

2017-05-24T22:36:27Z

The Predacon: Forgot one thing, quickly fixed.

{{disambig2|the 2007 movie|other uses of ''The Transformers''|Transformers (disambiguation)}}

{{nav-movie}}

:''Transformers is an [[Sector Seven (game)|elaborate cover up]] from the [[live-action film series|live-action film]] [[continuity family]].''
[[File:Transformers2007teaserposter.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Beyond good. Beyond evil. Beyond your wildest imagination!]]

'''''Transformers''''' is a live-action movie released by [[DreamWorks]] in 2007, with Executive Producer [[Steven Spielberg]] and Director [[Michael Bay]]. The story follows the Transformers' arrival on modern-day Earth and their interactions with the human race, as they search for the life-giving [[AllSpark]] and continue their ages-old civil war. The movie is a new imagining of the [[Transformers brand]], drawing on past Transformers fiction but also distinct in its own right.

''Transformers'' features [[Sam Witwicky]], a plucky teenager who just wants a cool car, but gets more than he bargained for. The beater he and his father take home is actually [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]], an alien robot from the planet [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], who plants Sam down in the middle of a civil war between Bumblebee's benevolent [[Autobot]] comrades and the evil [[Decepticon]]s who threaten the galaxy's peace. Both sides are after the AllSpark, a mysterious artifact that landed on Earth ten thousand years ago. The approaching robot-against-robot battle is a coming-of-age moment for Sam, who learns the meaning of his family's motto, "No sacrifice, no victory."

The principal cast members were [[Shia LaBeouf]], [[Jon Voight]], and [[Megan Fox]], with [[Peter Cullen]] and [[Hugo Weaving]] as the voices of the Transformers' iconic leaders. About 75 percent of the film's character designs and visual effects were created by [[Industrial Light & Magic]], the effects-wizards behind the [[Star Wars (film)|''Star Wars'' films]]. The remaining 25 percent were done by Michael Bay's company, [[Digital Domain]].

Originally slated to release in the summer of 2006, the film arrived in US theaters on [[July 3]], 2007, and hit UK theaters on [[July 27]] and French theaters on [[July 25]]. It premiered in Australia on [[June 12]], 2007, and was released there and in a number of Asian countries on [[June 28]], 2007. An extended cut of the film featuring footage not in the original was released to IMAX theatres on [[September 21]], 2007.

{{bigquote|Sam Witwicky, you hold the key to Earth's survival.|[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] on the basic plot}}

==Synopsis==
[[File:Allspark movie.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|With this, I shall make you my slave!]]
Many years ago, Cybertron is destroyed at the hands of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]], during his quest to obtain the AllSpark. Megatron discovers the AllSpark on [[Earth]], but crash-lands in the Arctic Circle, becoming frozen in the ice. Captain [[Archibald Witwicky]] and his crew of explorers stumble upon Megatron's body in the late 19th century. Megatron's navigational system is unintentionally activated, and [[Glasses#Movie|Archibald's eyeglasses]] are imprinted with the coordinates to the AllSpark's location. [[Sector Seven]], a secret organization of the United States government, independently discovers the AllSpark and builds the [[Hoover Dam]] around it to mask its energy signal. The still-frozen Megatron is moved into this facility, and is reverse engineered to further advance [[human]] technology.

[[File:Movie Blackout SOCCENT.JPG|upright=1.4|thumb|Let the slaughter begin!]]
In the present day, the other Decepticons — [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]], [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]], [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]], [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]], [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]], [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]], and [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]] — have already landed on Earth and assumed the disguise of Earth vehicles. Blackout and Scorponok attack the U.S. [[SOCCENT Forward Operations Base]] in [[Qatar]] in an effort to use the military database to discover the location of Megatron and the AllSpark, but they do not succeed. A small group of survivors under Captain [[William Lennox]] wander through the desert and are followed by Scorponok. The Autonomous Robotic Organism (shortened to "Autobot") known as Bumblebee is also on Earth, disguised as a 1976 Chevrolet Camaro, and looking for Sam Witwicky, the descendant of Captain Archibald Witwicky. He finds Sam at a used car lot where the boy is looking to purchase a car. Bumblebee covertly sabotages all of the other cars in the lot, leaving him as Sam's only option. Sam buys Bumblebee and the two quickly begin to bond as Bumblebee helps Sam try and woo his crush, [[Mikaela Banes]]. Sam is unaware of the fact that Bumblebee is an alien, until one night when the Autobot drives off without him. Sam chases Bumblebee on a bike to a factory area, calling the police in the process, and witnesses Bumblebee transform into robot mode and send a signal to the Autobots in space. The police soon arrive and Sam is arrested.

[[File:Movie Scorponok leapsout.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Run, Blaster! Save yourself!]]
At the [[Pentagon]], Defense Secretary [[John Keller (Movie)|John Keller]] oversees the investigation into the attack in Qatar. After Blackout's failure, Frenzy infiltrates Air Force One and attempts to download all information relating to "Project Iceman". However, [[Maggie Madsen]], one of the technicians studying the Decepticon infiltration signal, detects Frenzy hacking into the files and convinces the Pentagon to take down the Defense Network, halting Frenzy's download. When [[Air Force One]] makes an emergency landing, Frenzy slips into Barricade, and discusses his discovery of Archibald Witwicky, who has seen [[Cybertronian language|their language]]. Using an internet search, they discover that Sam's glasses will lead the Decepticons to the AllSpark. Frenzy and Barricade begin tracking Sam's location. Back in Qatar, the Army Rangers are attacked by Scorponok, and take refuge in a nearby village. Calling the Pentagon and getting air support, they discover that the Decepticons are vulnerable to high heat weaponry such as sabot rounds. Using this information, the soldiers inform the Pentagon that they now have a weapon.

[[File:Movie Sam Mikaela meettheAutobots.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|[[Wheelie (ROTF)|Wheelie]] say find friends today.]]
Sam having been bailed out of jail by his father, gets the impression that Bumblebee is stalking him. A freaked out Sam flees from Bumblebee (who is in car mode) on his mother's bike. Bumblebee then proceeds to pursue him. Mikaela sees Sam on the run and follows him on her motor scooter. After Sam evades Bumblebee, he is confronted by Barricade who demands Archibald's glasses. Mikaela arrives as Sam is running away from Barricade. Bumblebee, still in car mode, then finds them and has them get in. Barricade chases Bumblebee to a power plant where Bumblebee transforms and battles the Decepticon robot-to-robot. Meanwhile, Frenzy chases Sam but gets his head decapitated by Mikaela, however his head still functions and takes the form of Mikaela's phone to hide in her purse. Bumblebee, who has defeated Barricade, properly introduces himself to Sam and Mikaela. He then takes them to rendezvous with the rest of the Autobots. The Autobots—[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]], [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]], [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]], and [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]]—land on Earth and take on the forms of several Earth vehicles. They all meet in a dark, secluded alley, transform in front of the two amazed humans, introduce themselves and tell of the reasons they had to come to Earth to Sam and Mikaela. Meanwhile, Maggie, unable to convince John Keller and his officers of the Decepticon virus's complexity, makes a copy of the intrusion signal and shows it to her friend [[Glen Whitmann]], who discovers a message with the signal about Sector Seven, Captain Witwicky, and [[Project Iceman]]. However, the FBI arrest Glen and Maggie, who desperately tries to convince them not to go to war with the wrong country.

[[File:Movie Autobots Sector Seven.JPG|left|upright=1.4|thumb|I'll use the universal greeting.]]
Sam, Mikaela, and the Autobots return to Sam's home to retrieve the glasses. However, agents from [[Sector Seven]] arrive to take Sam and Mikaela into custody. As Sam and Mikaela are taken away in one of their vehicles, [[Seymour Simmons]], the agency's director, reveals that Mikaela has a criminal record and threatens Sam with life imprisonment, at which point the Autobots disable the convoy and rescue the teens. Mikaela then explains to Sam that the only reason she has a record is her refusal to turn her father in for the crimes he committed, prompting her to ask him what he has ever sacrificed in his "perfect little life." Reinforcements arrive at the scene and the Autobots retreat. However Sam and Mikaela are recaptured and Bumblebee is also captured despite Sam's pleas to let him go. Prime orders the other Autobots to let Bumblebee be taken, unwilling to use deadly force against the humans. At the Pentagon, a virus Frenzy uploaded during the Air Force One hack causes a global communications blackout, while Keller is finally informed of the Transformers by [[Tom Banachek]]. After Bumblebee's capture, Optimus uses the glasses to locate the AllSpark at Hoover Dam, and declares that if they cannot defeat the Decepticons, he will merge the Cube with his spark, even though it will kill him.

[[File:Movie Optimus Megatron.JPG|upright=1.4|thumb|One shall stand. One shall fall.]]
Sam, Mikaela, Keller, Maggie, Glen, and Lennox's unit are brought to Hoover Dam, where they are shown by Simmons and Banachek the frozen Megatron and the AllSpark, while Frenzy slips away. Sam explains the Decepticons' plan to use the AllSpark to transform human machines to conquer the universe. Locating the AllSpark, Frenzy regenerates the rest of his body and sends out an alert to Starscream, who mobilizes the rest of the Decepticons. Due to Starscream's attack and Frenzy's sabotage, Megatron begins to thaw, and Sam, Lennox, and Keller convince Banachek and Simmons to release Bumblebee so that he can get the AllSpark to Optimus Prime. Bumblebee converts the AllSpark into a smaller state for transportation to [[Mission City]].

Glen, Maggie, Keller, and Simmons manage to contact the Air Force and direct F22s to Mission City. Frenzy tries to stop them but is killed. As Bumblebee, Sam, Mikeala, and Lennox's unit drive to Mission City, they come in contact with the other Autobots, who join the convoy. Barricade, Devastator, and Bonecrusher, in vehicle modes, pursue them and Bonecrusher transforms into robot mode. Optimus transforms to stay behind and stop their pursuers. He fights Bonecrusher and eventually kills him. Meanwhile, the rest of the Autobots and the soldiers reach Mission City and come under attack by Starscream, Devastator, Blackout and Megatron. Bumblebee is crippled by Starscream while Jazz is killed by Megatron. Mikaela hijacks a tow truck to carry Bumblebee to safety while Lennox tasks Sam with taking the AllSpark to a building where it will be taken by military helicopters. Ironhide and Ratchet cover Sam as he makes his run to the building, protecting him from Blackout before being wounded by Starscream, leaving Sam to get to the building on his own.

[[File:Megatron allspark merge.JPG|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Now, light our darkest hour!]]
Optimus Prime finally arrives in the area and confronts Megatron. The two battle one-on-one before Megatron knocks Prime out and chases Sam. As Sam get to the roof of the building and is about to hand the AllSpark off to one of the helicopters, it is shot down by Starscream. Megatron destroys the portion of the roof the Sam is standing on when he refuses to hand over the AllSpark. However, Optimus catches Sam and he and Megatron resume their duel with Megatron once again gaining the upper hand. Meanwhile, Mikaela drives the tow truck in reverse to allow Bumblebee to fire on Devastator, who has Lennox and his men pinned down. Bumblebee kills Devastator and a full air strike is called in on Blackout and Megatron. As Blackout attempts to assist Megatron, he is killed by Lennox and the Air Force before he can engage. Starscream hides among a raptor squadron, destroying three fighters before being chased away. The Air Force and Lennox's rangers attack Megatron, inflicting serious damage upon him, but he is still functional, and heading toward the Cube. Finally, with both Prime and Megatron weakened, Prime beckons Sam to shove the AllSpark into his chest, destroying them both, but Sam instead takes the riskier action of shoving the AllSpark into Megatron's chest, destroying it, and killing Megatron instead.

{{note|For an extensive synopsis of the battle, see separate article [[Mission City]].}}

[[File:Movie Optimus ending.JPG|upright=1.4|thumb|[['Til all are one]]!]]
Optimus thanks Sam for his courage and for saving his life, while Bumblebee, who has temporarily regained his voice, asks permission to remain with Sam, which is granted. In an attempt to cover up the existence of the Transformers, Sector Seven is disbanded, while the remains of the Decepticons are cast into the [[Laurentian Abyss]]. Though Megatron is dead, the AllSpark's destruction leaves the Autobots unable to restore Cybertron. With no other home to go to, the Autobots decide to stay on Earth, and Optimus sends out a signal across space in an effort to locate any surviving Autobots, while Sam and Mikaela begin a relationship. Starscream retreats from Earth.
{{-}}

==Main cast==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] ([[Peter Cullen]])
*[[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] ([[Mark Ryan]])
*[[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]] ([[Darius McCrary]])
*[[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] ([[Robert Foxworth]])
*[[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]] ([[Jess Harnell]])
|c2=
*[[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] ([[Hugo Weaving]])
*[[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] ([[Jess Harnell]])
*[[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] ([[Charlie Adler]])
*[[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]]'''*''' / Devastator
*[[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] ([[Jimmie Wood]])
*[[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]]
*[[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]]
*[[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]] ([[Reno Wilson]])

|c3=
*[[Sam Witwicky]] ([[Shia LaBeouf]])
*[[Mikaela Banes]] ([[Megan Fox]])
*[[William Lennox]] ([[Josh Duhamel]])
*[[Robert Epps]] ([[Tyrese Gibson]])
*[[John Keller (Movie)|John Keller]] ([[Jon Voight]])
*[[Maggie Madsen]] ([[Rachael Taylor]])
*[[Glen Whitmann]] ([[Anthony Anderson]])
*[[Seymour Simmons]] ([[John Turturro]])
*[[Tom Banachek]] ([[Michael O'Neill]])
*[[Judy Witwicky]] ([[Julie White]])
*[[Ron Witwicky]] ([[Kevin Dunn]])
*[[Bobby Bolivia]] ([[Bernie Mac]])
*[[Trent DeMarco]] ([[Travis Van Winkle]])
*[[Archibald Witwicky]] ([[William Morgan Sheppard]])
*[[Patrick Donnelly]] ([[Zack Ward]])
*[[Jorge Figueroa]] ([[Amaury Nolasco]])
*[[Miles Lancaster]] ([[John Robinson]])
*[[Sharp|Colonel Sharp]] ([[Glenn Morshower]])

|c4=
*[[Mojo]] ([[Chester the Chihuahua]])
[[AllSpark Mutation]]s
*[[Nokia-bot]]
*[[Dispensor]]
*[[Steering wheel robot|Steering wheel]]
*[[Xbox 360 robot|Xbox 360]]
|nonumbering=true
}}
'''<nowiki>*</nowiki>''' - Brawl is named "Devastator" in the film itself, but "Brawl" in the toyline and most of the supporting media. Plot summaries and such will reflect whichever name is relevant to that being described.

==Quotes==
"Before time began, there was the Cube. We know not where it comes from, only that it holds the power to create worlds and fill them with life. That was how our race was born. For a time, we lived in harmony, but like all great power, some wanted it for good, others for evil. And so began the war - a war that ravaged our planet until it was consumed by death, and the Cube was lost to the far reaches of space. We scattered across the galaxy, hoping to find it and rebuild our home, searching every star, every world. And just when all hope seemed lost, message of a new discovery drew us to an unknown planet called... Earth. But we were already too late."
:—'''Optimus Prime's''' opening narration

"Look, can you do me a favor—can you look out the window for a second? See my father? He's the guy in the green car? Let me tell you about a dream, a boy's dream, and a man's promise to that boy. He looked him in the eye and said "Son, I'm gonna buy you a car, but I want you to bring me two-thousand dollars and three A's." OK, I got the two thousand and two A's. OK, here's the dream. Your B minus? Pfff! Dream gone. Kaputt. Sir, just ask yourself... what would [[Jesus]] do?"
:—'''Sam Witwicky''' negotiates a better mark for his Family Genealogy project

'''Bobby Bolivia:''' What with the semi-classic nature of the vehicle, slick wheels and custom paint job— 
'''Sam:''' The paint's faded! 
'''Bobby:''' Y-yeah, but it's custom. 
'''Sam:''' It's custom faded? 
'''Bobby:''' Well, it's your first car, I wouldn't expect you to understand. ''[turns to Ron]'' Five grand. 
'''Ron:''' No, not paying over four. Sorry. 
'''Bobby:''' ''[turns back to Sam]'' Kid, c'mon, get out, get out of the car. 
'''Sam:''' No, no, no, you said cars pick their drivers! 
'''Bobby:''' Well, sometimes they pick a driver with a cheap-ass father—out of the car. 
:—Negotiations over [[Bumblebee (Movie)|the car]] at [[Bolivia's Finest Quality Used Cars and Petting Zoo]]

''[Sam's car leaves in a huge puff of black smoke]'' 
"Wow... you are so cheap." 
"It's his first car... supposed to be like that."
:—'''Judy Witwicky''' comments on the car's condition to '''Ron'''

'''Capt. Lennox:''' I need a credit card! Epps, where's your wallet? 
'''Sgt. Epps:''' Pocket! ''[fires gun]'' 
'''Lennox:''' Which pocket?" 
'''Epps:''' My ''back'' pocket! ''[fires gun]'' 
'''Lennox:''' You got ten back pockets! 
'''Epps:''' Left cheek! Left cheek! ''Left cheek!'' 
:—Calling the Pentagon from Qatar gets complicated.

"Ready, heat's coming!" 
"What, BRING IT!" 
:—'''Lennox''' and '''Epps''' giving the green light for Strike Package Bravo to attack

'''Optimus Prime''': Are you Samuel James Witwicky, descendant of Archibald Witwicky? 
'''Mikaela Banes''': They know your name! 
'''Sam''': Uh... Yeah? 
'''Optimus Prime''': My name is Optimus Prime. 
:—Admit it, you stood up and cheered and/or wept from joy after this exchange.

"The parents are... irritating. Can I take them out?"
:—'''Ironhide''' meets the family

'''Jazz''': What about Bumblebee? We can't just leave him to die! And become some human experiment! 
'''Optimus Prime''': He'll die in vain if we don't accomplish our mission. Bumblebee is a brave soldier. This is what he would want. 
'''Ironhide:''' Why are we fighting to save the humans? They're a primitive and violent race. 
'''Optimus Prime:''' Were we so different? They are a young species. They have much to learn... but I've seen goodness in them. [[Make Prime Speak|Freedom is the right of all sentient beings]]... You all know there is only one way to end this war: We must destroy the Cube. If all else fails, I will unite it with the spark in my chest. 
'''Ratchet:''' That's suicide! The Cube is raw power—it could destroy you both. 
'''Optimus Prime:''' A necessary sacrifice to bring peace to this planet... We cannot let the humans pay for our mistakes. It's been an honor serving with you all. Autobots, roll out! 
'''Jazz''': We rollin'! 
:—The Autobots discuss their next move.

"Do you want a piece of me?! Do you want a piece-" 
"NO! I want TWO!"''[rips Jazz in two]'' 
:—'''Jazz''', showing no fear and '''Megatron''', showing cruelty and cleverness

"Humans don't deserve to live." 
"They deserve to choose for themselves!" 
"Then you will die with them! Join them in extinction!"
:—'''Megatron''' and '''Optimus Prime''' have some mid-battle banter, Transformers style

"Give me the AllSpark, and you may live to be my ''pet''." 
"I'm never giving you this AllSpark!" 
"Oh, ''so'' unwise..."
:—'''Megatron''' and '''Sam Witwicky''' have a tense moment on a Mission City rooftop.

"With the AllSpark gone, we cannot return life to our planet. And fate has yielded its reward: a new world to call... home. We live among its people now, hiding in plain sight... but watching over them in secret... waiting... protecting. I have witnessed their capacity for courage, and though we are worlds apart, like us, there's more to them than meets the eye. I am Optimus Prime, and I send this message to any surviving Autobots taking refuge among the stars: We are here... we are waiting."
:—'''Optimus Prime's''' closing narration

==Errors==
* Sunset occurs roughly every fifteen minutes. Possibly indicative of time passage, but a little too much to not warrant mention in the actual movie. Specific instances:
**When the radar operator at SOCCENT base first spots Blackout, he reports him as an "inbound unidentified infiltrator, ten miles out". [[Sharp|Colonel Sharp]] dispatches two F-22s, which intercept Blackout still in broad daylight. When Blackout lands at the base, it's suddenly sunset. As the soldiers round him up, it rapidly turns dark within what appears to be seconds. Once Blackout transforms, it's already night.
**When Mikaela walks home from the lake, the sun is still shining. Sam tells Miles that she "lives ten miles from here". After he picked her up, Bumblebee feigns an engine problem. By the time Sam gets him running again, the sky is still in an early stage of pre-sunset. By the time Sam drops Mikaela at her home, it's night again.
**Barricade assaults Sam in the middle of the day. Bumblebee intervenes and drives off with Sam and Mikaela still in broad daylight. During the ensuing car chase, sunset abruptly occurs once Bumblebee has left the warehouse, and it promptly turns night between shots. (The chase scene was actually intended to be longer; see "[[#Changes before, during and after production|changes before, during and after production]]" below.)
* The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) used by the US Air Force to investigate Scorponok's attack on Captain Lennox is modeled after the [[wikipedia:MQ-9 Reaper|MQ-9 Reaper]], but is identified as the [[wikipedia:MQ-1 Predator|MQ-1 Predator]]. Also, neither of these UAVs use jet engines.
[[File:MovieTaxis.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|These shots were ''shown in sequence'', believe it or not.]]
* After Maggie copies the signal to take to Glen, she hails a black and white cab, but she's dropped off at Glen's house by an all-white cab. (The "cab hailing" footage originally came from a deleted scene near the beginning of the movie when Maggie was late for work.), and are two different models of the Crown Victoria taxicab.
* When Sam's car breaks down and Mikaela gets out to look at the engine, she leaves the passenger door open. When the car restarts and Sam leaves to close the hood, the passenger side door is now shut. But hey, maybe that was Bumblebee.
* Mikaela identifies Bumblebee's engine as having a "high-rise, double-pump carburetor" but the engine shown has no such carburetor.
* After Bumblebee backs into a corner of the power plant to evade Barricade, there is a close up shot of him spinning his wheels to make his getaway. However, the shot of the wheels spinning is at a different location: the empty warehouse that Bumblebee and Barricade had raced through moments earlier.
* Possibly an error, or possibly just a confusing shot setup, but when Bumblebee makes his escape, Barricade appears to change positions multiple times as camera angles change. Bumblebee guns his engines as Barricade is just starting to cross in front of him, but as Bumblebee speeds backwards, Barricade has backtracked well out of the way.
* After scanning his new Concept Camaro alt-form, Bumblebee's robot body displays either battle-worn parts or brand new parts at random times for the duration of the film.
[[File:MovieJazzBarricadeLicensePlates.jpg|thumb|Barricade has the plate before Jazz even comes to Earth, so it's not a trophy or anything...]]
* As long as Bumblebee transforms into a 1976 Camaro, his license plate consistently reads "489 PCE" both in vehicle and robot mode. After scanning his modern Camaro alternate mode, the license plate changes too... which isn't actually an error. What ''is'' an error, though, is that the new license plate keeps changing from "900 STRA" in vehicle mode to "4NZZ454" in robot mode.
*Jazz's license plate is equally inconsistent: On his robot mode chest it's "1-4027E", but during his transformation before his fight with [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]], he sports the license plate "664 NLZO" in vehicle mode. What's worse, "1-4027E" is also ''Barricade's'' license plate in vehicle mode, as can be seen when he slows down and then accelerates again after having seemingly cornered Bumblebee.
* During the scene where Optimus Prime scans a truck for his new body, the passing truck has what appears to be an Autobot sigil on its grill, but the actual truck that Prime turns into at the end of the scene has a much wider, flatter symbol on the grill, quite possibly a Peterbilt logo.
* When Simmons replays Sam's "last words" recorded onto his cell phone, it doesn't match what he said in the scene where he actually recorded them.
* When the Autobots arrive to rescue Sam and Mikaela from Agent Simmons, Ironhide is the first Autobot to reach the damaged SUV and the other Sector Seven agents. Behind him, Ratchet is making his way towards the SUV, while Jazz and Bumblebee have their respective weapons drawn. However, in the very next shot, Ratchet's gun is suddenly in front of Ironhide, who is now making two short steps towards the SUV, while Jazz's gun has been replaced by his hand (which he uses to pull Sector Seven's guns away magnetically). In the shot after that, Jazz is just standing around sans Sector Seven guns, while Bumblebee wanders up and draws his gun...again.
[[File:Movie2007 Keller OBVIOUSVISUALAID.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|Yer days're numbered now, Decepti-creeps.]]
* When Banachek shows Keller photographs of the Decepticon that destroyed the [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] [[Beagle 2 Rover]], and supposedly a photo of Blackout taken by Epps during the attack on SOCCENT Qatar, "Blackout's photo" is clearly taken during the day, complete with the sun behind the Decepticon as a major light source, whereas the attack on SOCCENT took place in the evening. This was either a continuity error or a ham-handed attempt to make the audience realise the attackers in both photos are one and the same by making the photos look similar.
** Not to mention that the actual Beagle 2 was a '''''European''''' Space Agency '''''lander''''', not a [[NASA]] Rover.
* During the montage where Bumblebee's frozen body is being transported inside Hoover Dam via a moving platform whilst the Autobots discuss his fate, in one of the shots the physical Bumblebee prop is missing its distinctive car doors.
* During the first half of the movie, Maggie is wearing a slim striped skirt, but she is suddenly dressed in 3/4 jeans in the scene when they arrive at Hoover Dam.
*This may not be an error, but Barricade seems to disappear after being driven off the road during the highway scene, as he is never shown again in the movie or the [[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|sequel]]. [[Wheelie (ROTF)|Wheelie]] later pulls the same trick in said sequel.
* When Ironhide transforms and performs a somersault to dodge Brawl's missiles, he is seen rising first, then falling. At that moment, he is already almost at the ground, low enough to touch the ground if he stretched his arms. However, on the next scene, he has gone much higher up, high enough to fire both the cannons on his arms then perform a midair somersault.
* When Lennox arrives as Sam and Mikaela are supposedly strapping Bumblebee with the tow truck's chains, Bumblebee is not actually there. When the shot changes angles to the other side of the truck, Bumblebee is sitting right beside the truck while Sam directs Mikaela to wrap Bumblebee in the chains. When Lennox tells Sam to evacuate the Cube, subsequent camera angles from this side of the truck are actually where Bumblebee was moments earlier, but he's not there again (it is unlikely the angle was meant to be from Bumblebee's perspective). When Sam starts to run off and Mikaela calls him back, Bumblebee is once again clearly not sitting beside the truck. In fact, the space he once occupied has the beige van he crawled out of, earlier in the battle. What makes this all the more bizarre is that the life-sized Bumblebee prop was actually used for some of the scenes that depict Bumblebee strapped to the tow truck.
[[File:MovieTowTruckNumbers.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Mike changed phone numbers while giant robots were fighting in the city.]]
* After Optimus Prime and Megatron land in the city streets after flying through the office tower, Megatron throws the Autobot leader a short distance away, causing him to land on a parked car. After Megatron forms his fusion cannon, Optimus Prime has suddenly moved further down the street and the car he crushed, along with the other abandoned cars, have vanished. Also, in this shot, Optimus' feet don't make craters or any visible mark on the concrete. Yet, when Optimus is running from the Sector Seven Agents, he's making huge craters while he is side-stepping cars. (This comes with weighing over four tons and running 40 miles an hour.) Additionally, Optimus stops at the intersection just in front of Megatron to pull out his Ion blaster in this shot, but when it cuts to a shot to the left-front of Optimus, he is only mid-way up the street, and there is a parked yellow cab at the curb which was empty seconds earlier. Funnily enough, this curb was where the crushed car was parked.
* During the fight towards the end of the film between Megatron and Optimus, it is shown that Optimus is about the same size as Megatron in robot mode. Yet, in vehicle mode, Megatron is a great deal larger than Optimus is. Similarly, Starscream seems to be smaller than Megatron in robot form, leading to the logical conclusion that he is smaller than Optimus as well. Yet in vehicle mode, he is nearly four to five times larger, seeing as an F-22 Raptor is a great deal larger than a Peterbilt 379 tractor cab. And they say they don't have [[scale]] problems.
* For the battle in Mission City, see [[Mission City#Notes]].
*The phone number on the doors of the tow truck is "800-555-0199" when Mikaela is driving it, but when she gets out, the number changes to "800-555-MIKE". The font is slightly different, too.
* In the battle at Mission City, Brawl very clearly fires 3 missiles out of his shoulder-mounted missile launcher, but before he dies, all 4 missiles are in his missile launcher. Then again, this could just be a sort of 'auto-reload' thing the Transformers have going on, as they probably wouldn't get very far in battle if they were only limited to 4 missiles each.
* When Keller is meeting with the other officials, he says they're going to dump the bodies of the Decepticons into the Laurentian Abyss, the deepest place on the planet. The deepest place on the planet is the Mariana Trench.

===Explicable discrepancies===
* Sam and Mikaela, as well as Maggie and Glen arrive at Hoover Dam on the same helicopter despite being from opposite ends of the country. Occasionally cited as an error, it is actually a narrative oversight, as it is likely that Sam and Mikaela were held in custody at a U.S. Air Base while waiting for Maggie and Glen to arrive with Secretary Keller's party by plane, then they all left for Hoover Dam together on the helicopters.

* There are some problems with Simmons's statement about various technologies being reverse-engineered from Megatron. Cars came about in one shape or form at about the turn of the century, and spaceflight technology was pioneered by German and Soviet scientists. (This is possibly what [[Sector Seven|they]] ''want'' you to think.) Then again, [[Seymour Simmons|Simmons]] also thinks that [[Nokia]] is a Japanese company...

* Most people mistakenly confuse the date of Megatron's discovery with the date the Hoover Dam was built. Based on the various dates given by Banachek, it's clear that Megatron was ''left in the Arctic'' for many years before being moved to Hoover Dam, making his discovery easily pre-date cars.

==Transformer references==
The movie contains a number of nods and winks to previous iterations of ''Transformers'', primarily from ''[[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]]''. Some of these were included in direct response to urgings of the fans; others originated with the production crew.

* The basic story set-up is similar to many iterations of the ''Generation 1'' story — two warring factions, the noble Autobots and the power-hungry Decepticons, arrive on Earth, having left their devastated home planet, the war-torn mechanical world of Cybertron.
* Many of the featured Transformers are re-imagined versions of characters from ''Generation 1''. [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] in particular are similar in physical form and characterization to their movie incarnations. The Movie versions of [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]], [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]], and [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] differ in appearance but fulfill story roles similar to their original versions.
* Though the characters are new, "[[Frenzy (disambiguation)|Frenzy]]", "[[Scorponok (disambiguation)|Scorponok]]", "[[Brawl (G1)|Brawl]]/[[Devastator (disambiguation)|Devastator]]", "[[Blackout (disambiguation)|Blackout]]", "[[Barricade (disambiguation)|Barricade]]", and "[[Bonecrusher (disambiguation)|Bonecrusher]]" are all names that have been used on Transformer characters before.
* Blackout's symbiotic relationship with Scorponok originated as an interpretation of [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] and his cassette troops. Frenzy's transformation into a portable stereo is likewise a homage to Soundwave's cassette deck alternate form.
* Sam shares his last name with the [[Witwicky#Generation 1 continuity family|main human allies]] of the Autobots in the original [[The Transformers (cartoon)|''Generation 1'' cartoon]]. Like Spike before him, he's closest to Bumblebee.
* The Autobot faction symbol seen on Bumblebee and others is basically unchanged from its ''Generation 1'' appearance.
* The AllSpark takes its name from [[Allspark|a concept]] originally introduced in ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]''.
* The original G1 [[transformation]] sound pops up several times during the course of the film, such as Blackout's first conversion sequence (though truth be told it sounds more like it's being broadcast from a loudspeaker.)
[[File:Movie BoliviasFinestQualityUsedCars 2.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Your bargaining posture is highly dubious.]]
* In his first appearance, Bumblebee parks next to a yellow Volkswagen Beetle — the alternate form of [[Bumblebee (G1)|G1 Bumblebee]].
* When instructing the Autobots to escape Sector Seven and when they later head for Hoover Dam, Optimus Prime delivers his catchphrase from the ''Generation 1'' cartoon, ordering them to [[Roll out|"Roll out!"]]
* Sam's surmise that the Transformers come from Japan is [[TakaraTomy|not entirely inaccurate]].
* Prime references "the spark in my chest". [[Spark]]s — the life-force that makes Transformers alive — have been an integral part of Transformers fiction since ''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]''.
* Although the Transformers' primary energy supply, [[Energon]], does not make an established physical appearance in the film, its name appears on the license plate of an SUV thrown through the air during Megatron's rampage in [[Mission City]].
* Optimus Prime's line "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" is the quote from his [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys|original 1984 toy's]] [[bio]]. At least one of the reasons for the inclusion of this line was because it won in an online contest conducted by [[Paramount Pictures|Paramount]] in late 2006, named "[[Make Prime Speak]]".
* Prime's line "...one shall stand; one shall fall" comes from the 1986 animated ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]''.
* The scene in which Jazz yanks aside Devastator's tank barrel is a direct homage to a similar sequence from TF:TM involving [[Kup (G1)|Kup]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]].
* Ironhide's complaint that [[Mojo]] "leaked lubricant" on his foot references a [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 1|favorite]] [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 3|exclamation]] [[Power Play!|of his]] ''[[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]]'' [[Ironhide (G1)|counterpart]], "Leakin' lubricant!" The phrase originated with his [[The Transformers Universe|original character outline]], stating that "he [refers to] excessive talking as 'leaking lubricant.'"
* Sam telling Mikaela that there's "more than meets the eye... with you" quotes the slogan used in the toy line, also included in the G1 series [[theme song]].
*Megatron wields a flail in the Mission City battle, just as he did in his fight with Optimus Prime in the second-ever G1 episode, "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2]]".

==Other editions==
The 2007 ''Transformers'' film has more than one "cut."

* The worldwide theatrical release was essentially identical all around the world with a few minor exceptions.
* The film board of Malaysia required [[Judy Witwicky]]'s masturbation reference be removed{{fact}}. However, no such change has been made and her lines were not omitted from the film.
*Glen's line, "that killer robot is really distracting", was cut from DVD releases. However, it is featured in the official novelization of the movie and at least one trailer.
* The [[wikipedia:IMAX|IMAX]] edition of the movie features two minutes of additional footage in the form of slightly extended scenes and very brief new scenes. Added material includes the following:
**Before heading to the lake party, Sam is shown picking Miles up at his house. Miles derides Sam's choice of car colors.
**After Sam is questioned by the sheriff at the police station, he is given an anti-drug bumper sticker and shown the "[[wikipedia:This is Your Brain on Drugs|This is Your Brain on Drugs]]" [[Public service announcement|PSA]] starring [[wikipedia:Rachel Leigh Cook|Rachel Leigh Cook]].
**After abducting Sam and Mikaela, Agent Simmons uses a device to monitor Sam's pupil dilation while interrogating him in the truck. He also remarks that he has "been there" when it comes to women with criminal records.
**Upon arriving at Hoover Dam, Simmons remarks colorfully that it is "Area 50". A few minutes later, he lists the nicknames of all the U.S. Presidents to have toured the facility.
**In Mission City, Lennox acquires short-range radios from a gun-toting, but easily flattered, pawn shop owner.
*Strangely, the televised versions of the film feature different synthesized effects on all of the Transformers' voices. These changes result in the Autobots and Decepticons sounding like they are talking inside a tin can. Why this difference is present and where the changes originally came from are unknown.
*The [[Cartoon Network]] broadcast of the film replaces some of the curses with other words. Sam's Parent's "family discussion" is toned down a bit, with [[Judy Witwicky|Judy's]] line about masturbation removed.

==Prequel material==
* ''[[Transformers: Ghosts of Yesterday]]''
: A novel about the truth behind humankind's first venture into space and how that event is related to the Transformers' presence on Earth, both past and present.

* ''[[Transformers: Movie Prequel]]''
: A four issue limited series comic book from [[IDW Publishing]], released before the movie's debut. It chronicles the events which bring the Transformers to [[Earth]].

* "[[Interlude]]" (also originally published as ''Transformers Movie Prequel'')
: A short comic book by IDW, produced in cooperation with [[Target]], available (online) from Target's website and (in printed form) at BotCon and in theaters, following Bumblebee's early search for clues on Earth.

* "[[Planetfall (Movie)|Planetfall]]" (also originally published as ''Transformers Movie Prequel'')
: A mini-comic by IDW, produced in cooperation with Target, available (online) from Target's website and (in printed form) as a Target exclusive bonus pack-in with the Movie DVD, showing the Decepticons' arrival on Earth.

* The ''[[Movie Prequel Special]]''
: A mass retail release that contains reprints of both "Planetfall" and "Interlude" (now with individual story titles) in collected form.

* ''[[Transformers: Beginnings (Movie)|Beginnings]]''
: A not-really-animated animatic version of IDW's ''[[Transformers: Movie Prequel|Movie Prequel]]'' comics, voiced by some of the actors from the movie, the game and a bunch of other people. Included on a [[Walmart]] exclusive bonus DVD available with the Movie DVD.

* ''[[Transformers (Titan Magazine)|Transformers]]''
: A monthly comic published in the UK by [[Titan Books]], featuring new adventures set before the movie in its initial six issues (in addition to reprints of stories originally published by IDW). They were reprinted by IDW in the ''[[Transformers: Saga of the Allspark|Saga of the Allspark]]'' mini-series.

Some dialog in the film contradicts the prequel material, specifically pertaining to the years in which the frozen Megatron was moved from the Arctic to Hoover Dam, and exactly when the Decepticons arrived on Earth. Some of the prequel material contradicts the ''other'' prequel material... at least till [[John Barber]] fixed some of them on his [[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (franchise)|''Dark of the Moon'' tie in comics]].

==Adaptations==
* A novelization of the film by [[Alan Dean Foster]] was published under the title ''[[Transformers (novel)|Transformers]]''.
* IDW Publishing released a comic adaptation of the film under the title ''[[Transformers: Movie Adaptation|Movie Adaptation]]''.

==Sequels==
{{main|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|Transformers 6|Transformers 7}}
Three sequels to this film have been produced and released worldwide, with a fourth, ''[[Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|Transformers: The Last Knight]]'' releasing in June of [[2017]]. Two more are planned for release in [[2018]] and [[2019]], following ''The Last Knight''.

[[IDW Publishing]] also released the comic sequel to the film, titled ''[[Transformers: The Reign of Starscream|The Reign of Starscream]]''.

==Soundtrack==
{{main|Transformers: The Album}}

==Score==
{{main|Transformers: The Score}}

==Home video releases==
[[File:2007Movie 2-disc DVD.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1]]
{{main|Transformers (film)/home video}}
* '''US:''' [http://tformers.com/US-To-Get-Transformers-DVD-HD-DVD-October-16th/8350/news.html October 16th, 2007] (DVD, HD-DVD), [http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/1175/transformers2007.html September 2nd, 2008] (Blu-ray)
* '''Australia:''' November 1, 2007 (DVD)
* '''United Kingdom:''' December 3, 2007 (DVD, HD-DVD), September 8th, 2008 (Blu-ray)

There are nearly a dozen store [[exclusive]] [http://tformers.com/Transformers-DVD-Exclusives-Who-Gets-What/8534/news.html versions and sales premiums of the DVD.] They include:

* [[Target]] and HMV UK: transforming Optimus Prime display case.
* Best Buy: [[Robot Heroes (toyline)|Robot Heroes]] [[Cliffjumper (Movie)|Cliffjumper]] and battle-damaged Optimus Prime.
* [[Walmart]]: [[Transformers: Beginnings (Movie)|Beginnings]] "animated" prequel material.
* Borders: "Making Of" book.
* Circuit City: password unlocking 15 minutes of exclusive online behind-the-scenes featurettes, covering the voice recording sessions, prop construction, stunt work, and early CG tests and animatics.
{{-}}

==Theatrical posters==
{{picsneeded|Any other official posters not depicted here}}
<center><gallery perrow="4">
File:Transformers2007teaserposter.jpg|Teaser poster
File:Movie2007 Autobot promo poster.jpg|Autobot promo poster
File:Movie2007 Decepticon promo poster.jpg|Decepticon promo poster
File:Prime-Sam-Mikaela-poster.jpg|Promotional poster
File:Movie2007 Megatron onesheet.jpg|Megatron one sheet
File:Movie2007 Prime onesheet.jpg|Optimus Prime one sheet
File:Movie2007_final_standee.jpg|Standee, also used as a poster
File:Movie2007 humans internationalposter.jpg|International "Humans" poster/US theatrical poster
File:Movie2007 Sphere internationalposter.jpg|International "Sphere" poster
File:Movie2007 Bumblebee internationalposter.jpg|International Bumblebee poster
File:Movie2007 Prime internationalposter.jpg|International Optimus Prime poster
File:Movie2007 Megatron internationalposter.jpg|International Megatron poster
File:Movie2007_Korean_poster.jpg|South Korean theatrical release poster
File:Movie2007 Japanese Aprilpromo poster.jpg|Japanese April 2007 promotional poster
File:Movie2007_Japanese_release_poster.jpg|Japanese theatrical release poster
File:Movie2007_IMAX_poster.jpg|IMAX promotional poster
File:Movie2007_IMAX_releaseposter.jpg|IMAX release poster
File:Movie2007 handsmashy ver7 poster.jpg|Used as a prominent skyscraper advert
</gallery></center>

==Reception==
The movie set multiple records when it opened, including biggest opening week gross for a non-sequel ($155.4 million), biggest Tuesday release gross ($27.4 million), biggest July 4 gross ($29 million), and the biggest film opening in mainland China ($3 million) [http://www.china.org.cn/english/entertainment/217368.htm].
[[File:Movie2007 Bumblebee lubricates Simmons.JPG|left|350px|thumb|Oh, how it pains me to do this.]]
The movie closed domestically on [[November 8]], [[2007]], during which time it took in $319,246,193. (Domestic gross accounted for $310,578,372 before the IMAX version's release.) It has earned a ''worldwide'' gross of $708,272,592. It currently sits at spot #20 in the "most domestic gross" list of movies, though this listing is ''not'' adjusted for inflation. When taking inflation into account, ''Transformers'' currently sits at #102. [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers06.htm 2]

{{quote|I didn't sleep through it the way I Novocained my way through the awful ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'', but by the time it ended, I thought I might have vertigo or whiplash, or both, and I certainly lost more than a few of my remaining I.Q. points|[http://www.observer.com/2007/bay-bombs-again Rex Reed]}}

{{quote|It's goofy fun with a lot of stuff that blows up real good, and it has the grace not only to realize how preposterous it is, but to make that into an asset.|Roger Ebert}}

{{quote|But it's tough to really care about questions like, "Why did that happen?" or even "What's going on?" when you’re constantly interrupted by "Oh my goodness! Giant robots! Weeee!"|Peter Suderman|[http://tinyurl.com/373rps The National Review]}}

Critical reception was hit-and-miss, [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/transformers_the_movie/ more positive than negative but not by a lot], though it's sometimes hard to tell how many negative reviewers were more interested in criticizing [[Michael Bay]] in general over the movie itself. Otherwise, the most common negatives involved it being a generally think-free "spectacle"-style movie; even those who rated the movie positively noted it was a pure "popcorn" movie meant to wow its audience with [[Computer-generated imagery|CGI]] and explosions rather than make them think (Richard Roper noted in his "thumbs up" review "it has no nutritional value"). Whether one considers that a good or bad thing for a movie and if the movie was enough fun to overcome that is, of course, highly debatable. The other main culprit, again noted by many of the positive reviews, was its long running time, particularly the overly-chaotic, often hard-to-follow final big-bang extended ending action sequence. ([http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070705/REVIEWS/70620006/1023 Roger Ebert] noted that this sequence was what made him give the movie three out of four stars rather than the full four.)

From the fan and general audience point of view, Transformers was generally favored. However, there have been division over the amount of human stories at the expense of the robots.

Transformers was nominated for three Oscars, in the fields of Achievement in Sound Editing, Achievement in Sound Mixing, and Achievement in Visual Effects. The sound awards went to ''The Bourne Ultimatum'', and the visual effects award went to ''The Golden Compass''.

Three sequels have been produced to date: ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen]]'' was released worldwide on [[June 24]] [[2009]], ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Transformers: Dark of the Moon]]'' was released on [[June 28]], [[2011]], and ''[[Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Transformers: Age of Extinction]]'' was released on [[June 27]], [[2014]].

According to a 2011 survey, the 2007 ''Transformers'' movie is the third most-pirated movie of all time.<ref><tt>The usual suspects were there, with "Avatar" (21 million downloads) taking top (dis?)honors, and "The Dark Knight" tying for second place with "Transformers" at 19 million downloads apiece.</tt>[http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/14/showbiz/movies/top-pirated-movies-ew/index.html Top 10 most pirated movies], October 14, 2011</ref>

==Technical details==
'''Length:''' 144 min (original theatrical)<ref>The movie had some content cuts to meet the standards of some <s>oppressive regimes</s> quaint "developing world" rating boards.</ref> 
'''Aspect Ratio:''' 2.35:1 
'''Audio:''' Dolby Digital / DTS / SDDS 
'''Content Rating:'''
{{collist|4|
* PG-13 (USA/MPAA)
* ? (Japan)
* 12A (United Kingdom)
* PG (Canada; British Columbia)<ref>''Transformers'' received a "14A" rating in British Columbia, but an appeal by the studio successfully reduced it to PG.</ref>
* G (Canada; Quebec)
* PG (Canada; Alberta/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario)
* PG (Canada; Canadian Home Video Rating System)
* PG (Taiwan)
* IIA (China; Hong Kong)
* PG (Singapore)
* G (Philippines/MTRCB)
* U (France)
* U (Malaysia)
* M (Australia)
* M (New Zealand)
* TE (Chile)
* 10 (Brazil)
* 10M (South Africa)
* 11 (Denmark)
* K-11 (Finland)
* 11 (Norway)
* 11 (Sweden)
* 12 (Germany)
* 12A (Ireland)
* 12 (Netherlands)
* M/12 (Portugal)
* 12 (South Korea)
* 12 (Switzerland)
* 13 (Argentina)
* 14 (Peru)
* 12 (Poland)
* B (Mexico)
* 12+ (Russia)}}

==Production staff==
[[File:Movie Castandcrew2.jpg|upright=1.67|thumb|Megatron? Is that you?!]]
* Executive Producer: [[Steven Spielberg]]
* Executive Producer: [[Brian Goldner]]
* Director: [[Michael Bay]]
* Producers: [[Lorenzo di Bonaventura]], [[Ian Bryce]], [[Tom DeSanto]], [[Don Murphy]]
* Story by: [[Alex Kurtzman]] & [[Roberto Orci]] and [[John Rogers]],
* Screenwriters: [[Alex Kurtzman]] & [[Roberto Orci]]
* Music by: [[Steve Jablonsky]]

====Visual Effects====
* Visual Effects by: [[Industrial Light & Magic]], [[Digital Domain]], [[Asylum VFX]]
* Production Designer: [[Jeff Mann]]
* Lead Robot Illustrator: [[Ben Procter]]
* Illustrators: [[James Clyne]], [[Tim Flattery]]
* ILM Visual Effects Supervisior: [[Scott Farrar]]
* Art Director: [[Alex Jaeger]]
* Animation Supervisors: [[Scott Benza]], [[Dan Taylor (ILM)|Dan Taylor]]
* Animators: [[Charles Alleneck]], [[C. Michael Easton]], [[Keiji Yamaguchi]]

====Locations Department====
(winners of the California On Location Award [http://www.californiaonlocationawards.com/] for "Production Company / Location Team of the Year for Feature Films")

* Supervising Location Manager: '''Ilt Jones'''
* Location Managers: '''Michael J. Burmeister''', '''Fermín Dávalos''', and '''Emre Sonmez'''
* Key Assistant Location Managers: '''Michael Wesley Aycock''', '''Leann Emmert''', '''Perri Fichtner''', '''Ronald M. Haynes''', '''Jonathan Hook''', '''Kathy McCurdy''', '''Manny Padilla''', '''Lisa Patton''', '''Rob Swenson''', '''Marta Tomkiw''', and '''Scott Trimble'''
* Additional Key Assistant Location Managers: '''Brooks Bonstin''', '''Alexandre Chen''', '''Michael Chickey''', '''Martin J. Cummins'''
* Assistant Location Managers: '''Ces Hardy''' and '''Amanda Harrington'''
* Location Scouts: '''Stuart Raven Barter''', '''Richard Klotz''', '''James Lin''', and '''Keith Nakata'''
{{-}}
==Development details==
===Cast and crew signing on===
In 2000, director Joseph Kahn pitched his treatment for a live-action Transformers film to [[Sony]], but they eventually lost interest in a film. In 2003, producer [[Don Murphy]] had intended to produce a movie based on another [[Hasbro]] property, [[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]]. However, following the US invasion of Iraq in March 2003, a movie entitled "G.I. Joe" was no longer considered viable, so Carol Monroe, who was in charge of Hasbro's movie department at that time, suggested doing a ''Transformers'' movie instead.<ref name="murphylatino">[http://www.latinoreview.com/news/on-set-interview-producer-don-murphy-on-transformers-1502 Latino Review interview with producer Don Murphy.]</ref> [[Tom DeSanto]] joined the project as a second producer and wrote a treatment that he and Murphy tried to shop around for a while. (The treatment would eventually remain entirely unused, but DeSanto would try to get a writing credit regardless, even though none of the screenwriters had ever actually ''seen'' his treatment.<ref name="bayspat">[http://www.portfolio.com/views/blogs/the-hollywood-deal/2007/07/05/michael-bays-spat-with-his-transformer-producers Rant by Michael Bay, deleted from his own blog, still mirrored on other sites]</ref>) The movie was officially announced for the first time in June 2003.<ref name="comingsoon">[http://web.archive.org/web/20030611151443/http://comingsoon.net/news.php?id=238 Coming Soon announcing the movie.]</ref>

In 2004, after [[DreamWorks]] won a bidding war with New Line Cinema over the rights to the film, [[Steven Spielberg]] signed up as executive producer, while [[John Rogers]] was confirmed as screenwriter in November of the same year.<ref>[http://www.ign.com/articles/2004/11/03/rogers-writing-transformers IGN confirming Rogers as screenwriter.]</ref> In February 2005, Rogers was replaced by [[Alex Kurtzman]] and [[Roberto Orci]],<ref name="ignkurtzorc">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/02/18/exclusive-new-transformers-writers IGN confirming Kurtzman and Orci as new screenwriters.]</ref> who drastically reworked Rogers' original script.<ref name="rogerscred">[http://kfmonkey.blogspot.com/2007/07/proper-credits-for-transformers.html John Rogers confirming that Kurtzman and Orci drastically rewrote his script]</ref> Spielberg tried to convince [[Michael Bay]] to direct the movie in late July 2005, but Bay initially declined, having no interest in a "toy movie". He later changed his mind after attending "Transformers school" at Hasbro, but decided to make the movie "realistic" and accessible for adult viewers.<ref name="audio">Michael Bay's audio commentary on the ''Transformers'' DVD.</ref>

A few days after a list of names of the human cast had been leaked on the internet, [[Shia LaBeouf]] was confirmed as the first cast member.<ref name="ignshia">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2006/03/28/from-i-robot-to-transformers IGN confirming Shia LaBeouf.]</ref> Producer Don Murphy,<ref name="murphytfcon">[http://www.transformerscon.com/videos.php Don Murphy at the Canadian TransformersCon.]</ref> Hasbro<ref name="tfwtour">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-news-rumors/139273-botcon-2007-botcon-2007-hasbro-tour-updated-friday-12-45pm.html Hasbro tour report.]</ref> and the screenwriters<ref name="mtv">[http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1554426/20070312/story.jhtml MTV.com interview with Kurtzman and Orci.]</ref> all favored [[Peter Cullen]] and [[Frank Welker]] as voice actors for [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. Bay had both audition, but only hired Cullen, while preferring [[Hugo Weaving]] as Megatron.<ref name="cgirobot">[http://web.archive.org/web/20070810172643/http://www.wizarduniverse.com/movies/transformersmovie/004974570.cfm Wizard Universe article about the production of the movie.]</ref> However, Welker still got to voice Megatron (alongside Cullen as Prime) in the video game adaption of the movie, ''[[Transformers The Game]]'', as well as in ''[[Transformers: Beginnings (Movie)|Beginnings]]'', an animated (sort of) version of [[IDW Publishing|IDW's]] [[Transformers: Movie Prequel|prequel comic mini-series]] that was available on a Wal*Mart exclusive bonus disc included with the movie DVD.

===Sponsors and partners===
====Hasbro====
In addition to acting as a licensor, Hasbro also actively participated in the development of the movie, starting with an introduction into the world of the Transformers, called the "Transformers School", for everyone involved, including [[Michael Bay]].<ref name="paramountbotcon">[http://tformers.com/article.php?sid=8001 "Hasbro and Paramount Partnership Panel" at BotCon 2007.]</ref> Hasbro also had a say in the depiction of the Transformers in the movie, the selection of the voice actors,<ref name="tfwtour" /> naming the characters, working on the robot designs<ref name="lorenzoiesb">[http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2724&Itemid=99 IESB interview with Ian Bryce and Lorenzo di Bonaventura.]</ref> and the inclusion of "easter eggs", but no veto rights.<ref name="paramountbotcon" /> According to screenwriter [[Roberto Orci]], Hasbro was more interested in an adequate adaption of the ''Transformers'' concept rather than ''only'' marketing the toyline.<ref name="orcihasbro">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=2200611&postcount=239 Roberto Orci discussing Hasbro's involvement.]</ref> Nevertheless, Hasbro urged [[Michael Bay]] very early on to decide upon the Transformers characters to be used in the movie and their vehicle forms because of the long production run of the toys, even though the script wasn't completed yet by that point.<ref name="bayew">[http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20035285_20035331_20044598_3,00.html Entertainment Weekly interview with Michael Bay.]</ref> Hasbro and [[TakaraTomy|Takara]] then created the [[Movie (toyline)|toys]] based on the designs developed by [[Industrial Light & Magic]]. Aside from this, Takara wasn't involved in the creation of the movie at all.<ref name="murphytformers">[http://www.tformers.com/article.php?sid=3945 TFormers interview with Don Murphy.]</ref>

Unlike other ''Transformers'' toylines (except for ''[[Transformers: Alternators|Alternators]]''), Hasbro and Takara don't share the full rights to the movie toys: Paramount and ILM hold the rights to the robot designs, while the vehicle modes were licensed by companies such as General Motors ([[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]], [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]], [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]] and [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]]), Saleen ([[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]]), Force Protection Industries ([[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]]), the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation ([[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]]) and the Lockheed Martin Corporation ([[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]). Only [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] didn't require a license, since his vehicle mode in the movie was heavily genericized, and all manufacturer logos were removed.<ref name="edmundsveh">[http://web.archive.org/web/20070809065140/http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Features/articleId=121424 Edmunds.com article on the vehicles featured in the movie.]</ref> TakaraTomy even identifies the Leader Class toy as a Kenworth W900 instead of a Peterbilt 379.<ref name="takaraprime">[http://www.takaratomy.co.jp/products/TF/products/movie/ma-01.html TakaraTomy product page for Leader Class Optimus Prime.]</ref>

Even though Hasbro didn't directly profit from the box office revenue, owning the ''Transformers'' brand allowed them to profit more from the toys than from licensed brands such as ''[[Spider-Man]]'' or ''[[Star Wars (franchise)|Star Wars]]''. In addition, Hasbro was able to give out over 240 licenses to third party companies.<ref name="hasbrofall">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6912693.stm BBC reporting on Hasbro quarterly earnings for July 2007.]</ref> In the USA alone, Hasbro had sold more than three million toys from the movie line as early as July 2007,<ref name="cnnmoney">[http://money.cnn.com/2007/07/23/news/companies/hasbro/index.htm?section=money_topstories CNN Money story on Hasbro sales.]</ref> while Wal-Mart had earned more than five million $USD with the movie Transformers at the same time.<ref name="walmartmillion">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=143983 Wal-Mart employee Steevy Maximus reporting on sales figures for movie toys.]</ref> A lot of the movie toys were frequently sold out at many stores ("drought") due to a mix of popularity, stores underestimating said popularity (and thus not ordering enough toys), shipping problems in China and [[Toy scalping|scalpers]].

====US Military====
The [[United States military]] (via [[Philip Strub]] and the Defense Department's Film and Television Liaison Office) supported the movie by providing vehicles and soldiers. The vehicles included an MH-53 Pave Low helicopter ([[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout)]], several F-22 Raptors (one of them serving as [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]'s alternate mode), two A-10 Thunderbolt II fighter jets, an E-3 Sentry AWACS plane, an AC-130 Spectre gunship and two V-22 Ospreys. Many other airplanes are seen in the background like a few UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters, several F-117 Nighthawks, and several cargo planes like the C-17 Globemaster and the C-130 Hercules. Therefore, ''Transformers'' is the first movie to feature real, non-CG F-22s.<ref name="afmil">[http://www.afspc.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123061917 Air Force Space Command article on the movie.]</ref> Real soldiers trained with the actors who played military personnel<ref name="tyreselatino">[http://www.latinoreview.com/news.php?id=2260 Latino Review interview with Tyrese Gibson and Josh Duhamel.]</ref> and were also featured as extras in the movie. Michael Bay even allowed them to improvise lines to make their military dialogue sound as "realistic" as possible.<ref name="nabbtfw">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=115126 First Lieutenant Micheal McNabb reporting his experience of working on the movie.]</ref> In return for their cooperation, Bay gave the military a say in their own depiction in the movie.<ref name="wired">[http://www.wired.com/entertainment/hollywood/magazine/15-07/trans_movie?currentPage=all Wired.com article on the movie.]</ref> The military, in turn, views the movie as a new form of recruitment.<ref name="aflink">[http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123021491 Air Force Link article about the movie.]</ref>

====Product Placement====
Aside from advertising the ''Transformers'' toyline, the movie also features product placement for other companies, such as Apple, Yahoo, Burger King, Nokia, Panasonic, eBay and Hewlett-Packard. The machines given life by the Allspark include an Xbox 360 (including the original startup sound) and a [[Dispensor|Mountain Dew soda vending machine]]. In addition, the movie also features other Hasbro brands, such as ''My Little Pony'' and ''Furby'' (the latter being a property of Hasbro's subsidiary Tiger Electronics). Furthermore, all Autobots, with the exception of Optimus Prime, have vehicles provided by subsidiaries of General Motors as their [[alternate mode]]s, which saved Michael Bay $3 million of his budget.<ref name="bayew" />

Many of these cooperations were mutual: Burger King offered the obligatory Kids Meal toys based on the movie characters for the movie's theatrical launch, and General Motors and Mountain Dew ran TV ads under the titles "Transform Your Ride" and "Transform Your Summer", respectively. According to producers Ian Bryce and Lorenzo di Bonaventura, however, some of these brands, such as [[eBay]], were not originally included as part of a sponsoring deal, but had been part of the script from the beginning for story purposes on the writers' behalf.<ref name="lorenzoiesb" /> For the DVD release of the movie, meanwhile, ''additional'' "Cisco" logos were added into the movie that had not been there yet in the theatrical version.<ref name="dvdprod">[http://www.allspark.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=38792 Allspark thread featuring comparison stills of the theatrical and DVD versions of the movie.]</ref>

===Special effects===
* Three quarters of the CG effects were done by [[Industrial Light & Magic]]. The other quarter was done by [[Digital Domain]], a company [[Michael Bay]] bought shortly before signing up to the ''Transformers'' movie.
* As seen in the bonus material for the Movie DVD, at least some of the ILM designers are actually Transformers fans. One of the animators, [[Charles Alleneck]], has his entire office decorated in more ''Transformers'' toys than a lot of "regular" fans might own.
* Physical props and set pieces were built for several of the Transformers' robot modes. Full body props for [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] (the 2009 Camaro body) and [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]] were used for scenes that involved direct interaction with the human cast. The Bumblebee prop (with detached legs) was also used for the scene where he was strapped to a [[Longarm (Movie)|tow truck]]. A set featuring the frozen lower half of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron's]] body was also built. The rest is assorted bits and pieces, such as [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok's]] head and tail, a part of [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]]'s leg (including a wheel) and an unpainted, entirely blue version of his head plus a small part of the upper chest, and various semi-random chunks meant to represent the remains of the destroyed Decepticons dumped into the ocean (some of the parts meant to represent pieces of [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] even feature markings found on a real-life MH-53 Pave Low helicopter).

===Changes before, during and after production===
A lot of details about the movie changed during the pre-production phase (and even still during production and post-production):

* The script was originally supposed to center around the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]], but because the studio wanted to avoid association with the ''Matrix'' movie trilogy, it had to be renamed. For the longest time, the working name was "[[Energon]] Cube", which neither the fans nor producer [[Don Murphy]] were really happy with.<ref name="murphytfcon" /> Ultimately, it was renamed into the [[AllSpark]] for the final movie; however, the name "Energon Cube" is still used in [[Alan Dean Foster]]'s [[Transformers (novel)|novelization]] of the movie, and was also used by [[Shia LaBeouf]] in a CBS interview immediately before the movie's official theatrical launch.<ref name="shiacbs">[http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=3004937n?source=search_video CBS interview with Shia LaBeouf.]</ref>
* One of the Autobot characters in the early Kurtzman/Orci drafts was [[Arcee (Movie)|Arcee]], who would have turned into a motorcycle. Even though Hasbro developed a toy based on the designs for the character, Arcee was dropped from the script and replaced with [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]]: Kurtzman and Orci didn't want to spend time explaining the purpose of "female" Autobots,<ref name="orciign">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/07/02/exclusive-interview-robert-orci?page=3 IGN interview with Roberto Orci.]</ref> and Michael Bay considered her too small as compared to the rest of the Autobots.<ref name="orciwizard">[http://web.archive.org/web/20070714214451/http://www.wizarduniverse.com/movies/transformersmovie/005082421.cfm?page=1 Wizard interview with Kurtzman and Orci]</ref> Despite what fans commonly assume, however, the scene during the final battle in [[Mission City]] where [[William Lennox|Lennox]] uses an abandoned motorcycle for his assault on [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] wasn't added to the script until ''after'' Arcee had already been dropped from the script; however, had she ''not'' been dropped, she ''would'' have probably been that motorcycle.<ref name="arceelennox">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/2288318-post539.html Orci once again clearing up the story between Arcee and the motorcycle Lennox uses during the final battle]</ref>
* Other Autobot characters considered by Orci and Kurtzman were [[Hot Rod]], [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] and [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]].<ref name="orcichara">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=388609&postcount=280 Roberto Orci confirming various characters originally intended for the movie.]</ref> The last was eventually dropped because Orci and Kurtzman preferred the idea of "a Decepticon in disguise as a police vehicle".<ref name="orciprowl">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=365508&postcount=4411 Orci explaining why Prowl is not in the movie]</ref>
* Kurtzman and Orci tried ''twice'' to include [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] in the movie. The first attempt was supposed to turn into a helicopter,<ref name="orciswave">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=351304&postcount=4161 Roberto Orci confirming that Blackout was originally intended to be Soundwave.]</ref> but Hasbro rejected that notion and insisted that Soundwave's [[alternate mode]] should have something to do with music.<ref name="murphyswave">[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showpost.php?p=97507&postcount=23 Post by Don Murphy at his message board.]</ref> The "helicopter" character was then renamed multiple times, among those names being "Grimlock",<ref name="early">Details from an early script draft [http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=2213120&postcount=297 summed up here], [http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=2214148&postcount=303 confirmed as authentic by Roberto Orci here].</ref> "Vortex",<ref name="orcisample">[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showpost.php?p=1120447&postcount=2360 Unformatted script sample from first draft posted by Roberto Orci on Don Murphy's message board]</ref> "Devastator"<ref name="procterdevas">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_32.html "Devastator" concept art at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> and "Incinerator".<ref name="procterinc">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_34.html "Incinerator" pre-production render at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> The character eventually ended up as [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]].
* The second attempt would have infiltrated the CIA headquarters in the form of a "portable stereo" and then transformed (and size-shifted) into a Humvee for his escape and tracked down [[Sam Witwicky|Sam]].<ref name="early" /> The "vehicle" part was later turned into a separate character, who was then given a different alternate mode (as a police cruiser) and eventually ended up as [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]]. Meanwhile, the "portable stereo" character also went through several changes, because Kurtzman and Orci eventually decided that the character didn't really do Soundwave justice, so they decided to change his name and save Soundwave for the [[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|sequel]].<ref name="webcast">[http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808716430/video/2701721/20070418/2048/2701721-300-wmv-s.35907855-,2701721-300-flash-s.35907881-,2701721-100-wmv-s.35907849-,2701721-100-flash-s.35907874-,2701721-1000-wmv-s.35907866-,2701721-1000-flash-s.35907894-,2701721-700-flash-s.35907887-,2701721-700-wmv-s.35907861- Yahoo webcast with Kurtzman and Orci, revealing the final names of the movie characters.]</ref> The character went through some other working names such as "Boombot"<ref name="procterboom">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_45.html "Boombot" concept art at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> and "Soundbyte"<ref name="proctersbyte">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_54.html "Soundbyte" head study at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> and eventually ended up as [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]].
* Other Decepticon characters considered by Orci and Kurtzman, aside from Soundwave, were [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] and [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]].<ref name="orcichara" /> The latter was originally supposed to be a minion of helicopter Soundwave, who would have chased [[William Lennox|Lennox]] and his crew through the jungle after the attack on their base. However, when the scene was changed from the jungle to the desert (and Soundwave was no longer Soundwave), Ravage was replaced by [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]].<ref name="orciravage">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=234188&postcount=2008 Roberto Orci confirming that Scorponok replaced Ravage].</ref>
* Because of the long production run of the toys, Hasbro urged [[Michael Bay]] very early on to decide upon the Transformers characters to be used in the movie and their vehicle forms, even though the script wasn't completed yet by that point.<ref name="bayew" /> As a result, many of the Decepticon characters in particular were chosen somewhat hastily, and aren't really based on established Transformers characters aside from their names. The tank used for [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]] (aka "Devastator") was a recycled prop originally built for the movie ''xXx: State of the Union'', while the mine protected vehicle used for [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] caught the filmmakers' attention because of a giant photoshopped fork depicted on the manufacturer's website.<ref name="enewsi">[http://enewsi.com/news.php?catid=190&itemid=11213 Entertainment News International article on the making of the movie.]</ref>
* Other Decepticon characters featured in an early draft, aside from "Grimlock" (helicopter) and "Soundwave" (portable stereo/Humvee), were Brawl as a Jeep, Frenzy as a Piranha III mortar artillery vehicle, Onslaught as a mobile missile launcher, Octane as a tanker truck, and three jets named Blitzwing, Starscream and Devastator (a cargo plane, a 747 jet and F-16 fighter; the script doesn't say which is which). Instead of having been hiding on Earth for a while, they would have arrived there during the movie after having been summoned by Soundwave.<ref name="early" /> It's possible that the Piranha III later evolved into Stryker/[[Wreckage (Movie)|Wreckage]].
* The "evil police car Decepticon" that replaced Prowl took over the "vehicle" portion of the second character originally conceived as Soundwave (which eventually became [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]]). His vehicle form was originally supposed to be a Ford Crown Victoria, while his working name was "Brawl".<ref name="policebrawl">[http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-images/events/Botcon-2007/Hasbro-Tour/PICT5108.JPG.html?g2_imageViewsIndex=1 Early design for Barricade with working name "Brawl" shown during the BotCon 2007 Hasbro Tour].</ref> Eventually the character ended up as [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]], with the vehicle mode being changed into a Saleen S281 "Extreme" Mustang, because Ford didn't want one of their cars used as a "villain". Therefore, Barricade sports no "Ford" logos in the movie.<ref name="edmundsveh" />
* Another Decepticon character intended to be in the movie had the working name "Stryker", named after his vehicle mode, a M1126 Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicle.<ref name="stryker">[http://www.seibertron.com/events/fullsize.php?event_id=70&size=2&image=262 Unused design for "Stryker", revealed at the BotCon 2007 Hasbro tour.]</ref> It's possible that he had evolved from a character named "Frenzy" featured in an early script draft, who would have turned into a Piranha III. The character ultimately never made it into the movie, but Hasbro later turned the design into a toy regardless, named [[Wreckage (Movie)|Wreckage]].<ref name="tfwtour" />
* Michael Bay also considered having a Transformers character turn into an aircraft carrier, but eventually scrapped that idea for cost reasons.<ref name="ignround">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/06/13/transformers-roundtable-with-michael-bay?page=2 IGN roundtable with Michael Bay from the Australian press conference.]</ref> Orci and Kurtzman included the character in one of their drafts of the script,<ref name="orciaircraft">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=387736&postcount=210 Roberto Orci confirming that the aircraft carrier was in one of the drafts.]</ref> and artist Tim Flattery created concept art.<ref name="flattery">Tim Flattery's concept art for the unused aircraft carrier Transformer: [http://timflattery.com/transformers/4.html Image 1], [http://timflattery.com/transformers/5.html image 2].</ref>
* Working names for the tank Decepticon were "Demolisher"<ref name="hasbrodemolisher">[http://www.hasbro.com/objects/content/wallpaper.cfm?img=wp_transformers651_1280.jpg&brand_id=496&lang_id=1 Wallpaper at Hasbro's website calling Brawl/Devastator "Demolisher".]</ref> and "Devastator", the latter of which had also been a working name for [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] at one point. Even though [[Michael Bay]] confirmed in May 2006 that this was not the final name,<ref name="baysecret">[http://michaelbay.com/2006/05/12/a-little-secret-from-michael-bay/ Michael Bay claiming that the Transformers' names circulating were "aliases".]</ref> screenwriters Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman confirmed the final name to be "[[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]]" in April 2006,<ref name="webcast" /> and Hasbro used that name for all their toys based on the movie character, he identifies himself as "Devastator" in a subtitle in the movie itself. According to a fan who attended the Australian press conference, Bay had decided to use that name regardless,<ref name="griffin">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=1360922&postcount=122 Australian fan griffin-of-oz reporting from the Australian press conference].</ref> while Hasbro considered the name in the movie a "continuity error",<ref name="hasbrofuture">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=139268 Hasbro Transformers Future Product Unveiling panel at BotCon 2007.]</ref> and Orci even claimed that he and Kurtzman had pointed out said "error" in the editing room twice.<ref name="orcidevastator">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=368555&postcount=4479 Orci confirming the name "Devastator" to be an "error".]</ref>
* Michael Bay decided to have [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] not turn into a Volkswagen Beetle because he wanted to avoid similarities with Disney's ''[[Wikipedia:Herbie|Herbie, the Love Bug]]''.<ref name="bayew" /> Production Designer Jeff Mann originally suggested using a Dodge Super Bee as Bumblebee's alternate mode,<ref name="edmunds1976">[Edmun Edmunds.com article on the classic Bumblebee Camaro.]</ref> but eventually Bay signed a deal with General Motors that saved him $3 million of his budget, which is why Bumblebee turns into a Chevrolet Camaro in the movie.<ref name="bayew" />
* [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] was originally intended to transform into a fire truck rather than a Search & Rescue Hummer. After being changed into a Hummer, he initially still retained a red and white deco, which later served as the inspiration for Hasbro's "Rescue Ratchet" redecos of the movie toys.<ref name="ratchettour">[http://www.seibertron.com/events/fullsize.php?event_id=70&size=2&image=285 Early designs for Ratchet shown at the BotCon 2007 Hasbro tour.]</ref>
* After designs of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] had leaked on the internet, his head design was slightly revised following massive fan complaints.<ref name="murphysunday">[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showpost.php?p=764141&postcount=1 Don Murphy confirming that Megatron's head design was changed due to fan complaints.]</ref>
* The studio had originally preferred the Transformers not to talk ''at all'' throughout the movie, a notion Hasbro heavily contested.<ref name="tfwtour" /> Bumblebee still ended up being mute throughout most of the movie, which, according to Orci and Kurtzman, was inspired by Spielberg's ''E.T.'' and is supposed to signify that his friendship with Sam transcends words.<ref name="mtv" />
* Most drafts of the script started the movie with [[Archibald Witwicky]]'s discovery of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. In the actual movie, this scene was moved to a later point, shown as a flashback (actually at two points, split into two parts). [[IDW Publishing|IDW's]] [[Movie Adaptation issue 1|comic adaptation]] of the movie still has this as the opening scene.
* Also in one of the early drafts, the original reason for Mikaela's falling out with [[Trent DeMarco|Trent]] was not because he wouldn't let his "little bunny" drive his car, but because she refused to let him drive after having drunk beer. [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Anvilicious Anvilicious] much?
* In an early draft, [[William Lennox|Lennox]] and his crew would have defeated [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]] with a simple grenade, which would have "dissolved him at a molecular level". The air strike would have never happened, and Lennox wouldn't have established contact with the Pentagon until around the time when [[Sam Witwicky|Sam]] and [[Mikaela Banes|Mikaela]] were apprehended by [[Sector Seven]].<ref name="early" />
* In the same draft, Sam had left his grandfather's glasses at school. The Autobots would have distracted a security guard while Sam and Mikaela would have broken into their school. It would have been there that Sam would have learned about Mikaela's criminal past, and the scene would have ended with their arrest by Sector Seven.<ref name="early" />
* In some earlier drafts of the script, [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] was supposed to kill [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] too after he had finished off [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]]. That scene never made it into the final movie, and Barricade simply disappears with no explanation after Bonecrusher transforms; however, the scene still made it into Alan Dean Foster's [[Transformers (novel)|novelization]] of the movie and IDW's [[Movie Adaptation issue 4|comic adaptation]].
* Also in earlier drafts of the script, [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] was supposed to kill [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]] by consuming his [[Spark]]. Again, this is only explicitly confirmed in the novelization and IDW's comic adaptation of the movie, but not in the movie itself.
* During the rather truncated chase scene between Barricade and Bumblebee (see also "[[#Errors|errors]]" above), Barricade was to deploy some serrated drill-like missiles from his hood and fire them at the fleeing Autobot. Though these weapons were constructed and fitted to one of the Barricade prop vehicles, this scene was ultimately cut, explaining the abrupt shift to night time at the conclusion of the chase. Until artist [[Sean Haworth]] uploaded a photo of the weapon prop onto his website, the only official proof of the existence of these weapons was page 12 of IDW Publishing's [[Movie Adaptation issue 2]] and the RadioShack [[Barricade (Movie)/toys#XMODS Evolution Transformers|''XMODS Evolution'' Barricade radio control car's weapons and light uppgrade kit]].

==Notes==
* The Autobot computer generated models consisted of 35,592 total pieces, 7,435,478 polygons, 95,247 rig nodes, and 20,258 texture maps. If laid end to end, the pieces would stretch 3.11 miles.
* For all the robots combined, there are 60,217 pieces of geometry, 123,509,502 polygons, 144,341 rigging nodes, and 34,215 texture maps.<ref>Robertson, Barbara (2007). Heavy Metal. ''Computer Graphics, 30''(7), 12–17.</ref>
* The events of the movie span 4–5 days.
* Within the movie, neither the Autobots nor the Decepticons are referred to as "Transformers".
* As confirmed in the audio commentary on the movie DVD, director [[Michael Bay]] has a brief cameo as an innocent bystander getting flicked against a taxi cab by [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]].
* The "<tt>[322] days without a safety breach</tt>" sign behind Agent Simmons before they bring the [[Nokia-bot|cell phone]] to life relates to a piece of backstory that was cut from the final film. A researcher named [[James Farr (Movie)|James Farr]] was killed when a [[AX9-8946-09SU-1|robot they brought to life]] ran amok, causing the damage Glen comments on. The [[Sector Seven (game)|viral marketing campaign]] gives a date for Farr's death; [[March 16]], [[2006]]. This would chronologically place the primary events of the film as occurring over a 3-day period, [[January 30]]–[[February 1]], [[2007]].
*The two guard dogs that Sam encounters are played by a Belgian Malinois named Ammo and a Rottweiler named Nadine.
* In an interesting showing of unified marketing, the Japanese dub of the movie uses the English-market character and factions names (e.g., Autobot, Decepticon, Optimus Prime, Bumblebee) rather than the terms previously established in Japanese Transformers continuity (e.g., Cybertron, Destron, Convoy, Bumble). This has subsequently influenced Takara's subsequent dub of ''[[Transformers Animated (franchise)|Transformers Animated]]'', where (for the most part) they retain the English-market names and factions.
* In a bit of a shocker, [[Simon Furman]] has said he personally isn't a fan of the films, though he believes they're great for what he inaccurately (and worryingly) described as "the intended audience" of young kids.<ref>[http://mindlessones.com/2009/07/20/transformers-terminators-and-the-rest11-questions-with-simon-furman/ Interview at Mindless Ones blog]</ref>
* In an unexpected celebrity-related moment, famed multi award-winning British actress Helen Mirren, a Dame Commander of the British Empire, was one of the guests at the June 27, 2007 Los Angeles Film Festival premiere of ''Transformers''. One wonders what she thought of it.<ref>[http://movies.about.com/od/transformers/ig/Transformers-Premiere-Photos/transformersprem34.htm Helen Mirren at the June 27, 2007 Los Angeles premiere of ''Transformers'';Rebecca Murray, Movies.About.com Guide]</ref>
* ''Transformers'' (ahem) "inspired" a [[Knockoff|direct-to-video movie]] called [[Wikipedia:Transmorphers|''Transmorphers'']]. It got a [[Wikipedia:Transmorphers: Fall of Man|prequel]] in 2009, starring [[Wikipedia:Bruce Boxleitner|Bruce Boxleitner]], of all people. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
* Somewhat less embarrassing, ''Transformers'' also inspired the [[Wikipedia:Knight Rider (2008 film)|2008 ''Knight Rider'' television movie]] and the [[Wikipedia:Knight Rider (2008 TV series)|short-lived revival/sequel series]] that followed it.<ref name="varietykr">[http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117972829?refCatId=14 Variety article about the then-upcoming 2008 ''Knight Rider'' revival]</ref> Furthermore, the special effects<ref name="madeatl">[http://madeinatlantis.com/movies_central/2008/iron_man_production_details.htm ''Iron Man'' Full Production Notes]</ref> and the marketing campaign<ref name="imtie-ins">[http://www.brandweek.com/bw/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003692165 Brandweek article about the ''Iron Man'' marketing campaign.]</ref> both served as inspirations for the 2008 [[Wikipedia:Iron Man (film)|''Iron Man'' movie]].

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''''Transformers''''' (トランスフォーマー ''Toransufōmā'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''''Pièn-hsíng Chīn-kāng''''' (Taiwan, 變形金剛, "Transformers"), '''''Biànxíng Jīngāng''''' (China, 变形金刚, "Transformers")
*''Russian:'' '''''Transformery''''' (Трансформеры, "Transformers")

==External links==
* [http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=68329&p=irol-newsArticlePR&ID=421174 June 11, 2003 Press Release announcing the movie.]
* [http://www.transformersmovie.com/ Transformersmovie.com]
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0418279/ ''Transformers'' at IMDB.com]
* [http://www.transformersalbum.com/ ''Transformers The Album'']
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transformers_%28film%29 ''Transformers'' 2007 film on Wikipedia]
* Designer portfolios: [http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/PROJPAGE_Trans_01.html Ben Procter], [http://www.jamesclyne.com/projects.php?gallery_id=297 James Clyne], [http://timflattery.com/main.html Tim Flattery], [http://features.cgsociety.org/story_custom.php?story_id=4150 Alex Jaeger] (at CG Society), [http://2d2cg.com/# Jeremy Cook]
* [http://www.capalert.com/capreports/transformers.htm ''Transformers'' CAPalert.com review]

==References==
{{reflist|3}}

[[Category:Movie| ]]
[[Category:Movie media]]
[[Category:MSTF]]
[[Category:Real world films]]

Transformers (film)

2017-05-24T22:33:12Z

The Predacon: /* Sequels */

{{disambig2|the 2007 movie|other uses of ''The Transformers''|Transformers (disambiguation)}}

{{nav-movie}}

:''Transformers is an [[Sector Seven (game)|elaborate cover up]] from the [[live-action film series|live-action film]] [[continuity family]].''
[[File:Transformers2007teaserposter.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Beyond good. Beyond evil. Beyond your wildest imagination!]]

'''''Transformers''''' is a live-action movie released by [[DreamWorks]] in 2007, with Executive Producer [[Steven Spielberg]] and Director [[Michael Bay]]. The story follows the Transformers' arrival on modern-day Earth and their interactions with the human race, as they search for the life-giving [[AllSpark]] and continue their ages-old civil war. The movie is a new imagining of the [[Transformers brand]], drawing on past Transformers fiction but also distinct in its own right.

''Transformers'' features [[Sam Witwicky]], a plucky teenager who just wants a cool car, but gets more than he bargained for. The beater he and his father take home is actually [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]], an alien robot from the planet [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], who plants Sam down in the middle of a civil war between Bumblebee's benevolent [[Autobot]] comrades and the evil [[Decepticon]]s who threaten the galaxy's peace. Both sides are after the AllSpark, a mysterious artifact that landed on Earth ten thousand years ago. The approaching robot-against-robot battle is a coming-of-age moment for Sam, who learns the meaning of his family's motto, "No sacrifice, no victory."

The principal cast members were [[Shia LaBeouf]], [[Jon Voight]], and [[Megan Fox]], with [[Peter Cullen]] and [[Hugo Weaving]] as the voices of the Transformers' iconic leaders. About 75 percent of the film's character designs and visual effects were created by [[Industrial Light & Magic]], the effects-wizards behind the [[Star Wars (film)|''Star Wars'' films]]. The remaining 25 percent were done by Michael Bay's company, [[Digital Domain]].

Originally slated to release in the summer of 2006, the film arrived in US theaters on [[July 3]], 2007, and hit UK theaters on [[July 27]] and French theaters on [[July 25]]. It premiered in Australia on [[June 12]], 2007, and was released there and in a number of Asian countries on [[June 28]], 2007. An extended cut of the film featuring footage not in the original was released to IMAX theatres on [[September 21]], 2007.

{{bigquote|Sam Witwicky, you hold the key to Earth's survival.|[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] on the basic plot}}

==Synopsis==
[[File:Allspark movie.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|With this, I shall make you my slave!]]
Many years ago, Cybertron is destroyed at the hands of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]], during his quest to obtain the AllSpark. Megatron discovers the AllSpark on [[Earth]], but crash-lands in the Arctic Circle, becoming frozen in the ice. Captain [[Archibald Witwicky]] and his crew of explorers stumble upon Megatron's body in the late 19th century. Megatron's navigational system is unintentionally activated, and [[Glasses#Movie|Archibald's eyeglasses]] are imprinted with the coordinates to the AllSpark's location. [[Sector Seven]], a secret organization of the United States government, independently discovers the AllSpark and builds the [[Hoover Dam]] around it to mask its energy signal. The still-frozen Megatron is moved into this facility, and is reverse engineered to further advance [[human]] technology.

[[File:Movie Blackout SOCCENT.JPG|upright=1.4|thumb|Let the slaughter begin!]]
In the present day, the other Decepticons — [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]], [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]], [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]], [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]], [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]], [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]], and [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]] — have already landed on Earth and assumed the disguise of Earth vehicles. Blackout and Scorponok attack the U.S. [[SOCCENT Forward Operations Base]] in [[Qatar]] in an effort to use the military database to discover the location of Megatron and the AllSpark, but they do not succeed. A small group of survivors under Captain [[William Lennox]] wander through the desert and are followed by Scorponok. The Autonomous Robotic Organism (shortened to "Autobot") known as Bumblebee is also on Earth, disguised as a 1976 Chevrolet Camaro, and looking for Sam Witwicky, the descendant of Captain Archibald Witwicky. He finds Sam at a used car lot where the boy is looking to purchase a car. Bumblebee covertly sabotages all of the other cars in the lot, leaving him as Sam's only option. Sam buys Bumblebee and the two quickly begin to bond as Bumblebee helps Sam try and woo his crush, [[Mikaela Banes]]. Sam is unaware of the fact that Bumblebee is an alien, until one night when the Autobot drives off without him. Sam chases Bumblebee on a bike to a factory area, calling the police in the process, and witnesses Bumblebee transform into robot mode and send a signal to the Autobots in space. The police soon arrive and Sam is arrested.

[[File:Movie Scorponok leapsout.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Run, Blaster! Save yourself!]]
At the [[Pentagon]], Defense Secretary [[John Keller (Movie)|John Keller]] oversees the investigation into the attack in Qatar. After Blackout's failure, Frenzy infiltrates Air Force One and attempts to download all information relating to "Project Iceman". However, [[Maggie Madsen]], one of the technicians studying the Decepticon infiltration signal, detects Frenzy hacking into the files and convinces the Pentagon to take down the Defense Network, halting Frenzy's download. When [[Air Force One]] makes an emergency landing, Frenzy slips into Barricade, and discusses his discovery of Archibald Witwicky, who has seen [[Cybertronian language|their language]]. Using an internet search, they discover that Sam's glasses will lead the Decepticons to the AllSpark. Frenzy and Barricade begin tracking Sam's location. Back in Qatar, the Army Rangers are attacked by Scorponok, and take refuge in a nearby village. Calling the Pentagon and getting air support, they discover that the Decepticons are vulnerable to high heat weaponry such as sabot rounds. Using this information, the soldiers inform the Pentagon that they now have a weapon.

[[File:Movie Sam Mikaela meettheAutobots.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|[[Wheelie (ROTF)|Wheelie]] say find friends today.]]
Sam having been bailed out of jail by his father, gets the impression that Bumblebee is stalking him. A freaked out Sam flees from Bumblebee (who is in car mode) on his mother's bike. Bumblebee then proceeds to pursue him. Mikaela sees Sam on the run and follows him on her motor scooter. After Sam evades Bumblebee, he is confronted by Barricade who demands Archibald's glasses. Mikaela arrives as Sam is running away from Barricade. Bumblebee, still in car mode, then finds them and has them get in. Barricade chases Bumblebee to a power plant where Bumblebee transforms and battles the Decepticon robot-to-robot. Meanwhile, Frenzy chases Sam but gets his head decapitated by Mikaela, however his head still functions and takes the form of Mikaela's phone to hide in her purse. Bumblebee, who has defeated Barricade, properly introduces himself to Sam and Mikaela. He then takes them to rendezvous with the rest of the Autobots. The Autobots—[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]], [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]], [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]], and [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]]—land on Earth and take on the forms of several Earth vehicles. They all meet in a dark, secluded alley, transform in front of the two amazed humans, introduce themselves and tell of the reasons they had to come to Earth to Sam and Mikaela. Meanwhile, Maggie, unable to convince John Keller and his officers of the Decepticon virus's complexity, makes a copy of the intrusion signal and shows it to her friend [[Glen Whitmann]], who discovers a message with the signal about Sector Seven, Captain Witwicky, and [[Project Iceman]]. However, the FBI arrest Glen and Maggie, who desperately tries to convince them not to go to war with the wrong country.

[[File:Movie Autobots Sector Seven.JPG|left|upright=1.4|thumb|I'll use the universal greeting.]]
Sam, Mikaela, and the Autobots return to Sam's home to retrieve the glasses. However, agents from [[Sector Seven]] arrive to take Sam and Mikaela into custody. As Sam and Mikaela are taken away in one of their vehicles, [[Seymour Simmons]], the agency's director, reveals that Mikaela has a criminal record and threatens Sam with life imprisonment, at which point the Autobots disable the convoy and rescue the teens. Mikaela then explains to Sam that the only reason she has a record is her refusal to turn her father in for the crimes he committed, prompting her to ask him what he has ever sacrificed in his "perfect little life." Reinforcements arrive at the scene and the Autobots retreat. However Sam and Mikaela are recaptured and Bumblebee is also captured despite Sam's pleas to let him go. Prime orders the other Autobots to let Bumblebee be taken, unwilling to use deadly force against the humans. At the Pentagon, a virus Frenzy uploaded during the Air Force One hack causes a global communications blackout, while Keller is finally informed of the Transformers by [[Tom Banachek]]. After Bumblebee's capture, Optimus uses the glasses to locate the AllSpark at Hoover Dam, and declares that if they cannot defeat the Decepticons, he will merge the Cube with his spark, even though it will kill him.

[[File:Movie Optimus Megatron.JPG|upright=1.4|thumb|One shall stand. One shall fall.]]
Sam, Mikaela, Keller, Maggie, Glen, and Lennox's unit are brought to Hoover Dam, where they are shown by Simmons and Banachek the frozen Megatron and the AllSpark, while Frenzy slips away. Sam explains the Decepticons' plan to use the AllSpark to transform human machines to conquer the universe. Locating the AllSpark, Frenzy regenerates the rest of his body and sends out an alert to Starscream, who mobilizes the rest of the Decepticons. Due to Starscream's attack and Frenzy's sabotage, Megatron begins to thaw, and Sam, Lennox, and Keller convince Banachek and Simmons to release Bumblebee so that he can get the AllSpark to Optimus Prime. Bumblebee converts the AllSpark into a smaller state for transportation to [[Mission City]].

Glen, Maggie, Keller, and Simmons manage to contact the Air Force and direct F22s to Mission City. Frenzy tries to stop them but is killed. As Bumblebee, Sam, Mikeala, and Lennox's unit drive to Mission City, they come in contact with the other Autobots, who join the convoy. Barricade, Devastator, and Bonecrusher, in vehicle modes, pursue them and Bonecrusher transforms into robot mode. Optimus transforms to stay behind and stop their pursuers. He fights Bonecrusher and eventually kills him. Meanwhile, the rest of the Autobots and the soldiers reach Mission City and come under attack by Starscream, Devastator, Blackout and Megatron. Bumblebee is crippled by Starscream while Jazz is killed by Megatron. Mikaela hijacks a tow truck to carry Bumblebee to safety while Lennox tasks Sam with taking the AllSpark to a building where it will be taken by military helicopters. Ironhide and Ratchet cover Sam as he makes his run to the building, protecting him from Blackout before being wounded by Starscream, leaving Sam to get to the building on his own.

[[File:Megatron allspark merge.JPG|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Now, light our darkest hour!]]
Optimus Prime finally arrives in the area and confronts Megatron. The two battle one-on-one before Megatron knocks Prime out and chases Sam. As Sam get to the roof of the building and is about to hand the AllSpark off to one of the helicopters, it is shot down by Starscream. Megatron destroys the portion of the roof the Sam is standing on when he refuses to hand over the AllSpark. However, Optimus catches Sam and he and Megatron resume their duel with Megatron once again gaining the upper hand. Meanwhile, Mikaela drives the tow truck in reverse to allow Bumblebee to fire on Devastator, who has Lennox and his men pinned down. Bumblebee kills Devastator and a full air strike is called in on Blackout and Megatron. As Blackout attempts to assist Megatron, he is killed by Lennox and the Air Force before he can engage. Starscream hides among a raptor squadron, destroying three fighters before being chased away. The Air Force and Lennox's rangers attack Megatron, inflicting serious damage upon him, but he is still functional, and heading toward the Cube. Finally, with both Prime and Megatron weakened, Prime beckons Sam to shove the AllSpark into his chest, destroying them both, but Sam instead takes the riskier action of shoving the AllSpark into Megatron's chest, destroying it, and killing Megatron instead.

{{note|For an extensive synopsis of the battle, see separate article [[Mission City]].}}

[[File:Movie Optimus ending.JPG|upright=1.4|thumb|[['Til all are one]]!]]
Optimus thanks Sam for his courage and for saving his life, while Bumblebee, who has temporarily regained his voice, asks permission to remain with Sam, which is granted. In an attempt to cover up the existence of the Transformers, Sector Seven is disbanded, while the remains of the Decepticons are cast into the [[Laurentian Abyss]]. Though Megatron is dead, the AllSpark's destruction leaves the Autobots unable to restore Cybertron. With no other home to go to, the Autobots decide to stay on Earth, and Optimus sends out a signal across space in an effort to locate any surviving Autobots, while Sam and Mikaela begin a relationship. Starscream retreats from Earth.
{{-}}

==Main cast==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] ([[Peter Cullen]])
*[[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] ([[Mark Ryan]])
*[[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]] ([[Darius McCrary]])
*[[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] ([[Robert Foxworth]])
*[[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]] ([[Jess Harnell]])
|c2=
*[[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] ([[Hugo Weaving]])
*[[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] ([[Jess Harnell]])
*[[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] ([[Charlie Adler]])
*[[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]]'''*''' / Devastator
*[[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] ([[Jimmie Wood]])
*[[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]]
*[[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]]
*[[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]] ([[Reno Wilson]])

|c3=
*[[Sam Witwicky]] ([[Shia LaBeouf]])
*[[Mikaela Banes]] ([[Megan Fox]])
*[[William Lennox]] ([[Josh Duhamel]])
*[[Robert Epps]] ([[Tyrese Gibson]])
*[[John Keller (Movie)|John Keller]] ([[Jon Voight]])
*[[Maggie Madsen]] ([[Rachael Taylor]])
*[[Glen Whitmann]] ([[Anthony Anderson]])
*[[Seymour Simmons]] ([[John Turturro]])
*[[Tom Banachek]] ([[Michael O'Neill]])
*[[Judy Witwicky]] ([[Julie White]])
*[[Ron Witwicky]] ([[Kevin Dunn]])
*[[Bobby Bolivia]] ([[Bernie Mac]])
*[[Trent DeMarco]] ([[Travis Van Winkle]])
*[[Archibald Witwicky]] ([[William Morgan Sheppard]])
*[[Patrick Donnelly]] ([[Zack Ward]])
*[[Jorge Figueroa]] ([[Amaury Nolasco]])
*[[Miles Lancaster]] ([[John Robinson]])
*[[Sharp|Colonel Sharp]] ([[Glenn Morshower]])

|c4=
*[[Mojo]] ([[Chester the Chihuahua]])
[[AllSpark Mutation]]s
*[[Nokia-bot]]
*[[Dispensor]]
*[[Steering wheel robot|Steering wheel]]
*[[Xbox 360 robot|Xbox 360]]
|nonumbering=true
}}
'''<nowiki>*</nowiki>''' - Brawl is named "Devastator" in the film itself, but "Brawl" in the toyline and most of the supporting media. Plot summaries and such will reflect whichever name is relevant to that being described.

==Quotes==
"Before time began, there was the Cube. We know not where it comes from, only that it holds the power to create worlds and fill them with life. That was how our race was born. For a time, we lived in harmony, but like all great power, some wanted it for good, others for evil. And so began the war - a war that ravaged our planet until it was consumed by death, and the Cube was lost to the far reaches of space. We scattered across the galaxy, hoping to find it and rebuild our home, searching every star, every world. And just when all hope seemed lost, message of a new discovery drew us to an unknown planet called... Earth. But we were already too late."
:—'''Optimus Prime's''' opening narration

"Look, can you do me a favor—can you look out the window for a second? See my father? He's the guy in the green car? Let me tell you about a dream, a boy's dream, and a man's promise to that boy. He looked him in the eye and said "Son, I'm gonna buy you a car, but I want you to bring me two-thousand dollars and three A's." OK, I got the two thousand and two A's. OK, here's the dream. Your B minus? Pfff! Dream gone. Kaputt. Sir, just ask yourself... what would [[Jesus]] do?"
:—'''Sam Witwicky''' negotiates a better mark for his Family Genealogy project

'''Bobby Bolivia:''' What with the semi-classic nature of the vehicle, slick wheels and custom paint job— 
'''Sam:''' The paint's faded! 
'''Bobby:''' Y-yeah, but it's custom. 
'''Sam:''' It's custom faded? 
'''Bobby:''' Well, it's your first car, I wouldn't expect you to understand. ''[turns to Ron]'' Five grand. 
'''Ron:''' No, not paying over four. Sorry. 
'''Bobby:''' ''[turns back to Sam]'' Kid, c'mon, get out, get out of the car. 
'''Sam:''' No, no, no, you said cars pick their drivers! 
'''Bobby:''' Well, sometimes they pick a driver with a cheap-ass father—out of the car. 
:—Negotiations over [[Bumblebee (Movie)|the car]] at [[Bolivia's Finest Quality Used Cars and Petting Zoo]]

''[Sam's car leaves in a huge puff of black smoke]'' 
"Wow... you are so cheap." 
"It's his first car... supposed to be like that."
:—'''Judy Witwicky''' comments on the car's condition to '''Ron'''

'''Capt. Lennox:''' I need a credit card! Epps, where's your wallet? 
'''Sgt. Epps:''' Pocket! ''[fires gun]'' 
'''Lennox:''' Which pocket?" 
'''Epps:''' My ''back'' pocket! ''[fires gun]'' 
'''Lennox:''' You got ten back pockets! 
'''Epps:''' Left cheek! Left cheek! ''Left cheek!'' 
:—Calling the Pentagon from Qatar gets complicated.

"Ready, heat's coming!" 
"What, BRING IT!" 
:—'''Lennox''' and '''Epps''' giving the green light for Strike Package Bravo to attack

'''Optimus Prime''': Are you Samuel James Witwicky, descendant of Archibald Witwicky? 
'''Mikaela Banes''': They know your name! 
'''Sam''': Uh... Yeah? 
'''Optimus Prime''': My name is Optimus Prime. 
:—Admit it, you stood up and cheered and/or wept from joy after this exchange.

"The parents are... irritating. Can I take them out?"
:—'''Ironhide''' meets the family

'''Jazz''': What about Bumblebee? We can't just leave him to die! And become some human experiment! 
'''Optimus Prime''': He'll die in vain if we don't accomplish our mission. Bumblebee is a brave soldier. This is what he would want. 
'''Ironhide:''' Why are we fighting to save the humans? They're a primitive and violent race. 
'''Optimus Prime:''' Were we so different? They are a young species. They have much to learn... but I've seen goodness in them. [[Make Prime Speak|Freedom is the right of all sentient beings]]... You all know there is only one way to end this war: We must destroy the Cube. If all else fails, I will unite it with the spark in my chest. 
'''Ratchet:''' That's suicide! The Cube is raw power—it could destroy you both. 
'''Optimus Prime:''' A necessary sacrifice to bring peace to this planet... We cannot let the humans pay for our mistakes. It's been an honor serving with you all. Autobots, roll out! 
'''Jazz''': We rollin'! 
:—The Autobots discuss their next move.

"Do you want a piece of me?! Do you want a piece-" 
"NO! I want TWO!"''[rips Jazz in two]'' 
:—'''Jazz''', showing no fear and '''Megatron''', showing cruelty and cleverness

"Humans don't deserve to live." 
"They deserve to choose for themselves!" 
"Then you will die with them! Join them in extinction!"
:—'''Megatron''' and '''Optimus Prime''' have some mid-battle banter, Transformers style

"Give me the AllSpark, and you may live to be my ''pet''." 
"I'm never giving you this AllSpark!" 
"Oh, ''so'' unwise..."
:—'''Megatron''' and '''Sam Witwicky''' have a tense moment on a Mission City rooftop.

"With the AllSpark gone, we cannot return life to our planet. And fate has yielded its reward: a new world to call... home. We live among its people now, hiding in plain sight... but watching over them in secret... waiting... protecting. I have witnessed their capacity for courage, and though we are worlds apart, like us, there's more to them than meets the eye. I am Optimus Prime, and I send this message to any surviving Autobots taking refuge among the stars: We are here... we are waiting."
:—'''Optimus Prime's''' closing narration

==Errors==
* Sunset occurs roughly every fifteen minutes. Possibly indicative of time passage, but a little too much to not warrant mention in the actual movie. Specific instances:
**When the radar operator at SOCCENT base first spots Blackout, he reports him as an "inbound unidentified infiltrator, ten miles out". [[Sharp|Colonel Sharp]] dispatches two F-22s, which intercept Blackout still in broad daylight. When Blackout lands at the base, it's suddenly sunset. As the soldiers round him up, it rapidly turns dark within what appears to be seconds. Once Blackout transforms, it's already night.
**When Mikaela walks home from the lake, the sun is still shining. Sam tells Miles that she "lives ten miles from here". After he picked her up, Bumblebee feigns an engine problem. By the time Sam gets him running again, the sky is still in an early stage of pre-sunset. By the time Sam drops Mikaela at her home, it's night again.
**Barricade assaults Sam in the middle of the day. Bumblebee intervenes and drives off with Sam and Mikaela still in broad daylight. During the ensuing car chase, sunset abruptly occurs once Bumblebee has left the warehouse, and it promptly turns night between shots. (The chase scene was actually intended to be longer; see "[[#Changes before, during and after production|changes before, during and after production]]" below.)
* The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) used by the US Air Force to investigate Scorponok's attack on Captain Lennox is modeled after the [[wikipedia:MQ-9 Reaper|MQ-9 Reaper]], but is identified as the [[wikipedia:MQ-1 Predator|MQ-1 Predator]]. Also, neither of these UAVs use jet engines.
[[File:MovieTaxis.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|These shots were ''shown in sequence'', believe it or not.]]
* After Maggie copies the signal to take to Glen, she hails a black and white cab, but she's dropped off at Glen's house by an all-white cab. (The "cab hailing" footage originally came from a deleted scene near the beginning of the movie when Maggie was late for work.), and are two different models of the Crown Victoria taxicab.
* When Sam's car breaks down and Mikaela gets out to look at the engine, she leaves the passenger door open. When the car restarts and Sam leaves to close the hood, the passenger side door is now shut. But hey, maybe that was Bumblebee.
* Mikaela identifies Bumblebee's engine as having a "high-rise, double-pump carburetor" but the engine shown has no such carburetor.
* After Bumblebee backs into a corner of the power plant to evade Barricade, there is a close up shot of him spinning his wheels to make his getaway. However, the shot of the wheels spinning is at a different location: the empty warehouse that Bumblebee and Barricade had raced through moments earlier.
* Possibly an error, or possibly just a confusing shot setup, but when Bumblebee makes his escape, Barricade appears to change positions multiple times as camera angles change. Bumblebee guns his engines as Barricade is just starting to cross in front of him, but as Bumblebee speeds backwards, Barricade has backtracked well out of the way.
* After scanning his new Concept Camaro alt-form, Bumblebee's robot body displays either battle-worn parts or brand new parts at random times for the duration of the film.
[[File:MovieJazzBarricadeLicensePlates.jpg|thumb|Barricade has the plate before Jazz even comes to Earth, so it's not a trophy or anything...]]
* As long as Bumblebee transforms into a 1976 Camaro, his license plate consistently reads "489 PCE" both in vehicle and robot mode. After scanning his modern Camaro alternate mode, the license plate changes too... which isn't actually an error. What ''is'' an error, though, is that the new license plate keeps changing from "900 STRA" in vehicle mode to "4NZZ454" in robot mode.
*Jazz's license plate is equally inconsistent: On his robot mode chest it's "1-4027E", but during his transformation before his fight with [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]], he sports the license plate "664 NLZO" in vehicle mode. What's worse, "1-4027E" is also ''Barricade's'' license plate in vehicle mode, as can be seen when he slows down and then accelerates again after having seemingly cornered Bumblebee.
* During the scene where Optimus Prime scans a truck for his new body, the passing truck has what appears to be an Autobot sigil on its grill, but the actual truck that Prime turns into at the end of the scene has a much wider, flatter symbol on the grill, quite possibly a Peterbilt logo.
* When Simmons replays Sam's "last words" recorded onto his cell phone, it doesn't match what he said in the scene where he actually recorded them.
* When the Autobots arrive to rescue Sam and Mikaela from Agent Simmons, Ironhide is the first Autobot to reach the damaged SUV and the other Sector Seven agents. Behind him, Ratchet is making his way towards the SUV, while Jazz and Bumblebee have their respective weapons drawn. However, in the very next shot, Ratchet's gun is suddenly in front of Ironhide, who is now making two short steps towards the SUV, while Jazz's gun has been replaced by his hand (which he uses to pull Sector Seven's guns away magnetically). In the shot after that, Jazz is just standing around sans Sector Seven guns, while Bumblebee wanders up and draws his gun...again.
[[File:Movie2007 Keller OBVIOUSVISUALAID.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|Yer days're numbered now, Decepti-creeps.]]
* When Banachek shows Keller photographs of the Decepticon that destroyed the [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] [[Beagle 2 Rover]], and supposedly a photo of Blackout taken by Epps during the attack on SOCCENT Qatar, "Blackout's photo" is clearly taken during the day, complete with the sun behind the Decepticon as a major light source, whereas the attack on SOCCENT took place in the evening. This was either a continuity error or a ham-handed attempt to make the audience realise the attackers in both photos are one and the same by making the photos look similar.
** Not to mention that the actual Beagle 2 was a '''''European''''' Space Agency '''''lander''''', not a [[NASA]] Rover.
* During the montage where Bumblebee's frozen body is being transported inside Hoover Dam via a moving platform whilst the Autobots discuss his fate, in one of the shots the physical Bumblebee prop is missing its distinctive car doors.
* During the first half of the movie, Maggie is wearing a slim striped skirt, but she is suddenly dressed in 3/4 jeans in the scene when they arrive at Hoover Dam.
*This may not be an error, but Barricade seems to disappear after being driven off the road during the highway scene, as he is never shown again in the movie or the [[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|sequel]]. [[Wheelie (ROTF)|Wheelie]] later pulls the same trick in said sequel.
* When Ironhide transforms and performs a somersault to dodge Brawl's missiles, he is seen rising first, then falling. At that moment, he is already almost at the ground, low enough to touch the ground if he stretched his arms. However, on the next scene, he has gone much higher up, high enough to fire both the cannons on his arms then perform a midair somersault.
* When Lennox arrives as Sam and Mikaela are supposedly strapping Bumblebee with the tow truck's chains, Bumblebee is not actually there. When the shot changes angles to the other side of the truck, Bumblebee is sitting right beside the truck while Sam directs Mikaela to wrap Bumblebee in the chains. When Lennox tells Sam to evacuate the Cube, subsequent camera angles from this side of the truck are actually where Bumblebee was moments earlier, but he's not there again (it is unlikely the angle was meant to be from Bumblebee's perspective). When Sam starts to run off and Mikaela calls him back, Bumblebee is once again clearly not sitting beside the truck. In fact, the space he once occupied has the beige van he crawled out of, earlier in the battle. What makes this all the more bizarre is that the life-sized Bumblebee prop was actually used for some of the scenes that depict Bumblebee strapped to the tow truck.
[[File:MovieTowTruckNumbers.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Mike changed phone numbers while giant robots were fighting in the city.]]
* After Optimus Prime and Megatron land in the city streets after flying through the office tower, Megatron throws the Autobot leader a short distance away, causing him to land on a parked car. After Megatron forms his fusion cannon, Optimus Prime has suddenly moved further down the street and the car he crushed, along with the other abandoned cars, have vanished. Also, in this shot, Optimus' feet don't make craters or any visible mark on the concrete. Yet, when Optimus is running from the Sector Seven Agents, he's making huge craters while he is side-stepping cars. (This comes with weighing over four tons and running 40 miles an hour.) Additionally, Optimus stops at the intersection just in front of Megatron to pull out his Ion blaster in this shot, but when it cuts to a shot to the left-front of Optimus, he is only mid-way up the street, and there is a parked yellow cab at the curb which was empty seconds earlier. Funnily enough, this curb was where the crushed car was parked.
* During the fight towards the end of the film between Megatron and Optimus, it is shown that Optimus is about the same size as Megatron in robot mode. Yet, in vehicle mode, Megatron is a great deal larger than Optimus is. Similarly, Starscream seems to be smaller than Megatron in robot form, leading to the logical conclusion that he is smaller than Optimus as well. Yet in vehicle mode, he is nearly four to five times larger, seeing as an F-22 Raptor is a great deal larger than a Peterbilt 379 tractor cab. And they say they don't have [[scale]] problems.
* For the battle in Mission City, see [[Mission City#Notes]].
*The phone number on the doors of the tow truck is "800-555-0199" when Mikaela is driving it, but when she gets out, the number changes to "800-555-MIKE". The font is slightly different, too.
* In the battle at Mission City, Brawl very clearly fires 3 missiles out of his shoulder-mounted missile launcher, but before he dies, all 4 missiles are in his missile launcher. Then again, this could just be a sort of 'auto-reload' thing the Transformers have going on, as they probably wouldn't get very far in battle if they were only limited to 4 missiles each.
* When Keller is meeting with the other officials, he says they're going to dump the bodies of the Decepticons into the Laurentian Abyss, the deepest place on the planet. The deepest place on the planet is the Mariana Trench.

===Explicable discrepancies===
* Sam and Mikaela, as well as Maggie and Glen arrive at Hoover Dam on the same helicopter despite being from opposite ends of the country. Occasionally cited as an error, it is actually a narrative oversight, as it is likely that Sam and Mikaela were held in custody at a U.S. Air Base while waiting for Maggie and Glen to arrive with Secretary Keller's party by plane, then they all left for Hoover Dam together on the helicopters.

* There are some problems with Simmons's statement about various technologies being reverse-engineered from Megatron. Cars came about in one shape or form at about the turn of the century, and spaceflight technology was pioneered by German and Soviet scientists. (This is possibly what [[Sector Seven|they]] ''want'' you to think.) Then again, [[Seymour Simmons|Simmons]] also thinks that [[Nokia]] is a Japanese company...

* Most people mistakenly confuse the date of Megatron's discovery with the date the Hoover Dam was built. Based on the various dates given by Banachek, it's clear that Megatron was ''left in the Arctic'' for many years before being moved to Hoover Dam, making his discovery easily pre-date cars.

==Transformer references==
The movie contains a number of nods and winks to previous iterations of ''Transformers'', primarily from ''[[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]]''. Some of these were included in direct response to urgings of the fans; others originated with the production crew.

* The basic story set-up is similar to many iterations of the ''Generation 1'' story — two warring factions, the noble Autobots and the power-hungry Decepticons, arrive on Earth, having left their devastated home planet, the war-torn mechanical world of Cybertron.
* Many of the featured Transformers are re-imagined versions of characters from ''Generation 1''. [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] in particular are similar in physical form and characterization to their movie incarnations. The Movie versions of [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]], [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]], and [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] differ in appearance but fulfill story roles similar to their original versions.
* Though the characters are new, "[[Frenzy (disambiguation)|Frenzy]]", "[[Scorponok (disambiguation)|Scorponok]]", "[[Brawl (G1)|Brawl]]/[[Devastator (disambiguation)|Devastator]]", "[[Blackout (disambiguation)|Blackout]]", "[[Barricade (disambiguation)|Barricade]]", and "[[Bonecrusher (disambiguation)|Bonecrusher]]" are all names that have been used on Transformer characters before.
* Blackout's symbiotic relationship with Scorponok originated as an interpretation of [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] and his cassette troops. Frenzy's transformation into a portable stereo is likewise a homage to Soundwave's cassette deck alternate form.
* Sam shares his last name with the [[Witwicky#Generation 1 continuity family|main human allies]] of the Autobots in the original [[The Transformers (cartoon)|''Generation 1'' cartoon]]. Like Spike before him, he's closest to Bumblebee.
* The Autobot faction symbol seen on Bumblebee and others is basically unchanged from its ''Generation 1'' appearance.
* The AllSpark takes its name from [[Allspark|a concept]] originally introduced in ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]''.
* The original G1 [[transformation]] sound pops up several times during the course of the film, such as Blackout's first conversion sequence (though truth be told it sounds more like it's being broadcast from a loudspeaker.)
[[File:Movie BoliviasFinestQualityUsedCars 2.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Your bargaining posture is highly dubious.]]
* In his first appearance, Bumblebee parks next to a yellow Volkswagen Beetle — the alternate form of [[Bumblebee (G1)|G1 Bumblebee]].
* When instructing the Autobots to escape Sector Seven and when they later head for Hoover Dam, Optimus Prime delivers his catchphrase from the ''Generation 1'' cartoon, ordering them to [[Roll out|"Roll out!"]]
* Sam's surmise that the Transformers come from Japan is [[TakaraTomy|not entirely inaccurate]].
* Prime references "the spark in my chest". [[Spark]]s — the life-force that makes Transformers alive — have been an integral part of Transformers fiction since ''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]''.
* Although the Transformers' primary energy supply, [[Energon]], does not make an established physical appearance in the film, its name appears on the license plate of an SUV thrown through the air during Megatron's rampage in [[Mission City]].
* Optimus Prime's line "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" is the quote from his [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys|original 1984 toy's]] [[bio]]. At least one of the reasons for the inclusion of this line was because it won in an online contest conducted by [[Paramount Pictures|Paramount]] in late 2006, named "[[Make Prime Speak]]".
* Prime's line "...one shall stand; one shall fall" comes from the 1986 animated ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]''.
* The scene in which Jazz yanks aside Devastator's tank barrel is a direct homage to a similar sequence from TF:TM involving [[Kup (G1)|Kup]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]].
* Ironhide's complaint that [[Mojo]] "leaked lubricant" on his foot references a [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 1|favorite]] [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 3|exclamation]] [[Power Play!|of his]] ''[[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]]'' [[Ironhide (G1)|counterpart]], "Leakin' lubricant!" The phrase originated with his [[The Transformers Universe|original character outline]], stating that "he [refers to] excessive talking as 'leaking lubricant.'"
* Sam telling Mikaela that there's "more than meets the eye... with you" quotes the slogan used in the toy line, also included in the G1 series [[theme song]].
*Megatron wields a flail in the Mission City battle, just as he did in his fight with Optimus Prime in the second-ever G1 episode, "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2]]".

==Other editions==
The 2007 ''Transformers'' film has more than one "cut."

* The worldwide theatrical release was essentially identical all around the world with a few minor exceptions.
* The film board of Malaysia required [[Judy Witwicky]]'s masturbation reference be removed{{fact}}. However, no such change has been made and her lines were not omitted from the film.
*Glen's line, "that killer robot is really distracting", was cut from DVD releases. However, it is featured in the official novelization of the movie and at least one trailer.
* The [[wikipedia:IMAX|IMAX]] edition of the movie features two minutes of additional footage in the form of slightly extended scenes and very brief new scenes. Added material includes the following:
**Before heading to the lake party, Sam is shown picking Miles up at his house. Miles derides Sam's choice of car colors.
**After Sam is questioned by the sheriff at the police station, he is given an anti-drug bumper sticker and shown the "[[wikipedia:This is Your Brain on Drugs|This is Your Brain on Drugs]]" [[Public service announcement|PSA]] starring [[wikipedia:Rachel Leigh Cook|Rachel Leigh Cook]].
**After abducting Sam and Mikaela, Agent Simmons uses a device to monitor Sam's pupil dilation while interrogating him in the truck. He also remarks that he has "been there" when it comes to women with criminal records.
**Upon arriving at Hoover Dam, Simmons remarks colorfully that it is "Area 50". A few minutes later, he lists the nicknames of all the U.S. Presidents to have toured the facility.
**In Mission City, Lennox acquires short-range radios from a gun-toting, but easily flattered, pawn shop owner.
*Strangely, the televised versions of the film feature different synthesized effects on all of the Transformers' voices. These changes result in the Autobots and Decepticons sounding like they are talking inside a tin can. Why this difference is present and where the changes originally came from are unknown.
*The [[Cartoon Network]] broadcast of the film replaces some of the curses with other words. Sam's Parent's "family discussion" is toned down a bit, with [[Judy Witwicky|Judy's]] line about masturbation removed.

==Prequel material==
* ''[[Transformers: Ghosts of Yesterday]]''
: A novel about the truth behind humankind's first venture into space and how that event is related to the Transformers' presence on Earth, both past and present.

* ''[[Transformers: Movie Prequel]]''
: A four issue limited series comic book from [[IDW Publishing]], released before the movie's debut. It chronicles the events which bring the Transformers to [[Earth]].

* "[[Interlude]]" (also originally published as ''Transformers Movie Prequel'')
: A short comic book by IDW, produced in cooperation with [[Target]], available (online) from Target's website and (in printed form) at BotCon and in theaters, following Bumblebee's early search for clues on Earth.

* "[[Planetfall (Movie)|Planetfall]]" (also originally published as ''Transformers Movie Prequel'')
: A mini-comic by IDW, produced in cooperation with Target, available (online) from Target's website and (in printed form) as a Target exclusive bonus pack-in with the Movie DVD, showing the Decepticons' arrival on Earth.

* The ''[[Movie Prequel Special]]''
: A mass retail release that contains reprints of both "Planetfall" and "Interlude" (now with individual story titles) in collected form.

* ''[[Transformers: Beginnings (Movie)|Beginnings]]''
: A not-really-animated animatic version of IDW's ''[[Transformers: Movie Prequel|Movie Prequel]]'' comics, voiced by some of the actors from the movie, the game and a bunch of other people. Included on a [[Walmart]] exclusive bonus DVD available with the Movie DVD.

* ''[[Transformers (Titan Magazine)|Transformers]]''
: A monthly comic published in the UK by [[Titan Books]], featuring new adventures set before the movie in its initial six issues (in addition to reprints of stories originally published by IDW). They were reprinted by IDW in the ''[[Transformers: Saga of the Allspark|Saga of the Allspark]]'' mini-series.

Some dialog in the film contradicts the prequel material, specifically pertaining to the years in which the frozen Megatron was moved from the Arctic to Hoover Dam, and exactly when the Decepticons arrived on Earth. Some of the prequel material contradicts the ''other'' prequel material... at least till [[John Barber]] fixed some of them on his [[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (franchise)|''Dark of the Moon'' tie in comics]].

==Adaptations==
* A novelization of the film by [[Alan Dean Foster]] was published under the title ''[[Transformers (novel)|Transformers]]''.
* IDW Publishing released a comic adaptation of the film under the title ''[[Transformers: Movie Adaptation|Movie Adaptation]]''.

==Sequels==
{{main|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Transformers: The Last Knight (film)}}
Three sequels to this film have been produced and released worldwide.

[[IDW Publishing]] also released the comic sequel to the film, titled ''[[Transformers: The Reign of Starscream|The Reign of Starscream]]''.

==Soundtrack==
{{main|Transformers: The Album}}

==Score==
{{main|Transformers: The Score}}

==Home video releases==
[[File:2007Movie 2-disc DVD.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1]]
{{main|Transformers (film)/home video}}
* '''US:''' [http://tformers.com/US-To-Get-Transformers-DVD-HD-DVD-October-16th/8350/news.html October 16th, 2007] (DVD, HD-DVD), [http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/1175/transformers2007.html September 2nd, 2008] (Blu-ray)
* '''Australia:''' November 1, 2007 (DVD)
* '''United Kingdom:''' December 3, 2007 (DVD, HD-DVD), September 8th, 2008 (Blu-ray)

There are nearly a dozen store [[exclusive]] [http://tformers.com/Transformers-DVD-Exclusives-Who-Gets-What/8534/news.html versions and sales premiums of the DVD.] They include:

* [[Target]] and HMV UK: transforming Optimus Prime display case.
* Best Buy: [[Robot Heroes (toyline)|Robot Heroes]] [[Cliffjumper (Movie)|Cliffjumper]] and battle-damaged Optimus Prime.
* [[Walmart]]: [[Transformers: Beginnings (Movie)|Beginnings]] "animated" prequel material.
* Borders: "Making Of" book.
* Circuit City: password unlocking 15 minutes of exclusive online behind-the-scenes featurettes, covering the voice recording sessions, prop construction, stunt work, and early CG tests and animatics.
{{-}}

==Theatrical posters==
{{picsneeded|Any other official posters not depicted here}}
<center><gallery perrow="4">
File:Transformers2007teaserposter.jpg|Teaser poster
File:Movie2007 Autobot promo poster.jpg|Autobot promo poster
File:Movie2007 Decepticon promo poster.jpg|Decepticon promo poster
File:Prime-Sam-Mikaela-poster.jpg|Promotional poster
File:Movie2007 Megatron onesheet.jpg|Megatron one sheet
File:Movie2007 Prime onesheet.jpg|Optimus Prime one sheet
File:Movie2007_final_standee.jpg|Standee, also used as a poster
File:Movie2007 humans internationalposter.jpg|International "Humans" poster/US theatrical poster
File:Movie2007 Sphere internationalposter.jpg|International "Sphere" poster
File:Movie2007 Bumblebee internationalposter.jpg|International Bumblebee poster
File:Movie2007 Prime internationalposter.jpg|International Optimus Prime poster
File:Movie2007 Megatron internationalposter.jpg|International Megatron poster
File:Movie2007_Korean_poster.jpg|South Korean theatrical release poster
File:Movie2007 Japanese Aprilpromo poster.jpg|Japanese April 2007 promotional poster
File:Movie2007_Japanese_release_poster.jpg|Japanese theatrical release poster
File:Movie2007_IMAX_poster.jpg|IMAX promotional poster
File:Movie2007_IMAX_releaseposter.jpg|IMAX release poster
File:Movie2007 handsmashy ver7 poster.jpg|Used as a prominent skyscraper advert
</gallery></center>

==Reception==
The movie set multiple records when it opened, including biggest opening week gross for a non-sequel ($155.4 million), biggest Tuesday release gross ($27.4 million), biggest July 4 gross ($29 million), and the biggest film opening in mainland China ($3 million) [http://www.china.org.cn/english/entertainment/217368.htm].
[[File:Movie2007 Bumblebee lubricates Simmons.JPG|left|350px|thumb|Oh, how it pains me to do this.]]
The movie closed domestically on [[November 8]], [[2007]], during which time it took in $319,246,193. (Domestic gross accounted for $310,578,372 before the IMAX version's release.) It has earned a ''worldwide'' gross of $708,272,592. It currently sits at spot #20 in the "most domestic gross" list of movies, though this listing is ''not'' adjusted for inflation. When taking inflation into account, ''Transformers'' currently sits at #102. [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers06.htm 2]

{{quote|I didn't sleep through it the way I Novocained my way through the awful ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'', but by the time it ended, I thought I might have vertigo or whiplash, or both, and I certainly lost more than a few of my remaining I.Q. points|[http://www.observer.com/2007/bay-bombs-again Rex Reed]}}

{{quote|It's goofy fun with a lot of stuff that blows up real good, and it has the grace not only to realize how preposterous it is, but to make that into an asset.|Roger Ebert}}

{{quote|But it's tough to really care about questions like, "Why did that happen?" or even "What's going on?" when you’re constantly interrupted by "Oh my goodness! Giant robots! Weeee!"|Peter Suderman|[http://tinyurl.com/373rps The National Review]}}

Critical reception was hit-and-miss, [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/transformers_the_movie/ more positive than negative but not by a lot], though it's sometimes hard to tell how many negative reviewers were more interested in criticizing [[Michael Bay]] in general over the movie itself. Otherwise, the most common negatives involved it being a generally think-free "spectacle"-style movie; even those who rated the movie positively noted it was a pure "popcorn" movie meant to wow its audience with [[Computer-generated imagery|CGI]] and explosions rather than make them think (Richard Roper noted in his "thumbs up" review "it has no nutritional value"). Whether one considers that a good or bad thing for a movie and if the movie was enough fun to overcome that is, of course, highly debatable. The other main culprit, again noted by many of the positive reviews, was its long running time, particularly the overly-chaotic, often hard-to-follow final big-bang extended ending action sequence. ([http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070705/REVIEWS/70620006/1023 Roger Ebert] noted that this sequence was what made him give the movie three out of four stars rather than the full four.)

From the fan and general audience point of view, Transformers was generally favored. However, there have been division over the amount of human stories at the expense of the robots.

Transformers was nominated for three Oscars, in the fields of Achievement in Sound Editing, Achievement in Sound Mixing, and Achievement in Visual Effects. The sound awards went to ''The Bourne Ultimatum'', and the visual effects award went to ''The Golden Compass''.

Three sequels have been produced to date: ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen]]'' was released worldwide on [[June 24]] [[2009]], ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Transformers: Dark of the Moon]]'' was released on [[June 28]], [[2011]], and ''[[Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Transformers: Age of Extinction]]'' was released on [[June 27]], [[2014]].

According to a 2011 survey, the 2007 ''Transformers'' movie is the third most-pirated movie of all time.<ref><tt>The usual suspects were there, with "Avatar" (21 million downloads) taking top (dis?)honors, and "The Dark Knight" tying for second place with "Transformers" at 19 million downloads apiece.</tt>[http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/14/showbiz/movies/top-pirated-movies-ew/index.html Top 10 most pirated movies], October 14, 2011</ref>

==Technical details==
'''Length:''' 144 min (original theatrical)<ref>The movie had some content cuts to meet the standards of some <s>oppressive regimes</s> quaint "developing world" rating boards.</ref> 
'''Aspect Ratio:''' 2.35:1 
'''Audio:''' Dolby Digital / DTS / SDDS 
'''Content Rating:'''
{{collist|4|
* PG-13 (USA/MPAA)
* ? (Japan)
* 12A (United Kingdom)
* PG (Canada; British Columbia)<ref>''Transformers'' received a "14A" rating in British Columbia, but an appeal by the studio successfully reduced it to PG.</ref>
* G (Canada; Quebec)
* PG (Canada; Alberta/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario)
* PG (Canada; Canadian Home Video Rating System)
* PG (Taiwan)
* IIA (China; Hong Kong)
* PG (Singapore)
* G (Philippines/MTRCB)
* U (France)
* U (Malaysia)
* M (Australia)
* M (New Zealand)
* TE (Chile)
* 10 (Brazil)
* 10M (South Africa)
* 11 (Denmark)
* K-11 (Finland)
* 11 (Norway)
* 11 (Sweden)
* 12 (Germany)
* 12A (Ireland)
* 12 (Netherlands)
* M/12 (Portugal)
* 12 (South Korea)
* 12 (Switzerland)
* 13 (Argentina)
* 14 (Peru)
* 12 (Poland)
* B (Mexico)
* 12+ (Russia)}}

==Production staff==
[[File:Movie Castandcrew2.jpg|upright=1.67|thumb|Megatron? Is that you?!]]
* Executive Producer: [[Steven Spielberg]]
* Executive Producer: [[Brian Goldner]]
* Director: [[Michael Bay]]
* Producers: [[Lorenzo di Bonaventura]], [[Ian Bryce]], [[Tom DeSanto]], [[Don Murphy]]
* Story by: [[Alex Kurtzman]] & [[Roberto Orci]] and [[John Rogers]],
* Screenwriters: [[Alex Kurtzman]] & [[Roberto Orci]]
* Music by: [[Steve Jablonsky]]

====Visual Effects====
* Visual Effects by: [[Industrial Light & Magic]], [[Digital Domain]], [[Asylum VFX]]
* Production Designer: [[Jeff Mann]]
* Lead Robot Illustrator: [[Ben Procter]]
* Illustrators: [[James Clyne]], [[Tim Flattery]]
* ILM Visual Effects Supervisior: [[Scott Farrar]]
* Art Director: [[Alex Jaeger]]
* Animation Supervisors: [[Scott Benza]], [[Dan Taylor (ILM)|Dan Taylor]]
* Animators: [[Charles Alleneck]], [[C. Michael Easton]], [[Keiji Yamaguchi]]

====Locations Department====
(winners of the California On Location Award [http://www.californiaonlocationawards.com/] for "Production Company / Location Team of the Year for Feature Films")

* Supervising Location Manager: '''Ilt Jones'''
* Location Managers: '''Michael J. Burmeister''', '''Fermín Dávalos''', and '''Emre Sonmez'''
* Key Assistant Location Managers: '''Michael Wesley Aycock''', '''Leann Emmert''', '''Perri Fichtner''', '''Ronald M. Haynes''', '''Jonathan Hook''', '''Kathy McCurdy''', '''Manny Padilla''', '''Lisa Patton''', '''Rob Swenson''', '''Marta Tomkiw''', and '''Scott Trimble'''
* Additional Key Assistant Location Managers: '''Brooks Bonstin''', '''Alexandre Chen''', '''Michael Chickey''', '''Martin J. Cummins'''
* Assistant Location Managers: '''Ces Hardy''' and '''Amanda Harrington'''
* Location Scouts: '''Stuart Raven Barter''', '''Richard Klotz''', '''James Lin''', and '''Keith Nakata'''
{{-}}
==Development details==
===Cast and crew signing on===
In 2000, director Joseph Kahn pitched his treatment for a live-action Transformers film to [[Sony]], but they eventually lost interest in a film. In 2003, producer [[Don Murphy]] had intended to produce a movie based on another [[Hasbro]] property, [[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]]. However, following the US invasion of Iraq in March 2003, a movie entitled "G.I. Joe" was no longer considered viable, so Carol Monroe, who was in charge of Hasbro's movie department at that time, suggested doing a ''Transformers'' movie instead.<ref name="murphylatino">[http://www.latinoreview.com/news/on-set-interview-producer-don-murphy-on-transformers-1502 Latino Review interview with producer Don Murphy.]</ref> [[Tom DeSanto]] joined the project as a second producer and wrote a treatment that he and Murphy tried to shop around for a while. (The treatment would eventually remain entirely unused, but DeSanto would try to get a writing credit regardless, even though none of the screenwriters had ever actually ''seen'' his treatment.<ref name="bayspat">[http://www.portfolio.com/views/blogs/the-hollywood-deal/2007/07/05/michael-bays-spat-with-his-transformer-producers Rant by Michael Bay, deleted from his own blog, still mirrored on other sites]</ref>) The movie was officially announced for the first time in June 2003.<ref name="comingsoon">[http://web.archive.org/web/20030611151443/http://comingsoon.net/news.php?id=238 Coming Soon announcing the movie.]</ref>

In 2004, after [[DreamWorks]] won a bidding war with New Line Cinema over the rights to the film, [[Steven Spielberg]] signed up as executive producer, while [[John Rogers]] was confirmed as screenwriter in November of the same year.<ref>[http://www.ign.com/articles/2004/11/03/rogers-writing-transformers IGN confirming Rogers as screenwriter.]</ref> In February 2005, Rogers was replaced by [[Alex Kurtzman]] and [[Roberto Orci]],<ref name="ignkurtzorc">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/02/18/exclusive-new-transformers-writers IGN confirming Kurtzman and Orci as new screenwriters.]</ref> who drastically reworked Rogers' original script.<ref name="rogerscred">[http://kfmonkey.blogspot.com/2007/07/proper-credits-for-transformers.html John Rogers confirming that Kurtzman and Orci drastically rewrote his script]</ref> Spielberg tried to convince [[Michael Bay]] to direct the movie in late July 2005, but Bay initially declined, having no interest in a "toy movie". He later changed his mind after attending "Transformers school" at Hasbro, but decided to make the movie "realistic" and accessible for adult viewers.<ref name="audio">Michael Bay's audio commentary on the ''Transformers'' DVD.</ref>

A few days after a list of names of the human cast had been leaked on the internet, [[Shia LaBeouf]] was confirmed as the first cast member.<ref name="ignshia">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2006/03/28/from-i-robot-to-transformers IGN confirming Shia LaBeouf.]</ref> Producer Don Murphy,<ref name="murphytfcon">[http://www.transformerscon.com/videos.php Don Murphy at the Canadian TransformersCon.]</ref> Hasbro<ref name="tfwtour">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-news-rumors/139273-botcon-2007-botcon-2007-hasbro-tour-updated-friday-12-45pm.html Hasbro tour report.]</ref> and the screenwriters<ref name="mtv">[http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1554426/20070312/story.jhtml MTV.com interview with Kurtzman and Orci.]</ref> all favored [[Peter Cullen]] and [[Frank Welker]] as voice actors for [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. Bay had both audition, but only hired Cullen, while preferring [[Hugo Weaving]] as Megatron.<ref name="cgirobot">[http://web.archive.org/web/20070810172643/http://www.wizarduniverse.com/movies/transformersmovie/004974570.cfm Wizard Universe article about the production of the movie.]</ref> However, Welker still got to voice Megatron (alongside Cullen as Prime) in the video game adaption of the movie, ''[[Transformers The Game]]'', as well as in ''[[Transformers: Beginnings (Movie)|Beginnings]]'', an animated (sort of) version of [[IDW Publishing|IDW's]] [[Transformers: Movie Prequel|prequel comic mini-series]] that was available on a Wal*Mart exclusive bonus disc included with the movie DVD.

===Sponsors and partners===
====Hasbro====
In addition to acting as a licensor, Hasbro also actively participated in the development of the movie, starting with an introduction into the world of the Transformers, called the "Transformers School", for everyone involved, including [[Michael Bay]].<ref name="paramountbotcon">[http://tformers.com/article.php?sid=8001 "Hasbro and Paramount Partnership Panel" at BotCon 2007.]</ref> Hasbro also had a say in the depiction of the Transformers in the movie, the selection of the voice actors,<ref name="tfwtour" /> naming the characters, working on the robot designs<ref name="lorenzoiesb">[http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2724&Itemid=99 IESB interview with Ian Bryce and Lorenzo di Bonaventura.]</ref> and the inclusion of "easter eggs", but no veto rights.<ref name="paramountbotcon" /> According to screenwriter [[Roberto Orci]], Hasbro was more interested in an adequate adaption of the ''Transformers'' concept rather than ''only'' marketing the toyline.<ref name="orcihasbro">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=2200611&postcount=239 Roberto Orci discussing Hasbro's involvement.]</ref> Nevertheless, Hasbro urged [[Michael Bay]] very early on to decide upon the Transformers characters to be used in the movie and their vehicle forms because of the long production run of the toys, even though the script wasn't completed yet by that point.<ref name="bayew">[http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20035285_20035331_20044598_3,00.html Entertainment Weekly interview with Michael Bay.]</ref> Hasbro and [[TakaraTomy|Takara]] then created the [[Movie (toyline)|toys]] based on the designs developed by [[Industrial Light & Magic]]. Aside from this, Takara wasn't involved in the creation of the movie at all.<ref name="murphytformers">[http://www.tformers.com/article.php?sid=3945 TFormers interview with Don Murphy.]</ref>

Unlike other ''Transformers'' toylines (except for ''[[Transformers: Alternators|Alternators]]''), Hasbro and Takara don't share the full rights to the movie toys: Paramount and ILM hold the rights to the robot designs, while the vehicle modes were licensed by companies such as General Motors ([[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]], [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]], [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]] and [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]]), Saleen ([[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]]), Force Protection Industries ([[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]]), the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation ([[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]]) and the Lockheed Martin Corporation ([[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]). Only [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] didn't require a license, since his vehicle mode in the movie was heavily genericized, and all manufacturer logos were removed.<ref name="edmundsveh">[http://web.archive.org/web/20070809065140/http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Features/articleId=121424 Edmunds.com article on the vehicles featured in the movie.]</ref> TakaraTomy even identifies the Leader Class toy as a Kenworth W900 instead of a Peterbilt 379.<ref name="takaraprime">[http://www.takaratomy.co.jp/products/TF/products/movie/ma-01.html TakaraTomy product page for Leader Class Optimus Prime.]</ref>

Even though Hasbro didn't directly profit from the box office revenue, owning the ''Transformers'' brand allowed them to profit more from the toys than from licensed brands such as ''[[Spider-Man]]'' or ''[[Star Wars (franchise)|Star Wars]]''. In addition, Hasbro was able to give out over 240 licenses to third party companies.<ref name="hasbrofall">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6912693.stm BBC reporting on Hasbro quarterly earnings for July 2007.]</ref> In the USA alone, Hasbro had sold more than three million toys from the movie line as early as July 2007,<ref name="cnnmoney">[http://money.cnn.com/2007/07/23/news/companies/hasbro/index.htm?section=money_topstories CNN Money story on Hasbro sales.]</ref> while Wal-Mart had earned more than five million $USD with the movie Transformers at the same time.<ref name="walmartmillion">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=143983 Wal-Mart employee Steevy Maximus reporting on sales figures for movie toys.]</ref> A lot of the movie toys were frequently sold out at many stores ("drought") due to a mix of popularity, stores underestimating said popularity (and thus not ordering enough toys), shipping problems in China and [[Toy scalping|scalpers]].

====US Military====
The [[United States military]] (via [[Philip Strub]] and the Defense Department's Film and Television Liaison Office) supported the movie by providing vehicles and soldiers. The vehicles included an MH-53 Pave Low helicopter ([[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout)]], several F-22 Raptors (one of them serving as [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]'s alternate mode), two A-10 Thunderbolt II fighter jets, an E-3 Sentry AWACS plane, an AC-130 Spectre gunship and two V-22 Ospreys. Many other airplanes are seen in the background like a few UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters, several F-117 Nighthawks, and several cargo planes like the C-17 Globemaster and the C-130 Hercules. Therefore, ''Transformers'' is the first movie to feature real, non-CG F-22s.<ref name="afmil">[http://www.afspc.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123061917 Air Force Space Command article on the movie.]</ref> Real soldiers trained with the actors who played military personnel<ref name="tyreselatino">[http://www.latinoreview.com/news.php?id=2260 Latino Review interview with Tyrese Gibson and Josh Duhamel.]</ref> and were also featured as extras in the movie. Michael Bay even allowed them to improvise lines to make their military dialogue sound as "realistic" as possible.<ref name="nabbtfw">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=115126 First Lieutenant Micheal McNabb reporting his experience of working on the movie.]</ref> In return for their cooperation, Bay gave the military a say in their own depiction in the movie.<ref name="wired">[http://www.wired.com/entertainment/hollywood/magazine/15-07/trans_movie?currentPage=all Wired.com article on the movie.]</ref> The military, in turn, views the movie as a new form of recruitment.<ref name="aflink">[http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123021491 Air Force Link article about the movie.]</ref>

====Product Placement====
Aside from advertising the ''Transformers'' toyline, the movie also features product placement for other companies, such as Apple, Yahoo, Burger King, Nokia, Panasonic, eBay and Hewlett-Packard. The machines given life by the Allspark include an Xbox 360 (including the original startup sound) and a [[Dispensor|Mountain Dew soda vending machine]]. In addition, the movie also features other Hasbro brands, such as ''My Little Pony'' and ''Furby'' (the latter being a property of Hasbro's subsidiary Tiger Electronics). Furthermore, all Autobots, with the exception of Optimus Prime, have vehicles provided by subsidiaries of General Motors as their [[alternate mode]]s, which saved Michael Bay $3 million of his budget.<ref name="bayew" />

Many of these cooperations were mutual: Burger King offered the obligatory Kids Meal toys based on the movie characters for the movie's theatrical launch, and General Motors and Mountain Dew ran TV ads under the titles "Transform Your Ride" and "Transform Your Summer", respectively. According to producers Ian Bryce and Lorenzo di Bonaventura, however, some of these brands, such as [[eBay]], were not originally included as part of a sponsoring deal, but had been part of the script from the beginning for story purposes on the writers' behalf.<ref name="lorenzoiesb" /> For the DVD release of the movie, meanwhile, ''additional'' "Cisco" logos were added into the movie that had not been there yet in the theatrical version.<ref name="dvdprod">[http://www.allspark.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=38792 Allspark thread featuring comparison stills of the theatrical and DVD versions of the movie.]</ref>

===Special effects===
* Three quarters of the CG effects were done by [[Industrial Light & Magic]]. The other quarter was done by [[Digital Domain]], a company [[Michael Bay]] bought shortly before signing up to the ''Transformers'' movie.
* As seen in the bonus material for the Movie DVD, at least some of the ILM designers are actually Transformers fans. One of the animators, [[Charles Alleneck]], has his entire office decorated in more ''Transformers'' toys than a lot of "regular" fans might own.
* Physical props and set pieces were built for several of the Transformers' robot modes. Full body props for [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] (the 2009 Camaro body) and [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]] were used for scenes that involved direct interaction with the human cast. The Bumblebee prop (with detached legs) was also used for the scene where he was strapped to a [[Longarm (Movie)|tow truck]]. A set featuring the frozen lower half of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron's]] body was also built. The rest is assorted bits and pieces, such as [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok's]] head and tail, a part of [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]]'s leg (including a wheel) and an unpainted, entirely blue version of his head plus a small part of the upper chest, and various semi-random chunks meant to represent the remains of the destroyed Decepticons dumped into the ocean (some of the parts meant to represent pieces of [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] even feature markings found on a real-life MH-53 Pave Low helicopter).

===Changes before, during and after production===
A lot of details about the movie changed during the pre-production phase (and even still during production and post-production):

* The script was originally supposed to center around the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]], but because the studio wanted to avoid association with the ''Matrix'' movie trilogy, it had to be renamed. For the longest time, the working name was "[[Energon]] Cube", which neither the fans nor producer [[Don Murphy]] were really happy with.<ref name="murphytfcon" /> Ultimately, it was renamed into the [[AllSpark]] for the final movie; however, the name "Energon Cube" is still used in [[Alan Dean Foster]]'s [[Transformers (novel)|novelization]] of the movie, and was also used by [[Shia LaBeouf]] in a CBS interview immediately before the movie's official theatrical launch.<ref name="shiacbs">[http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=3004937n?source=search_video CBS interview with Shia LaBeouf.]</ref>
* One of the Autobot characters in the early Kurtzman/Orci drafts was [[Arcee (Movie)|Arcee]], who would have turned into a motorcycle. Even though Hasbro developed a toy based on the designs for the character, Arcee was dropped from the script and replaced with [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]]: Kurtzman and Orci didn't want to spend time explaining the purpose of "female" Autobots,<ref name="orciign">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/07/02/exclusive-interview-robert-orci?page=3 IGN interview with Roberto Orci.]</ref> and Michael Bay considered her too small as compared to the rest of the Autobots.<ref name="orciwizard">[http://web.archive.org/web/20070714214451/http://www.wizarduniverse.com/movies/transformersmovie/005082421.cfm?page=1 Wizard interview with Kurtzman and Orci]</ref> Despite what fans commonly assume, however, the scene during the final battle in [[Mission City]] where [[William Lennox|Lennox]] uses an abandoned motorcycle for his assault on [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] wasn't added to the script until ''after'' Arcee had already been dropped from the script; however, had she ''not'' been dropped, she ''would'' have probably been that motorcycle.<ref name="arceelennox">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/2288318-post539.html Orci once again clearing up the story between Arcee and the motorcycle Lennox uses during the final battle]</ref>
* Other Autobot characters considered by Orci and Kurtzman were [[Hot Rod]], [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] and [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]].<ref name="orcichara">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=388609&postcount=280 Roberto Orci confirming various characters originally intended for the movie.]</ref> The last was eventually dropped because Orci and Kurtzman preferred the idea of "a Decepticon in disguise as a police vehicle".<ref name="orciprowl">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=365508&postcount=4411 Orci explaining why Prowl is not in the movie]</ref>
* Kurtzman and Orci tried ''twice'' to include [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] in the movie. The first attempt was supposed to turn into a helicopter,<ref name="orciswave">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=351304&postcount=4161 Roberto Orci confirming that Blackout was originally intended to be Soundwave.]</ref> but Hasbro rejected that notion and insisted that Soundwave's [[alternate mode]] should have something to do with music.<ref name="murphyswave">[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showpost.php?p=97507&postcount=23 Post by Don Murphy at his message board.]</ref> The "helicopter" character was then renamed multiple times, among those names being "Grimlock",<ref name="early">Details from an early script draft [http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=2213120&postcount=297 summed up here], [http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=2214148&postcount=303 confirmed as authentic by Roberto Orci here].</ref> "Vortex",<ref name="orcisample">[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showpost.php?p=1120447&postcount=2360 Unformatted script sample from first draft posted by Roberto Orci on Don Murphy's message board]</ref> "Devastator"<ref name="procterdevas">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_32.html "Devastator" concept art at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> and "Incinerator".<ref name="procterinc">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_34.html "Incinerator" pre-production render at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> The character eventually ended up as [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]].
* The second attempt would have infiltrated the CIA headquarters in the form of a "portable stereo" and then transformed (and size-shifted) into a Humvee for his escape and tracked down [[Sam Witwicky|Sam]].<ref name="early" /> The "vehicle" part was later turned into a separate character, who was then given a different alternate mode (as a police cruiser) and eventually ended up as [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]]. Meanwhile, the "portable stereo" character also went through several changes, because Kurtzman and Orci eventually decided that the character didn't really do Soundwave justice, so they decided to change his name and save Soundwave for the [[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|sequel]].<ref name="webcast">[http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808716430/video/2701721/20070418/2048/2701721-300-wmv-s.35907855-,2701721-300-flash-s.35907881-,2701721-100-wmv-s.35907849-,2701721-100-flash-s.35907874-,2701721-1000-wmv-s.35907866-,2701721-1000-flash-s.35907894-,2701721-700-flash-s.35907887-,2701721-700-wmv-s.35907861- Yahoo webcast with Kurtzman and Orci, revealing the final names of the movie characters.]</ref> The character went through some other working names such as "Boombot"<ref name="procterboom">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_45.html "Boombot" concept art at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> and "Soundbyte"<ref name="proctersbyte">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_54.html "Soundbyte" head study at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> and eventually ended up as [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]].
* Other Decepticon characters considered by Orci and Kurtzman, aside from Soundwave, were [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] and [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]].<ref name="orcichara" /> The latter was originally supposed to be a minion of helicopter Soundwave, who would have chased [[William Lennox|Lennox]] and his crew through the jungle after the attack on their base. However, when the scene was changed from the jungle to the desert (and Soundwave was no longer Soundwave), Ravage was replaced by [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]].<ref name="orciravage">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=234188&postcount=2008 Roberto Orci confirming that Scorponok replaced Ravage].</ref>
* Because of the long production run of the toys, Hasbro urged [[Michael Bay]] very early on to decide upon the Transformers characters to be used in the movie and their vehicle forms, even though the script wasn't completed yet by that point.<ref name="bayew" /> As a result, many of the Decepticon characters in particular were chosen somewhat hastily, and aren't really based on established Transformers characters aside from their names. The tank used for [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]] (aka "Devastator") was a recycled prop originally built for the movie ''xXx: State of the Union'', while the mine protected vehicle used for [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] caught the filmmakers' attention because of a giant photoshopped fork depicted on the manufacturer's website.<ref name="enewsi">[http://enewsi.com/news.php?catid=190&itemid=11213 Entertainment News International article on the making of the movie.]</ref>
* Other Decepticon characters featured in an early draft, aside from "Grimlock" (helicopter) and "Soundwave" (portable stereo/Humvee), were Brawl as a Jeep, Frenzy as a Piranha III mortar artillery vehicle, Onslaught as a mobile missile launcher, Octane as a tanker truck, and three jets named Blitzwing, Starscream and Devastator (a cargo plane, a 747 jet and F-16 fighter; the script doesn't say which is which). Instead of having been hiding on Earth for a while, they would have arrived there during the movie after having been summoned by Soundwave.<ref name="early" /> It's possible that the Piranha III later evolved into Stryker/[[Wreckage (Movie)|Wreckage]].
* The "evil police car Decepticon" that replaced Prowl took over the "vehicle" portion of the second character originally conceived as Soundwave (which eventually became [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]]). His vehicle form was originally supposed to be a Ford Crown Victoria, while his working name was "Brawl".<ref name="policebrawl">[http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-images/events/Botcon-2007/Hasbro-Tour/PICT5108.JPG.html?g2_imageViewsIndex=1 Early design for Barricade with working name "Brawl" shown during the BotCon 2007 Hasbro Tour].</ref> Eventually the character ended up as [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]], with the vehicle mode being changed into a Saleen S281 "Extreme" Mustang, because Ford didn't want one of their cars used as a "villain". Therefore, Barricade sports no "Ford" logos in the movie.<ref name="edmundsveh" />
* Another Decepticon character intended to be in the movie had the working name "Stryker", named after his vehicle mode, a M1126 Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicle.<ref name="stryker">[http://www.seibertron.com/events/fullsize.php?event_id=70&size=2&image=262 Unused design for "Stryker", revealed at the BotCon 2007 Hasbro tour.]</ref> It's possible that he had evolved from a character named "Frenzy" featured in an early script draft, who would have turned into a Piranha III. The character ultimately never made it into the movie, but Hasbro later turned the design into a toy regardless, named [[Wreckage (Movie)|Wreckage]].<ref name="tfwtour" />
* Michael Bay also considered having a Transformers character turn into an aircraft carrier, but eventually scrapped that idea for cost reasons.<ref name="ignround">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/06/13/transformers-roundtable-with-michael-bay?page=2 IGN roundtable with Michael Bay from the Australian press conference.]</ref> Orci and Kurtzman included the character in one of their drafts of the script,<ref name="orciaircraft">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=387736&postcount=210 Roberto Orci confirming that the aircraft carrier was in one of the drafts.]</ref> and artist Tim Flattery created concept art.<ref name="flattery">Tim Flattery's concept art for the unused aircraft carrier Transformer: [http://timflattery.com/transformers/4.html Image 1], [http://timflattery.com/transformers/5.html image 2].</ref>
* Working names for the tank Decepticon were "Demolisher"<ref name="hasbrodemolisher">[http://www.hasbro.com/objects/content/wallpaper.cfm?img=wp_transformers651_1280.jpg&brand_id=496&lang_id=1 Wallpaper at Hasbro's website calling Brawl/Devastator "Demolisher".]</ref> and "Devastator", the latter of which had also been a working name for [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] at one point. Even though [[Michael Bay]] confirmed in May 2006 that this was not the final name,<ref name="baysecret">[http://michaelbay.com/2006/05/12/a-little-secret-from-michael-bay/ Michael Bay claiming that the Transformers' names circulating were "aliases".]</ref> screenwriters Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman confirmed the final name to be "[[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]]" in April 2006,<ref name="webcast" /> and Hasbro used that name for all their toys based on the movie character, he identifies himself as "Devastator" in a subtitle in the movie itself. According to a fan who attended the Australian press conference, Bay had decided to use that name regardless,<ref name="griffin">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=1360922&postcount=122 Australian fan griffin-of-oz reporting from the Australian press conference].</ref> while Hasbro considered the name in the movie a "continuity error",<ref name="hasbrofuture">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=139268 Hasbro Transformers Future Product Unveiling panel at BotCon 2007.]</ref> and Orci even claimed that he and Kurtzman had pointed out said "error" in the editing room twice.<ref name="orcidevastator">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=368555&postcount=4479 Orci confirming the name "Devastator" to be an "error".]</ref>
* Michael Bay decided to have [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] not turn into a Volkswagen Beetle because he wanted to avoid similarities with Disney's ''[[Wikipedia:Herbie|Herbie, the Love Bug]]''.<ref name="bayew" /> Production Designer Jeff Mann originally suggested using a Dodge Super Bee as Bumblebee's alternate mode,<ref name="edmunds1976">[Edmun Edmunds.com article on the classic Bumblebee Camaro.]</ref> but eventually Bay signed a deal with General Motors that saved him $3 million of his budget, which is why Bumblebee turns into a Chevrolet Camaro in the movie.<ref name="bayew" />
* [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] was originally intended to transform into a fire truck rather than a Search & Rescue Hummer. After being changed into a Hummer, he initially still retained a red and white deco, which later served as the inspiration for Hasbro's "Rescue Ratchet" redecos of the movie toys.<ref name="ratchettour">[http://www.seibertron.com/events/fullsize.php?event_id=70&size=2&image=285 Early designs for Ratchet shown at the BotCon 2007 Hasbro tour.]</ref>
* After designs of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] had leaked on the internet, his head design was slightly revised following massive fan complaints.<ref name="murphysunday">[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showpost.php?p=764141&postcount=1 Don Murphy confirming that Megatron's head design was changed due to fan complaints.]</ref>
* The studio had originally preferred the Transformers not to talk ''at all'' throughout the movie, a notion Hasbro heavily contested.<ref name="tfwtour" /> Bumblebee still ended up being mute throughout most of the movie, which, according to Orci and Kurtzman, was inspired by Spielberg's ''E.T.'' and is supposed to signify that his friendship with Sam transcends words.<ref name="mtv" />
* Most drafts of the script started the movie with [[Archibald Witwicky]]'s discovery of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. In the actual movie, this scene was moved to a later point, shown as a flashback (actually at two points, split into two parts). [[IDW Publishing|IDW's]] [[Movie Adaptation issue 1|comic adaptation]] of the movie still has this as the opening scene.
* Also in one of the early drafts, the original reason for Mikaela's falling out with [[Trent DeMarco|Trent]] was not because he wouldn't let his "little bunny" drive his car, but because she refused to let him drive after having drunk beer. [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Anvilicious Anvilicious] much?
* In an early draft, [[William Lennox|Lennox]] and his crew would have defeated [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]] with a simple grenade, which would have "dissolved him at a molecular level". The air strike would have never happened, and Lennox wouldn't have established contact with the Pentagon until around the time when [[Sam Witwicky|Sam]] and [[Mikaela Banes|Mikaela]] were apprehended by [[Sector Seven]].<ref name="early" />
* In the same draft, Sam had left his grandfather's glasses at school. The Autobots would have distracted a security guard while Sam and Mikaela would have broken into their school. It would have been there that Sam would have learned about Mikaela's criminal past, and the scene would have ended with their arrest by Sector Seven.<ref name="early" />
* In some earlier drafts of the script, [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] was supposed to kill [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] too after he had finished off [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]]. That scene never made it into the final movie, and Barricade simply disappears with no explanation after Bonecrusher transforms; however, the scene still made it into Alan Dean Foster's [[Transformers (novel)|novelization]] of the movie and IDW's [[Movie Adaptation issue 4|comic adaptation]].
* Also in earlier drafts of the script, [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] was supposed to kill [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]] by consuming his [[Spark]]. Again, this is only explicitly confirmed in the novelization and IDW's comic adaptation of the movie, but not in the movie itself.
* During the rather truncated chase scene between Barricade and Bumblebee (see also "[[#Errors|errors]]" above), Barricade was to deploy some serrated drill-like missiles from his hood and fire them at the fleeing Autobot. Though these weapons were constructed and fitted to one of the Barricade prop vehicles, this scene was ultimately cut, explaining the abrupt shift to night time at the conclusion of the chase. Until artist [[Sean Haworth]] uploaded a photo of the weapon prop onto his website, the only official proof of the existence of these weapons was page 12 of IDW Publishing's [[Movie Adaptation issue 2]] and the RadioShack [[Barricade (Movie)/toys#XMODS Evolution Transformers|''XMODS Evolution'' Barricade radio control car's weapons and light uppgrade kit]].

==Notes==
* The Autobot computer generated models consisted of 35,592 total pieces, 7,435,478 polygons, 95,247 rig nodes, and 20,258 texture maps. If laid end to end, the pieces would stretch 3.11 miles.
* For all the robots combined, there are 60,217 pieces of geometry, 123,509,502 polygons, 144,341 rigging nodes, and 34,215 texture maps.<ref>Robertson, Barbara (2007). Heavy Metal. ''Computer Graphics, 30''(7), 12–17.</ref>
* The events of the movie span 4–5 days.
* Within the movie, neither the Autobots nor the Decepticons are referred to as "Transformers".
* As confirmed in the audio commentary on the movie DVD, director [[Michael Bay]] has a brief cameo as an innocent bystander getting flicked against a taxi cab by [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]].
* The "<tt>[322] days without a safety breach</tt>" sign behind Agent Simmons before they bring the [[Nokia-bot|cell phone]] to life relates to a piece of backstory that was cut from the final film. A researcher named [[James Farr (Movie)|James Farr]] was killed when a [[AX9-8946-09SU-1|robot they brought to life]] ran amok, causing the damage Glen comments on. The [[Sector Seven (game)|viral marketing campaign]] gives a date for Farr's death; [[March 16]], [[2006]]. This would chronologically place the primary events of the film as occurring over a 3-day period, [[January 30]]–[[February 1]], [[2007]].
*The two guard dogs that Sam encounters are played by a Belgian Malinois named Ammo and a Rottweiler named Nadine.
* In an interesting showing of unified marketing, the Japanese dub of the movie uses the English-market character and factions names (e.g., Autobot, Decepticon, Optimus Prime, Bumblebee) rather than the terms previously established in Japanese Transformers continuity (e.g., Cybertron, Destron, Convoy, Bumble). This has subsequently influenced Takara's subsequent dub of ''[[Transformers Animated (franchise)|Transformers Animated]]'', where (for the most part) they retain the English-market names and factions.
* In a bit of a shocker, [[Simon Furman]] has said he personally isn't a fan of the films, though he believes they're great for what he inaccurately (and worryingly) described as "the intended audience" of young kids.<ref>[http://mindlessones.com/2009/07/20/transformers-terminators-and-the-rest11-questions-with-simon-furman/ Interview at Mindless Ones blog]</ref>
* In an unexpected celebrity-related moment, famed multi award-winning British actress Helen Mirren, a Dame Commander of the British Empire, was one of the guests at the June 27, 2007 Los Angeles Film Festival premiere of ''Transformers''. One wonders what she thought of it.<ref>[http://movies.about.com/od/transformers/ig/Transformers-Premiere-Photos/transformersprem34.htm Helen Mirren at the June 27, 2007 Los Angeles premiere of ''Transformers'';Rebecca Murray, Movies.About.com Guide]</ref>
* ''Transformers'' (ahem) "inspired" a [[Knockoff|direct-to-video movie]] called [[Wikipedia:Transmorphers|''Transmorphers'']]. It got a [[Wikipedia:Transmorphers: Fall of Man|prequel]] in 2009, starring [[Wikipedia:Bruce Boxleitner|Bruce Boxleitner]], of all people. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
* Somewhat less embarrassing, ''Transformers'' also inspired the [[Wikipedia:Knight Rider (2008 film)|2008 ''Knight Rider'' television movie]] and the [[Wikipedia:Knight Rider (2008 TV series)|short-lived revival/sequel series]] that followed it.<ref name="varietykr">[http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117972829?refCatId=14 Variety article about the then-upcoming 2008 ''Knight Rider'' revival]</ref> Furthermore, the special effects<ref name="madeatl">[http://madeinatlantis.com/movies_central/2008/iron_man_production_details.htm ''Iron Man'' Full Production Notes]</ref> and the marketing campaign<ref name="imtie-ins">[http://www.brandweek.com/bw/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003692165 Brandweek article about the ''Iron Man'' marketing campaign.]</ref> both served as inspirations for the 2008 [[Wikipedia:Iron Man (film)|''Iron Man'' movie]].

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''''Transformers''''' (トランスフォーマー ''Toransufōmā'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''''Pièn-hsíng Chīn-kāng''''' (Taiwan, 變形金剛, "Transformers"), '''''Biànxíng Jīngāng''''' (China, 变形金刚, "Transformers")
*''Russian:'' '''''Transformery''''' (Трансформеры, "Transformers")

==External links==
* [http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=68329&p=irol-newsArticlePR&ID=421174 June 11, 2003 Press Release announcing the movie.]
* [http://www.transformersmovie.com/ Transformersmovie.com]
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0418279/ ''Transformers'' at IMDB.com]
* [http://www.transformersalbum.com/ ''Transformers The Album'']
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transformers_%28film%29 ''Transformers'' 2007 film on Wikipedia]
* Designer portfolios: [http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/PROJPAGE_Trans_01.html Ben Procter], [http://www.jamesclyne.com/projects.php?gallery_id=297 James Clyne], [http://timflattery.com/main.html Tim Flattery], [http://features.cgsociety.org/story_custom.php?story_id=4150 Alex Jaeger] (at CG Society), [http://2d2cg.com/# Jeremy Cook]
* [http://www.capalert.com/capreports/transformers.htm ''Transformers'' CAPalert.com review]

==References==
{{reflist|3}}

[[Category:Movie| ]]
[[Category:Movie media]]
[[Category:MSTF]]
[[Category:Real world films]]

Transformers (film)

2017-05-24T22:32:09Z

The Predacon: Quick fix.

{{disambig2|the 2007 movie|other uses of ''The Transformers''|Transformers (disambiguation)}}

{{nav-movie}}

:''Transformers is an [[Sector Seven (game)|elaborate cover up]] from the [[live-action film series|live-action film]] [[continuity family]].''
[[File:Transformers2007teaserposter.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Beyond good. Beyond evil. Beyond your wildest imagination!]]

'''''Transformers''''' is a live-action movie released by [[DreamWorks]] in 2007, with Executive Producer [[Steven Spielberg]] and Director [[Michael Bay]]. The story follows the Transformers' arrival on modern-day Earth and their interactions with the human race, as they search for the life-giving [[AllSpark]] and continue their ages-old civil war. The movie is a new imagining of the [[Transformers brand]], drawing on past Transformers fiction but also distinct in its own right.

''Transformers'' features [[Sam Witwicky]], a plucky teenager who just wants a cool car, but gets more than he bargained for. The beater he and his father take home is actually [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]], an alien robot from the planet [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], who plants Sam down in the middle of a civil war between Bumblebee's benevolent [[Autobot]] comrades and the evil [[Decepticon]]s who threaten the galaxy's peace. Both sides are after the AllSpark, a mysterious artifact that landed on Earth ten thousand years ago. The approaching robot-against-robot battle is a coming-of-age moment for Sam, who learns the meaning of his family's motto, "No sacrifice, no victory."

The principal cast members were [[Shia LaBeouf]], [[Jon Voight]], and [[Megan Fox]], with [[Peter Cullen]] and [[Hugo Weaving]] as the voices of the Transformers' iconic leaders. About 75 percent of the film's character designs and visual effects were created by [[Industrial Light & Magic]], the effects-wizards behind the [[Star Wars (film)|''Star Wars'' films]]. The remaining 25 percent were done by Michael Bay's company, [[Digital Domain]].

Originally slated to release in the summer of 2006, the film arrived in US theaters on [[July 3]], 2007, and hit UK theaters on [[July 27]] and French theaters on [[July 25]]. It premiered in Australia on [[June 12]], 2007, and was released there and in a number of Asian countries on [[June 28]], 2007. An extended cut of the film featuring footage not in the original was released to IMAX theatres on [[September 21]], 2007.

{{bigquote|Sam Witwicky, you hold the key to Earth's survival.|[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] on the basic plot}}

==Synopsis==
[[File:Allspark movie.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|With this, I shall make you my slave!]]
Many years ago, Cybertron is destroyed at the hands of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]], during his quest to obtain the AllSpark. Megatron discovers the AllSpark on [[Earth]], but crash-lands in the Arctic Circle, becoming frozen in the ice. Captain [[Archibald Witwicky]] and his crew of explorers stumble upon Megatron's body in the late 19th century. Megatron's navigational system is unintentionally activated, and [[Glasses#Movie|Archibald's eyeglasses]] are imprinted with the coordinates to the AllSpark's location. [[Sector Seven]], a secret organization of the United States government, independently discovers the AllSpark and builds the [[Hoover Dam]] around it to mask its energy signal. The still-frozen Megatron is moved into this facility, and is reverse engineered to further advance [[human]] technology.

[[File:Movie Blackout SOCCENT.JPG|upright=1.4|thumb|Let the slaughter begin!]]
In the present day, the other Decepticons — [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]], [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]], [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]], [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]], [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]], [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]], and [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]] — have already landed on Earth and assumed the disguise of Earth vehicles. Blackout and Scorponok attack the U.S. [[SOCCENT Forward Operations Base]] in [[Qatar]] in an effort to use the military database to discover the location of Megatron and the AllSpark, but they do not succeed. A small group of survivors under Captain [[William Lennox]] wander through the desert and are followed by Scorponok. The Autonomous Robotic Organism (shortened to "Autobot") known as Bumblebee is also on Earth, disguised as a 1976 Chevrolet Camaro, and looking for Sam Witwicky, the descendant of Captain Archibald Witwicky. He finds Sam at a used car lot where the boy is looking to purchase a car. Bumblebee covertly sabotages all of the other cars in the lot, leaving him as Sam's only option. Sam buys Bumblebee and the two quickly begin to bond as Bumblebee helps Sam try and woo his crush, [[Mikaela Banes]]. Sam is unaware of the fact that Bumblebee is an alien, until one night when the Autobot drives off without him. Sam chases Bumblebee on a bike to a factory area, calling the police in the process, and witnesses Bumblebee transform into robot mode and send a signal to the Autobots in space. The police soon arrive and Sam is arrested.

[[File:Movie Scorponok leapsout.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Run, Blaster! Save yourself!]]
At the [[Pentagon]], Defense Secretary [[John Keller (Movie)|John Keller]] oversees the investigation into the attack in Qatar. After Blackout's failure, Frenzy infiltrates Air Force One and attempts to download all information relating to "Project Iceman". However, [[Maggie Madsen]], one of the technicians studying the Decepticon infiltration signal, detects Frenzy hacking into the files and convinces the Pentagon to take down the Defense Network, halting Frenzy's download. When [[Air Force One]] makes an emergency landing, Frenzy slips into Barricade, and discusses his discovery of Archibald Witwicky, who has seen [[Cybertronian language|their language]]. Using an internet search, they discover that Sam's glasses will lead the Decepticons to the AllSpark. Frenzy and Barricade begin tracking Sam's location. Back in Qatar, the Army Rangers are attacked by Scorponok, and take refuge in a nearby village. Calling the Pentagon and getting air support, they discover that the Decepticons are vulnerable to high heat weaponry such as sabot rounds. Using this information, the soldiers inform the Pentagon that they now have a weapon.

[[File:Movie Sam Mikaela meettheAutobots.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|[[Wheelie (ROTF)|Wheelie]] say find friends today.]]
Sam having been bailed out of jail by his father, gets the impression that Bumblebee is stalking him. A freaked out Sam flees from Bumblebee (who is in car mode) on his mother's bike. Bumblebee then proceeds to pursue him. Mikaela sees Sam on the run and follows him on her motor scooter. After Sam evades Bumblebee, he is confronted by Barricade who demands Archibald's glasses. Mikaela arrives as Sam is running away from Barricade. Bumblebee, still in car mode, then finds them and has them get in. Barricade chases Bumblebee to a power plant where Bumblebee transforms and battles the Decepticon robot-to-robot. Meanwhile, Frenzy chases Sam but gets his head decapitated by Mikaela, however his head still functions and takes the form of Mikaela's phone to hide in her purse. Bumblebee, who has defeated Barricade, properly introduces himself to Sam and Mikaela. He then takes them to rendezvous with the rest of the Autobots. The Autobots—[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]], [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]], [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]], and [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]]—land on Earth and take on the forms of several Earth vehicles. They all meet in a dark, secluded alley, transform in front of the two amazed humans, introduce themselves and tell of the reasons they had to come to Earth to Sam and Mikaela. Meanwhile, Maggie, unable to convince John Keller and his officers of the Decepticon virus's complexity, makes a copy of the intrusion signal and shows it to her friend [[Glen Whitmann]], who discovers a message with the signal about Sector Seven, Captain Witwicky, and [[Project Iceman]]. However, the FBI arrest Glen and Maggie, who desperately tries to convince them not to go to war with the wrong country.

[[File:Movie Autobots Sector Seven.JPG|left|upright=1.4|thumb|I'll use the universal greeting.]]
Sam, Mikaela, and the Autobots return to Sam's home to retrieve the glasses. However, agents from [[Sector Seven]] arrive to take Sam and Mikaela into custody. As Sam and Mikaela are taken away in one of their vehicles, [[Seymour Simmons]], the agency's director, reveals that Mikaela has a criminal record and threatens Sam with life imprisonment, at which point the Autobots disable the convoy and rescue the teens. Mikaela then explains to Sam that the only reason she has a record is her refusal to turn her father in for the crimes he committed, prompting her to ask him what he has ever sacrificed in his "perfect little life." Reinforcements arrive at the scene and the Autobots retreat. However Sam and Mikaela are recaptured and Bumblebee is also captured despite Sam's pleas to let him go. Prime orders the other Autobots to let Bumblebee be taken, unwilling to use deadly force against the humans. At the Pentagon, a virus Frenzy uploaded during the Air Force One hack causes a global communications blackout, while Keller is finally informed of the Transformers by [[Tom Banachek]]. After Bumblebee's capture, Optimus uses the glasses to locate the AllSpark at Hoover Dam, and declares that if they cannot defeat the Decepticons, he will merge the Cube with his spark, even though it will kill him.

[[File:Movie Optimus Megatron.JPG|upright=1.4|thumb|One shall stand. One shall fall.]]
Sam, Mikaela, Keller, Maggie, Glen, and Lennox's unit are brought to Hoover Dam, where they are shown by Simmons and Banachek the frozen Megatron and the AllSpark, while Frenzy slips away. Sam explains the Decepticons' plan to use the AllSpark to transform human machines to conquer the universe. Locating the AllSpark, Frenzy regenerates the rest of his body and sends out an alert to Starscream, who mobilizes the rest of the Decepticons. Due to Starscream's attack and Frenzy's sabotage, Megatron begins to thaw, and Sam, Lennox, and Keller convince Banachek and Simmons to release Bumblebee so that he can get the AllSpark to Optimus Prime. Bumblebee converts the AllSpark into a smaller state for transportation to [[Mission City]].

Glen, Maggie, Keller, and Simmons manage to contact the Air Force and direct F22s to Mission City. Frenzy tries to stop them but is killed. As Bumblebee, Sam, Mikeala, and Lennox's unit drive to Mission City, they come in contact with the other Autobots, who join the convoy. Barricade, Devastator, and Bonecrusher, in vehicle modes, pursue them and Bonecrusher transforms into robot mode. Optimus transforms to stay behind and stop their pursuers. He fights Bonecrusher and eventually kills him. Meanwhile, the rest of the Autobots and the soldiers reach Mission City and come under attack by Starscream, Devastator, Blackout and Megatron. Bumblebee is crippled by Starscream while Jazz is killed by Megatron. Mikaela hijacks a tow truck to carry Bumblebee to safety while Lennox tasks Sam with taking the AllSpark to a building where it will be taken by military helicopters. Ironhide and Ratchet cover Sam as he makes his run to the building, protecting him from Blackout before being wounded by Starscream, leaving Sam to get to the building on his own.

[[File:Megatron allspark merge.JPG|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Now, light our darkest hour!]]
Optimus Prime finally arrives in the area and confronts Megatron. The two battle one-on-one before Megatron knocks Prime out and chases Sam. As Sam get to the roof of the building and is about to hand the AllSpark off to one of the helicopters, it is shot down by Starscream. Megatron destroys the portion of the roof the Sam is standing on when he refuses to hand over the AllSpark. However, Optimus catches Sam and he and Megatron resume their duel with Megatron once again gaining the upper hand. Meanwhile, Mikaela drives the tow truck in reverse to allow Bumblebee to fire on Devastator, who has Lennox and his men pinned down. Bumblebee kills Devastator and a full air strike is called in on Blackout and Megatron. As Blackout attempts to assist Megatron, he is killed by Lennox and the Air Force before he can engage. Starscream hides among a raptor squadron, destroying three fighters before being chased away. The Air Force and Lennox's rangers attack Megatron, inflicting serious damage upon him, but he is still functional, and heading toward the Cube. Finally, with both Prime and Megatron weakened, Prime beckons Sam to shove the AllSpark into his chest, destroying them both, but Sam instead takes the riskier action of shoving the AllSpark into Megatron's chest, destroying it, and killing Megatron instead.

{{note|For an extensive synopsis of the battle, see separate article [[Mission City]].}}

[[File:Movie Optimus ending.JPG|upright=1.4|thumb|[['Til all are one]]!]]
Optimus thanks Sam for his courage and for saving his life, while Bumblebee, who has temporarily regained his voice, asks permission to remain with Sam, which is granted. In an attempt to cover up the existence of the Transformers, Sector Seven is disbanded, while the remains of the Decepticons are cast into the [[Laurentian Abyss]]. Though Megatron is dead, the AllSpark's destruction leaves the Autobots unable to restore Cybertron. With no other home to go to, the Autobots decide to stay on Earth, and Optimus sends out a signal across space in an effort to locate any surviving Autobots, while Sam and Mikaela begin a relationship. Starscream retreats from Earth.
{{-}}

==Main cast==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] ([[Peter Cullen]])
*[[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] ([[Mark Ryan]])
*[[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]] ([[Darius McCrary]])
*[[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] ([[Robert Foxworth]])
*[[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]] ([[Jess Harnell]])
|c2=
*[[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] ([[Hugo Weaving]])
*[[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] ([[Jess Harnell]])
*[[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] ([[Charlie Adler]])
*[[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]]'''*''' / Devastator
*[[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] ([[Jimmie Wood]])
*[[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]]
*[[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]]
*[[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]] ([[Reno Wilson]])

|c3=
*[[Sam Witwicky]] ([[Shia LaBeouf]])
*[[Mikaela Banes]] ([[Megan Fox]])
*[[William Lennox]] ([[Josh Duhamel]])
*[[Robert Epps]] ([[Tyrese Gibson]])
*[[John Keller (Movie)|John Keller]] ([[Jon Voight]])
*[[Maggie Madsen]] ([[Rachael Taylor]])
*[[Glen Whitmann]] ([[Anthony Anderson]])
*[[Seymour Simmons]] ([[John Turturro]])
*[[Tom Banachek]] ([[Michael O'Neill]])
*[[Judy Witwicky]] ([[Julie White]])
*[[Ron Witwicky]] ([[Kevin Dunn]])
*[[Bobby Bolivia]] ([[Bernie Mac]])
*[[Trent DeMarco]] ([[Travis Van Winkle]])
*[[Archibald Witwicky]] ([[William Morgan Sheppard]])
*[[Patrick Donnelly]] ([[Zack Ward]])
*[[Jorge Figueroa]] ([[Amaury Nolasco]])
*[[Miles Lancaster]] ([[John Robinson]])
*[[Sharp|Colonel Sharp]] ([[Glenn Morshower]])

|c4=
*[[Mojo]] ([[Chester the Chihuahua]])
[[AllSpark Mutation]]s
*[[Nokia-bot]]
*[[Dispensor]]
*[[Steering wheel robot|Steering wheel]]
*[[Xbox 360 robot|Xbox 360]]
|nonumbering=true
}}
'''<nowiki>*</nowiki>''' - Brawl is named "Devastator" in the film itself, but "Brawl" in the toyline and most of the supporting media. Plot summaries and such will reflect whichever name is relevant to that being described.

==Quotes==
"Before time began, there was the Cube. We know not where it comes from, only that it holds the power to create worlds and fill them with life. That was how our race was born. For a time, we lived in harmony, but like all great power, some wanted it for good, others for evil. And so began the war - a war that ravaged our planet until it was consumed by death, and the Cube was lost to the far reaches of space. We scattered across the galaxy, hoping to find it and rebuild our home, searching every star, every world. And just when all hope seemed lost, message of a new discovery drew us to an unknown planet called... Earth. But we were already too late."
:—'''Optimus Prime's''' opening narration

"Look, can you do me a favor—can you look out the window for a second? See my father? He's the guy in the green car? Let me tell you about a dream, a boy's dream, and a man's promise to that boy. He looked him in the eye and said "Son, I'm gonna buy you a car, but I want you to bring me two-thousand dollars and three A's." OK, I got the two thousand and two A's. OK, here's the dream. Your B minus? Pfff! Dream gone. Kaputt. Sir, just ask yourself... what would [[Jesus]] do?"
:—'''Sam Witwicky''' negotiates a better mark for his Family Genealogy project

'''Bobby Bolivia:''' What with the semi-classic nature of the vehicle, slick wheels and custom paint job— 
'''Sam:''' The paint's faded! 
'''Bobby:''' Y-yeah, but it's custom. 
'''Sam:''' It's custom faded? 
'''Bobby:''' Well, it's your first car, I wouldn't expect you to understand. ''[turns to Ron]'' Five grand. 
'''Ron:''' No, not paying over four. Sorry. 
'''Bobby:''' ''[turns back to Sam]'' Kid, c'mon, get out, get out of the car. 
'''Sam:''' No, no, no, you said cars pick their drivers! 
'''Bobby:''' Well, sometimes they pick a driver with a cheap-ass father—out of the car. 
:—Negotiations over [[Bumblebee (Movie)|the car]] at [[Bolivia's Finest Quality Used Cars and Petting Zoo]]

''[Sam's car leaves in a huge puff of black smoke]'' 
"Wow... you are so cheap." 
"It's his first car... supposed to be like that."
:—'''Judy Witwicky''' comments on the car's condition to '''Ron'''

'''Capt. Lennox:''' I need a credit card! Epps, where's your wallet? 
'''Sgt. Epps:''' Pocket! ''[fires gun]'' 
'''Lennox:''' Which pocket?" 
'''Epps:''' My ''back'' pocket! ''[fires gun]'' 
'''Lennox:''' You got ten back pockets! 
'''Epps:''' Left cheek! Left cheek! ''Left cheek!'' 
:—Calling the Pentagon from Qatar gets complicated.

"Ready, heat's coming!" 
"What, BRING IT!" 
:—'''Lennox''' and '''Epps''' giving the green light for Strike Package Bravo to attack

'''Optimus Prime''': Are you Samuel James Witwicky, descendant of Archibald Witwicky? 
'''Mikaela Banes''': They know your name! 
'''Sam''': Uh... Yeah? 
'''Optimus Prime''': My name is Optimus Prime. 
:—Admit it, you stood up and cheered and/or wept from joy after this exchange.

"The parents are... irritating. Can I take them out?"
:—'''Ironhide''' meets the family

'''Jazz''': What about Bumblebee? We can't just leave him to die! And become some human experiment! 
'''Optimus Prime''': He'll die in vain if we don't accomplish our mission. Bumblebee is a brave soldier. This is what he would want. 
'''Ironhide:''' Why are we fighting to save the humans? They're a primitive and violent race. 
'''Optimus Prime:''' Were we so different? They are a young species. They have much to learn... but I've seen goodness in them. [[Make Prime Speak|Freedom is the right of all sentient beings]]... You all know there is only one way to end this war: We must destroy the Cube. If all else fails, I will unite it with the spark in my chest. 
'''Ratchet:''' That's suicide! The Cube is raw power—it could destroy you both. 
'''Optimus Prime:''' A necessary sacrifice to bring peace to this planet... We cannot let the humans pay for our mistakes. It's been an honor serving with you all. Autobots, roll out! 
'''Jazz''': We rollin'! 
:—The Autobots discuss their next move.

"Do you want a piece of me?! Do you want a piece-" 
"NO! I want TWO!"''[rips Jazz in two]'' 
:—'''Jazz''', showing no fear and '''Megatron''', showing cruelty and cleverness

"Humans don't deserve to live." 
"They deserve to choose for themselves!" 
"Then you will die with them! Join them in extinction!"
:—'''Megatron''' and '''Optimus Prime''' have some mid-battle banter, Transformers style

"Give me the AllSpark, and you may live to be my ''pet''." 
"I'm never giving you this AllSpark!" 
"Oh, ''so'' unwise..."
:—'''Megatron''' and '''Sam Witwicky''' have a tense moment on a Mission City rooftop.

"With the AllSpark gone, we cannot return life to our planet. And fate has yielded its reward: a new world to call... home. We live among its people now, hiding in plain sight... but watching over them in secret... waiting... protecting. I have witnessed their capacity for courage, and though we are worlds apart, like us, there's more to them than meets the eye. I am Optimus Prime, and I send this message to any surviving Autobots taking refuge among the stars: We are here... we are waiting."
:—'''Optimus Prime's''' closing narration

==Errors==
* Sunset occurs roughly every fifteen minutes. Possibly indicative of time passage, but a little too much to not warrant mention in the actual movie. Specific instances:
**When the radar operator at SOCCENT base first spots Blackout, he reports him as an "inbound unidentified infiltrator, ten miles out". [[Sharp|Colonel Sharp]] dispatches two F-22s, which intercept Blackout still in broad daylight. When Blackout lands at the base, it's suddenly sunset. As the soldiers round him up, it rapidly turns dark within what appears to be seconds. Once Blackout transforms, it's already night.
**When Mikaela walks home from the lake, the sun is still shining. Sam tells Miles that she "lives ten miles from here". After he picked her up, Bumblebee feigns an engine problem. By the time Sam gets him running again, the sky is still in an early stage of pre-sunset. By the time Sam drops Mikaela at her home, it's night again.
**Barricade assaults Sam in the middle of the day. Bumblebee intervenes and drives off with Sam and Mikaela still in broad daylight. During the ensuing car chase, sunset abruptly occurs once Bumblebee has left the warehouse, and it promptly turns night between shots. (The chase scene was actually intended to be longer; see "[[#Changes before, during and after production|changes before, during and after production]]" below.)
* The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) used by the US Air Force to investigate Scorponok's attack on Captain Lennox is modeled after the [[wikipedia:MQ-9 Reaper|MQ-9 Reaper]], but is identified as the [[wikipedia:MQ-1 Predator|MQ-1 Predator]]. Also, neither of these UAVs use jet engines.
[[File:MovieTaxis.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|These shots were ''shown in sequence'', believe it or not.]]
* After Maggie copies the signal to take to Glen, she hails a black and white cab, but she's dropped off at Glen's house by an all-white cab. (The "cab hailing" footage originally came from a deleted scene near the beginning of the movie when Maggie was late for work.), and are two different models of the Crown Victoria taxicab.
* When Sam's car breaks down and Mikaela gets out to look at the engine, she leaves the passenger door open. When the car restarts and Sam leaves to close the hood, the passenger side door is now shut. But hey, maybe that was Bumblebee.
* Mikaela identifies Bumblebee's engine as having a "high-rise, double-pump carburetor" but the engine shown has no such carburetor.
* After Bumblebee backs into a corner of the power plant to evade Barricade, there is a close up shot of him spinning his wheels to make his getaway. However, the shot of the wheels spinning is at a different location: the empty warehouse that Bumblebee and Barricade had raced through moments earlier.
* Possibly an error, or possibly just a confusing shot setup, but when Bumblebee makes his escape, Barricade appears to change positions multiple times as camera angles change. Bumblebee guns his engines as Barricade is just starting to cross in front of him, but as Bumblebee speeds backwards, Barricade has backtracked well out of the way.
* After scanning his new Concept Camaro alt-form, Bumblebee's robot body displays either battle-worn parts or brand new parts at random times for the duration of the film.
[[File:MovieJazzBarricadeLicensePlates.jpg|thumb|Barricade has the plate before Jazz even comes to Earth, so it's not a trophy or anything...]]
* As long as Bumblebee transforms into a 1976 Camaro, his license plate consistently reads "489 PCE" both in vehicle and robot mode. After scanning his modern Camaro alternate mode, the license plate changes too... which isn't actually an error. What ''is'' an error, though, is that the new license plate keeps changing from "900 STRA" in vehicle mode to "4NZZ454" in robot mode.
*Jazz's license plate is equally inconsistent: On his robot mode chest it's "1-4027E", but during his transformation before his fight with [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]], he sports the license plate "664 NLZO" in vehicle mode. What's worse, "1-4027E" is also ''Barricade's'' license plate in vehicle mode, as can be seen when he slows down and then accelerates again after having seemingly cornered Bumblebee.
* During the scene where Optimus Prime scans a truck for his new body, the passing truck has what appears to be an Autobot sigil on its grill, but the actual truck that Prime turns into at the end of the scene has a much wider, flatter symbol on the grill, quite possibly a Peterbilt logo.
* When Simmons replays Sam's "last words" recorded onto his cell phone, it doesn't match what he said in the scene where he actually recorded them.
* When the Autobots arrive to rescue Sam and Mikaela from Agent Simmons, Ironhide is the first Autobot to reach the damaged SUV and the other Sector Seven agents. Behind him, Ratchet is making his way towards the SUV, while Jazz and Bumblebee have their respective weapons drawn. However, in the very next shot, Ratchet's gun is suddenly in front of Ironhide, who is now making two short steps towards the SUV, while Jazz's gun has been replaced by his hand (which he uses to pull Sector Seven's guns away magnetically). In the shot after that, Jazz is just standing around sans Sector Seven guns, while Bumblebee wanders up and draws his gun...again.
[[File:Movie2007 Keller OBVIOUSVISUALAID.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|Yer days're numbered now, Decepti-creeps.]]
* When Banachek shows Keller photographs of the Decepticon that destroyed the [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] [[Beagle 2 Rover]], and supposedly a photo of Blackout taken by Epps during the attack on SOCCENT Qatar, "Blackout's photo" is clearly taken during the day, complete with the sun behind the Decepticon as a major light source, whereas the attack on SOCCENT took place in the evening. This was either a continuity error or a ham-handed attempt to make the audience realise the attackers in both photos are one and the same by making the photos look similar.
** Not to mention that the actual Beagle 2 was a '''''European''''' Space Agency '''''lander''''', not a [[NASA]] Rover.
* During the montage where Bumblebee's frozen body is being transported inside Hoover Dam via a moving platform whilst the Autobots discuss his fate, in one of the shots the physical Bumblebee prop is missing its distinctive car doors.
* During the first half of the movie, Maggie is wearing a slim striped skirt, but she is suddenly dressed in 3/4 jeans in the scene when they arrive at Hoover Dam.
*This may not be an error, but Barricade seems to disappear after being driven off the road during the highway scene, as he is never shown again in the movie or the [[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|sequel]]. [[Wheelie (ROTF)|Wheelie]] later pulls the same trick in said sequel.
* When Ironhide transforms and performs a somersault to dodge Brawl's missiles, he is seen rising first, then falling. At that moment, he is already almost at the ground, low enough to touch the ground if he stretched his arms. However, on the next scene, he has gone much higher up, high enough to fire both the cannons on his arms then perform a midair somersault.
* When Lennox arrives as Sam and Mikaela are supposedly strapping Bumblebee with the tow truck's chains, Bumblebee is not actually there. When the shot changes angles to the other side of the truck, Bumblebee is sitting right beside the truck while Sam directs Mikaela to wrap Bumblebee in the chains. When Lennox tells Sam to evacuate the Cube, subsequent camera angles from this side of the truck are actually where Bumblebee was moments earlier, but he's not there again (it is unlikely the angle was meant to be from Bumblebee's perspective). When Sam starts to run off and Mikaela calls him back, Bumblebee is once again clearly not sitting beside the truck. In fact, the space he once occupied has the beige van he crawled out of, earlier in the battle. What makes this all the more bizarre is that the life-sized Bumblebee prop was actually used for some of the scenes that depict Bumblebee strapped to the tow truck.
[[File:MovieTowTruckNumbers.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Mike changed phone numbers while giant robots were fighting in the city.]]
* After Optimus Prime and Megatron land in the city streets after flying through the office tower, Megatron throws the Autobot leader a short distance away, causing him to land on a parked car. After Megatron forms his fusion cannon, Optimus Prime has suddenly moved further down the street and the car he crushed, along with the other abandoned cars, have vanished. Also, in this shot, Optimus' feet don't make craters or any visible mark on the concrete. Yet, when Optimus is running from the Sector Seven Agents, he's making huge craters while he is side-stepping cars. (This comes with weighing over four tons and running 40 miles an hour.) Additionally, Optimus stops at the intersection just in front of Megatron to pull out his Ion blaster in this shot, but when it cuts to a shot to the left-front of Optimus, he is only mid-way up the street, and there is a parked yellow cab at the curb which was empty seconds earlier. Funnily enough, this curb was where the crushed car was parked.
* During the fight towards the end of the film between Megatron and Optimus, it is shown that Optimus is about the same size as Megatron in robot mode. Yet, in vehicle mode, Megatron is a great deal larger than Optimus is. Similarly, Starscream seems to be smaller than Megatron in robot form, leading to the logical conclusion that he is smaller than Optimus as well. Yet in vehicle mode, he is nearly four to five times larger, seeing as an F-22 Raptor is a great deal larger than a Peterbilt 379 tractor cab. And they say they don't have [[scale]] problems.
* For the battle in Mission City, see [[Mission City#Notes]].
*The phone number on the doors of the tow truck is "800-555-0199" when Mikaela is driving it, but when she gets out, the number changes to "800-555-MIKE". The font is slightly different, too.
* In the battle at Mission City, Brawl very clearly fires 3 missiles out of his shoulder-mounted missile launcher, but before he dies, all 4 missiles are in his missile launcher. Then again, this could just be a sort of 'auto-reload' thing the Transformers have going on, as they probably wouldn't get very far in battle if they were only limited to 4 missiles each.
* When Keller is meeting with the other officials, he says they're going to dump the bodies of the Decepticons into the Laurentian Abyss, the deepest place on the planet. The deepest place on the planet is the Mariana Trench.

===Explicable discrepancies===
* Sam and Mikaela, as well as Maggie and Glen arrive at Hoover Dam on the same helicopter despite being from opposite ends of the country. Occasionally cited as an error, it is actually a narrative oversight, as it is likely that Sam and Mikaela were held in custody at a U.S. Air Base while waiting for Maggie and Glen to arrive with Secretary Keller's party by plane, then they all left for Hoover Dam together on the helicopters.

* There are some problems with Simmons's statement about various technologies being reverse-engineered from Megatron. Cars came about in one shape or form at about the turn of the century, and spaceflight technology was pioneered by German and Soviet scientists. (This is possibly what [[Sector Seven|they]] ''want'' you to think.) Then again, [[Seymour Simmons|Simmons]] also thinks that [[Nokia]] is a Japanese company...

* Most people mistakenly confuse the date of Megatron's discovery with the date the Hoover Dam was built. Based on the various dates given by Banachek, it's clear that Megatron was ''left in the Arctic'' for many years before being moved to Hoover Dam, making his discovery easily pre-date cars.

==Transformer references==
The movie contains a number of nods and winks to previous iterations of ''Transformers'', primarily from ''[[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]]''. Some of these were included in direct response to urgings of the fans; others originated with the production crew.

* The basic story set-up is similar to many iterations of the ''Generation 1'' story — two warring factions, the noble Autobots and the power-hungry Decepticons, arrive on Earth, having left their devastated home planet, the war-torn mechanical world of Cybertron.
* Many of the featured Transformers are re-imagined versions of characters from ''Generation 1''. [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] in particular are similar in physical form and characterization to their movie incarnations. The Movie versions of [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]], [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]], and [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] differ in appearance but fulfill story roles similar to their original versions.
* Though the characters are new, "[[Frenzy (disambiguation)|Frenzy]]", "[[Scorponok (disambiguation)|Scorponok]]", "[[Brawl (G1)|Brawl]]/[[Devastator (disambiguation)|Devastator]]", "[[Blackout (disambiguation)|Blackout]]", "[[Barricade (disambiguation)|Barricade]]", and "[[Bonecrusher (disambiguation)|Bonecrusher]]" are all names that have been used on Transformer characters before.
* Blackout's symbiotic relationship with Scorponok originated as an interpretation of [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] and his cassette troops. Frenzy's transformation into a portable stereo is likewise a homage to Soundwave's cassette deck alternate form.
* Sam shares his last name with the [[Witwicky#Generation 1 continuity family|main human allies]] of the Autobots in the original [[The Transformers (cartoon)|''Generation 1'' cartoon]]. Like Spike before him, he's closest to Bumblebee.
* The Autobot faction symbol seen on Bumblebee and others is basically unchanged from its ''Generation 1'' appearance.
* The AllSpark takes its name from [[Allspark|a concept]] originally introduced in ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]''.
* The original G1 [[transformation]] sound pops up several times during the course of the film, such as Blackout's first conversion sequence (though truth be told it sounds more like it's being broadcast from a loudspeaker.)
[[File:Movie BoliviasFinestQualityUsedCars 2.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Your bargaining posture is highly dubious.]]
* In his first appearance, Bumblebee parks next to a yellow Volkswagen Beetle — the alternate form of [[Bumblebee (G1)|G1 Bumblebee]].
* When instructing the Autobots to escape Sector Seven and when they later head for Hoover Dam, Optimus Prime delivers his catchphrase from the ''Generation 1'' cartoon, ordering them to [[Roll out|"Roll out!"]]
* Sam's surmise that the Transformers come from Japan is [[TakaraTomy|not entirely inaccurate]].
* Prime references "the spark in my chest". [[Spark]]s — the life-force that makes Transformers alive — have been an integral part of Transformers fiction since ''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]''.
* Although the Transformers' primary energy supply, [[Energon]], does not make an established physical appearance in the film, its name appears on the license plate of an SUV thrown through the air during Megatron's rampage in [[Mission City]].
* Optimus Prime's line "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" is the quote from his [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys|original 1984 toy's]] [[bio]]. At least one of the reasons for the inclusion of this line was because it won in an online contest conducted by [[Paramount Pictures|Paramount]] in late 2006, named "[[Make Prime Speak]]".
* Prime's line "...one shall stand; one shall fall" comes from the 1986 animated ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]''.
* The scene in which Jazz yanks aside Devastator's tank barrel is a direct homage to a similar sequence from TF:TM involving [[Kup (G1)|Kup]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]].
* Ironhide's complaint that [[Mojo]] "leaked lubricant" on his foot references a [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 1|favorite]] [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 3|exclamation]] [[Power Play!|of his]] ''[[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]]'' [[Ironhide (G1)|counterpart]], "Leakin' lubricant!" The phrase originated with his [[The Transformers Universe|original character outline]], stating that "he [refers to] excessive talking as 'leaking lubricant.'"
* Sam telling Mikaela that there's "more than meets the eye... with you" quotes the slogan used in the toy line, also included in the G1 series [[theme song]].
*Megatron wields a flail in the Mission City battle, just as he did in his fight with Optimus Prime in the second-ever G1 episode, "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2]]".

==Other editions==
The 2007 ''Transformers'' film has more than one "cut."

* The worldwide theatrical release was essentially identical all around the world with a few minor exceptions.
* The film board of Malaysia required [[Judy Witwicky]]'s masturbation reference be removed{{fact}}. However, no such change has been made and her lines were not omitted from the film.
*Glen's line, "that killer robot is really distracting", was cut from DVD releases. However, it is featured in the official novelization of the movie and at least one trailer.
* The [[wikipedia:IMAX|IMAX]] edition of the movie features two minutes of additional footage in the form of slightly extended scenes and very brief new scenes. Added material includes the following:
**Before heading to the lake party, Sam is shown picking Miles up at his house. Miles derides Sam's choice of car colors.
**After Sam is questioned by the sheriff at the police station, he is given an anti-drug bumper sticker and shown the "[[wikipedia:This is Your Brain on Drugs|This is Your Brain on Drugs]]" [[Public service announcement|PSA]] starring [[wikipedia:Rachel Leigh Cook|Rachel Leigh Cook]].
**After abducting Sam and Mikaela, Agent Simmons uses a device to monitor Sam's pupil dilation while interrogating him in the truck. He also remarks that he has "been there" when it comes to women with criminal records.
**Upon arriving at Hoover Dam, Simmons remarks colorfully that it is "Area 50". A few minutes later, he lists the nicknames of all the U.S. Presidents to have toured the facility.
**In Mission City, Lennox acquires short-range radios from a gun-toting, but easily flattered, pawn shop owner.
*Strangely, the televised versions of the film feature different synthesized effects on all of the Transformers' voices. These changes result in the Autobots and Decepticons sounding like they are talking inside a tin can. Why this difference is present and where the changes originally came from are unknown.
*The [[Cartoon Network]] broadcast of the film replaces some of the curses with other words. Sam's Parent's "family discussion" is toned down a bit, with [[Judy Witwicky|Judy's]] line about masturbation removed.

==Prequel material==
* ''[[Transformers: Ghosts of Yesterday]]''
: A novel about the truth behind humankind's first venture into space and how that event is related to the Transformers' presence on Earth, both past and present.

* ''[[Transformers: Movie Prequel]]''
: A four issue limited series comic book from [[IDW Publishing]], released before the movie's debut. It chronicles the events which bring the Transformers to [[Earth]].

* "[[Interlude]]" (also originally published as ''Transformers Movie Prequel'')
: A short comic book by IDW, produced in cooperation with [[Target]], available (online) from Target's website and (in printed form) at BotCon and in theaters, following Bumblebee's early search for clues on Earth.

* "[[Planetfall (Movie)|Planetfall]]" (also originally published as ''Transformers Movie Prequel'')
: A mini-comic by IDW, produced in cooperation with Target, available (online) from Target's website and (in printed form) as a Target exclusive bonus pack-in with the Movie DVD, showing the Decepticons' arrival on Earth.

* The ''[[Movie Prequel Special]]''
: A mass retail release that contains reprints of both "Planetfall" and "Interlude" (now with individual story titles) in collected form.

* ''[[Transformers: Beginnings (Movie)|Beginnings]]''
: A not-really-animated animatic version of IDW's ''[[Transformers: Movie Prequel|Movie Prequel]]'' comics, voiced by some of the actors from the movie, the game and a bunch of other people. Included on a [[Walmart]] exclusive bonus DVD available with the Movie DVD.

* ''[[Transformers (Titan Magazine)|Transformers]]''
: A monthly comic published in the UK by [[Titan Books]], featuring new adventures set before the movie in its initial six issues (in addition to reprints of stories originally published by IDW). They were reprinted by IDW in the ''[[Transformers: Saga of the Allspark|Saga of the Allspark]]'' mini-series.

Some dialog in the film contradicts the prequel material, specifically pertaining to the years in which the frozen Megatron was moved from the Arctic to Hoover Dam, and exactly when the Decepticons arrived on Earth. Some of the prequel material contradicts the ''other'' prequel material... at least till [[John Barber]] fixed some of them on his [[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (franchise)|''Dark of the Moon'' tie in comics]].

==Adaptations==
* A novelization of the film by [[Alan Dean Foster]] was published under the title ''[[Transformers (novel)|Transformers]]''.
* IDW Publishing released a comic adaptation of the film under the title ''[[Transformers: Movie Adaptation|Movie Adaptation]]''.

==Sequels==
{{main|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)}}
Three sequels to this film have been produced and released worldwide.

[[IDW Publishing]] also released the comic sequel to the film, titled ''[[Transformers: The Reign of Starscream|The Reign of Starscream]]''.

==Soundtrack==
{{main|Transformers: The Album}}

==Score==
{{main|Transformers: The Score}}

==Home video releases==
[[File:2007Movie 2-disc DVD.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1]]
{{main|Transformers (film)/home video}}
* '''US:''' [http://tformers.com/US-To-Get-Transformers-DVD-HD-DVD-October-16th/8350/news.html October 16th, 2007] (DVD, HD-DVD), [http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/1175/transformers2007.html September 2nd, 2008] (Blu-ray)
* '''Australia:''' November 1, 2007 (DVD)
* '''United Kingdom:''' December 3, 2007 (DVD, HD-DVD), September 8th, 2008 (Blu-ray)

There are nearly a dozen store [[exclusive]] [http://tformers.com/Transformers-DVD-Exclusives-Who-Gets-What/8534/news.html versions and sales premiums of the DVD.] They include:

* [[Target]] and HMV UK: transforming Optimus Prime display case.
* Best Buy: [[Robot Heroes (toyline)|Robot Heroes]] [[Cliffjumper (Movie)|Cliffjumper]] and battle-damaged Optimus Prime.
* [[Walmart]]: [[Transformers: Beginnings (Movie)|Beginnings]] "animated" prequel material.
* Borders: "Making Of" book.
* Circuit City: password unlocking 15 minutes of exclusive online behind-the-scenes featurettes, covering the voice recording sessions, prop construction, stunt work, and early CG tests and animatics.
{{-}}

==Theatrical posters==
{{picsneeded|Any other official posters not depicted here}}
<center><gallery perrow="4">
File:Transformers2007teaserposter.jpg|Teaser poster
File:Movie2007 Autobot promo poster.jpg|Autobot promo poster
File:Movie2007 Decepticon promo poster.jpg|Decepticon promo poster
File:Prime-Sam-Mikaela-poster.jpg|Promotional poster
File:Movie2007 Megatron onesheet.jpg|Megatron one sheet
File:Movie2007 Prime onesheet.jpg|Optimus Prime one sheet
File:Movie2007_final_standee.jpg|Standee, also used as a poster
File:Movie2007 humans internationalposter.jpg|International "Humans" poster/US theatrical poster
File:Movie2007 Sphere internationalposter.jpg|International "Sphere" poster
File:Movie2007 Bumblebee internationalposter.jpg|International Bumblebee poster
File:Movie2007 Prime internationalposter.jpg|International Optimus Prime poster
File:Movie2007 Megatron internationalposter.jpg|International Megatron poster
File:Movie2007_Korean_poster.jpg|South Korean theatrical release poster
File:Movie2007 Japanese Aprilpromo poster.jpg|Japanese April 2007 promotional poster
File:Movie2007_Japanese_release_poster.jpg|Japanese theatrical release poster
File:Movie2007_IMAX_poster.jpg|IMAX promotional poster
File:Movie2007_IMAX_releaseposter.jpg|IMAX release poster
File:Movie2007 handsmashy ver7 poster.jpg|Used as a prominent skyscraper advert
</gallery></center>

==Reception==
The movie set multiple records when it opened, including biggest opening week gross for a non-sequel ($155.4 million), biggest Tuesday release gross ($27.4 million), biggest July 4 gross ($29 million), and the biggest film opening in mainland China ($3 million) [http://www.china.org.cn/english/entertainment/217368.htm].
[[File:Movie2007 Bumblebee lubricates Simmons.JPG|left|350px|thumb|Oh, how it pains me to do this.]]
The movie closed domestically on [[November 8]], [[2007]], during which time it took in $319,246,193. (Domestic gross accounted for $310,578,372 before the IMAX version's release.) It has earned a ''worldwide'' gross of $708,272,592. It currently sits at spot #20 in the "most domestic gross" list of movies, though this listing is ''not'' adjusted for inflation. When taking inflation into account, ''Transformers'' currently sits at #102. [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers06.htm 2]

{{quote|I didn't sleep through it the way I Novocained my way through the awful ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'', but by the time it ended, I thought I might have vertigo or whiplash, or both, and I certainly lost more than a few of my remaining I.Q. points|[http://www.observer.com/2007/bay-bombs-again Rex Reed]}}

{{quote|It's goofy fun with a lot of stuff that blows up real good, and it has the grace not only to realize how preposterous it is, but to make that into an asset.|Roger Ebert}}

{{quote|But it's tough to really care about questions like, "Why did that happen?" or even "What's going on?" when you’re constantly interrupted by "Oh my goodness! Giant robots! Weeee!"|Peter Suderman|[http://tinyurl.com/373rps The National Review]}}

Critical reception was hit-and-miss, [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/transformers_the_movie/ more positive than negative but not by a lot], though it's sometimes hard to tell how many negative reviewers were more interested in criticizing [[Michael Bay]] in general over the movie itself. Otherwise, the most common negatives involved it being a generally think-free "spectacle"-style movie; even those who rated the movie positively noted it was a pure "popcorn" movie meant to wow its audience with [[Computer-generated imagery|CGI]] and explosions rather than make them think (Richard Roper noted in his "thumbs up" review "it has no nutritional value"). Whether one considers that a good or bad thing for a movie and if the movie was enough fun to overcome that is, of course, highly debatable. The other main culprit, again noted by many of the positive reviews, was its long running time, particularly the overly-chaotic, often hard-to-follow final big-bang extended ending action sequence. ([http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070705/REVIEWS/70620006/1023 Roger Ebert] noted that this sequence was what made him give the movie three out of four stars rather than the full four.)

From the fan and general audience point of view, Transformers was generally favored. However, there have been division over the amount of human stories at the expense of the robots.

Transformers was nominated for three Oscars, in the fields of Achievement in Sound Editing, Achievement in Sound Mixing, and Achievement in Visual Effects. The sound awards went to ''The Bourne Ultimatum'', and the visual effects award went to ''The Golden Compass''.

Three sequels have been produced to date: ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen]]'' was released worldwide on [[June 24]] [[2009]], ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Transformers: Dark of the Moon]]'' was released on [[June 28]], [[2011]], and ''[[Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Transformers: Age of Extinction]]'' was released on [[June 27]], [[2014]].

According to a 2011 survey, the 2007 ''Transformers'' movie is the third most-pirated movie of all time.<ref><tt>The usual suspects were there, with "Avatar" (21 million downloads) taking top (dis?)honors, and "The Dark Knight" tying for second place with "Transformers" at 19 million downloads apiece.</tt>[http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/14/showbiz/movies/top-pirated-movies-ew/index.html Top 10 most pirated movies], October 14, 2011</ref>

==Technical details==
'''Length:''' 144 min (original theatrical)<ref>The movie had some content cuts to meet the standards of some <s>oppressive regimes</s> quaint "developing world" rating boards.</ref> 
'''Aspect Ratio:''' 2.35:1 
'''Audio:''' Dolby Digital / DTS / SDDS 
'''Content Rating:'''
{{collist|4|
* PG-13 (USA/MPAA)
* ? (Japan)
* 12A (United Kingdom)
* PG (Canada; British Columbia)<ref>''Transformers'' received a "14A" rating in British Columbia, but an appeal by the studio successfully reduced it to PG.</ref>
* G (Canada; Quebec)
* PG (Canada; Alberta/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario)
* PG (Canada; Canadian Home Video Rating System)
* PG (Taiwan)
* IIA (China; Hong Kong)
* PG (Singapore)
* G (Philippines/MTRCB)
* U (France)
* U (Malaysia)
* M (Australia)
* M (New Zealand)
* TE (Chile)
* 10 (Brazil)
* 10M (South Africa)
* 11 (Denmark)
* K-11 (Finland)
* 11 (Norway)
* 11 (Sweden)
* 12 (Germany)
* 12A (Ireland)
* 12 (Netherlands)
* M/12 (Portugal)
* 12 (South Korea)
* 12 (Switzerland)
* 13 (Argentina)
* 14 (Peru)
* 12 (Poland)
* B (Mexico)
* 12+ (Russia)}}

==Production staff==
[[File:Movie Castandcrew2.jpg|upright=1.67|thumb|Megatron? Is that you?!]]
* Executive Producer: [[Steven Spielberg]]
* Executive Producer: [[Brian Goldner]]
* Director: [[Michael Bay]]
* Producers: [[Lorenzo di Bonaventura]], [[Ian Bryce]], [[Tom DeSanto]], [[Don Murphy]]
* Story by: [[Alex Kurtzman]] & [[Roberto Orci]] and [[John Rogers]],
* Screenwriters: [[Alex Kurtzman]] & [[Roberto Orci]]
* Music by: [[Steve Jablonsky]]

====Visual Effects====
* Visual Effects by: [[Industrial Light & Magic]], [[Digital Domain]], [[Asylum VFX]]
* Production Designer: [[Jeff Mann]]
* Lead Robot Illustrator: [[Ben Procter]]
* Illustrators: [[James Clyne]], [[Tim Flattery]]
* ILM Visual Effects Supervisior: [[Scott Farrar]]
* Art Director: [[Alex Jaeger]]
* Animation Supervisors: [[Scott Benza]], [[Dan Taylor (ILM)|Dan Taylor]]
* Animators: [[Charles Alleneck]], [[C. Michael Easton]], [[Keiji Yamaguchi]]

====Locations Department====
(winners of the California On Location Award [http://www.californiaonlocationawards.com/] for "Production Company / Location Team of the Year for Feature Films")

* Supervising Location Manager: '''Ilt Jones'''
* Location Managers: '''Michael J. Burmeister''', '''Fermín Dávalos''', and '''Emre Sonmez'''
* Key Assistant Location Managers: '''Michael Wesley Aycock''', '''Leann Emmert''', '''Perri Fichtner''', '''Ronald M. Haynes''', '''Jonathan Hook''', '''Kathy McCurdy''', '''Manny Padilla''', '''Lisa Patton''', '''Rob Swenson''', '''Marta Tomkiw''', and '''Scott Trimble'''
* Additional Key Assistant Location Managers: '''Brooks Bonstin''', '''Alexandre Chen''', '''Michael Chickey''', '''Martin J. Cummins'''
* Assistant Location Managers: '''Ces Hardy''' and '''Amanda Harrington'''
* Location Scouts: '''Stuart Raven Barter''', '''Richard Klotz''', '''James Lin''', and '''Keith Nakata'''
{{-}}
==Development details==
===Cast and crew signing on===
In 2000, director Joseph Kahn pitched his treatment for a live-action Transformers film to [[Sony]], but they eventually lost interest in a film. In 2003, producer [[Don Murphy]] had intended to produce a movie based on another [[Hasbro]] property, [[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]]. However, following the US invasion of Iraq in March 2003, a movie entitled "G.I. Joe" was no longer considered viable, so Carol Monroe, who was in charge of Hasbro's movie department at that time, suggested doing a ''Transformers'' movie instead.<ref name="murphylatino">[http://www.latinoreview.com/news/on-set-interview-producer-don-murphy-on-transformers-1502 Latino Review interview with producer Don Murphy.]</ref> [[Tom DeSanto]] joined the project as a second producer and wrote a treatment that he and Murphy tried to shop around for a while. (The treatment would eventually remain entirely unused, but DeSanto would try to get a writing credit regardless, even though none of the screenwriters had ever actually ''seen'' his treatment.<ref name="bayspat">[http://www.portfolio.com/views/blogs/the-hollywood-deal/2007/07/05/michael-bays-spat-with-his-transformer-producers Rant by Michael Bay, deleted from his own blog, still mirrored on other sites]</ref>) The movie was officially announced for the first time in June 2003.<ref name="comingsoon">[http://web.archive.org/web/20030611151443/http://comingsoon.net/news.php?id=238 Coming Soon announcing the movie.]</ref>

In 2004, after [[DreamWorks]] won a bidding war with New Line Cinema over the rights to the film, [[Steven Spielberg]] signed up as executive producer, while [[John Rogers]] was confirmed as screenwriter in November of the same year.<ref>[http://www.ign.com/articles/2004/11/03/rogers-writing-transformers IGN confirming Rogers as screenwriter.]</ref> In February 2005, Rogers was replaced by [[Alex Kurtzman]] and [[Roberto Orci]],<ref name="ignkurtzorc">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/02/18/exclusive-new-transformers-writers IGN confirming Kurtzman and Orci as new screenwriters.]</ref> who drastically reworked Rogers' original script.<ref name="rogerscred">[http://kfmonkey.blogspot.com/2007/07/proper-credits-for-transformers.html John Rogers confirming that Kurtzman and Orci drastically rewrote his script]</ref> Spielberg tried to convince [[Michael Bay]] to direct the movie in late July 2005, but Bay initially declined, having no interest in a "toy movie". He later changed his mind after attending "Transformers school" at Hasbro, but decided to make the movie "realistic" and accessible for adult viewers.<ref name="audio">Michael Bay's audio commentary on the ''Transformers'' DVD.</ref>

A few days after a list of names of the human cast had been leaked on the internet, [[Shia LaBeouf]] was confirmed as the first cast member.<ref name="ignshia">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2006/03/28/from-i-robot-to-transformers IGN confirming Shia LaBeouf.]</ref> Producer Don Murphy,<ref name="murphytfcon">[http://www.transformerscon.com/videos.php Don Murphy at the Canadian TransformersCon.]</ref> Hasbro<ref name="tfwtour">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-news-rumors/139273-botcon-2007-botcon-2007-hasbro-tour-updated-friday-12-45pm.html Hasbro tour report.]</ref> and the screenwriters<ref name="mtv">[http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1554426/20070312/story.jhtml MTV.com interview with Kurtzman and Orci.]</ref> all favored [[Peter Cullen]] and [[Frank Welker]] as voice actors for [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. Bay had both audition, but only hired Cullen, while preferring [[Hugo Weaving]] as Megatron.<ref name="cgirobot">[http://web.archive.org/web/20070810172643/http://www.wizarduniverse.com/movies/transformersmovie/004974570.cfm Wizard Universe article about the production of the movie.]</ref> However, Welker still got to voice Megatron (alongside Cullen as Prime) in the video game adaption of the movie, ''[[Transformers The Game]]'', as well as in ''[[Transformers: Beginnings (Movie)|Beginnings]]'', an animated (sort of) version of [[IDW Publishing|IDW's]] [[Transformers: Movie Prequel|prequel comic mini-series]] that was available on a Wal*Mart exclusive bonus disc included with the movie DVD.

===Sponsors and partners===
====Hasbro====
In addition to acting as a licensor, Hasbro also actively participated in the development of the movie, starting with an introduction into the world of the Transformers, called the "Transformers School", for everyone involved, including [[Michael Bay]].<ref name="paramountbotcon">[http://tformers.com/article.php?sid=8001 "Hasbro and Paramount Partnership Panel" at BotCon 2007.]</ref> Hasbro also had a say in the depiction of the Transformers in the movie, the selection of the voice actors,<ref name="tfwtour" /> naming the characters, working on the robot designs<ref name="lorenzoiesb">[http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2724&Itemid=99 IESB interview with Ian Bryce and Lorenzo di Bonaventura.]</ref> and the inclusion of "easter eggs", but no veto rights.<ref name="paramountbotcon" /> According to screenwriter [[Roberto Orci]], Hasbro was more interested in an adequate adaption of the ''Transformers'' concept rather than ''only'' marketing the toyline.<ref name="orcihasbro">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=2200611&postcount=239 Roberto Orci discussing Hasbro's involvement.]</ref> Nevertheless, Hasbro urged [[Michael Bay]] very early on to decide upon the Transformers characters to be used in the movie and their vehicle forms because of the long production run of the toys, even though the script wasn't completed yet by that point.<ref name="bayew">[http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20035285_20035331_20044598_3,00.html Entertainment Weekly interview with Michael Bay.]</ref> Hasbro and [[TakaraTomy|Takara]] then created the [[Movie (toyline)|toys]] based on the designs developed by [[Industrial Light & Magic]]. Aside from this, Takara wasn't involved in the creation of the movie at all.<ref name="murphytformers">[http://www.tformers.com/article.php?sid=3945 TFormers interview with Don Murphy.]</ref>

Unlike other ''Transformers'' toylines (except for ''[[Transformers: Alternators|Alternators]]''), Hasbro and Takara don't share the full rights to the movie toys: Paramount and ILM hold the rights to the robot designs, while the vehicle modes were licensed by companies such as General Motors ([[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]], [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]], [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]] and [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]]), Saleen ([[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]]), Force Protection Industries ([[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]]), the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation ([[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]]) and the Lockheed Martin Corporation ([[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]). Only [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] didn't require a license, since his vehicle mode in the movie was heavily genericized, and all manufacturer logos were removed.<ref name="edmundsveh">[http://web.archive.org/web/20070809065140/http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Features/articleId=121424 Edmunds.com article on the vehicles featured in the movie.]</ref> TakaraTomy even identifies the Leader Class toy as a Kenworth W900 instead of a Peterbilt 379.<ref name="takaraprime">[http://www.takaratomy.co.jp/products/TF/products/movie/ma-01.html TakaraTomy product page for Leader Class Optimus Prime.]</ref>

Even though Hasbro didn't directly profit from the box office revenue, owning the ''Transformers'' brand allowed them to profit more from the toys than from licensed brands such as ''[[Spider-Man]]'' or ''[[Star Wars (franchise)|Star Wars]]''. In addition, Hasbro was able to give out over 240 licenses to third party companies.<ref name="hasbrofall">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6912693.stm BBC reporting on Hasbro quarterly earnings for July 2007.]</ref> In the USA alone, Hasbro had sold more than three million toys from the movie line as early as July 2007,<ref name="cnnmoney">[http://money.cnn.com/2007/07/23/news/companies/hasbro/index.htm?section=money_topstories CNN Money story on Hasbro sales.]</ref> while Wal-Mart had earned more than five million $USD with the movie Transformers at the same time.<ref name="walmartmillion">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=143983 Wal-Mart employee Steevy Maximus reporting on sales figures for movie toys.]</ref> A lot of the movie toys were frequently sold out at many stores ("drought") due to a mix of popularity, stores underestimating said popularity (and thus not ordering enough toys), shipping problems in China and [[Toy scalping|scalpers]].

====US Military====
The [[United States military]] (via [[Philip Strub]] and the Defense Department's Film and Television Liaison Office) supported the movie by providing vehicles and soldiers. The vehicles included an MH-53 Pave Low helicopter ([[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout)]], several F-22 Raptors (one of them serving as [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]'s alternate mode), two A-10 Thunderbolt II fighter jets, an E-3 Sentry AWACS plane, an AC-130 Spectre gunship and two V-22 Ospreys. Many other airplanes are seen in the background like a few UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters, several F-117 Nighthawks, and several cargo planes like the C-17 Globemaster and the C-130 Hercules. Therefore, ''Transformers'' is the first movie to feature real, non-CG F-22s.<ref name="afmil">[http://www.afspc.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123061917 Air Force Space Command article on the movie.]</ref> Real soldiers trained with the actors who played military personnel<ref name="tyreselatino">[http://www.latinoreview.com/news.php?id=2260 Latino Review interview with Tyrese Gibson and Josh Duhamel.]</ref> and were also featured as extras in the movie. Michael Bay even allowed them to improvise lines to make their military dialogue sound as "realistic" as possible.<ref name="nabbtfw">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=115126 First Lieutenant Micheal McNabb reporting his experience of working on the movie.]</ref> In return for their cooperation, Bay gave the military a say in their own depiction in the movie.<ref name="wired">[http://www.wired.com/entertainment/hollywood/magazine/15-07/trans_movie?currentPage=all Wired.com article on the movie.]</ref> The military, in turn, views the movie as a new form of recruitment.<ref name="aflink">[http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123021491 Air Force Link article about the movie.]</ref>

====Product Placement====
Aside from advertising the ''Transformers'' toyline, the movie also features product placement for other companies, such as Apple, Yahoo, Burger King, Nokia, Panasonic, eBay and Hewlett-Packard. The machines given life by the Allspark include an Xbox 360 (including the original startup sound) and a [[Dispensor|Mountain Dew soda vending machine]]. In addition, the movie also features other Hasbro brands, such as ''My Little Pony'' and ''Furby'' (the latter being a property of Hasbro's subsidiary Tiger Electronics). Furthermore, all Autobots, with the exception of Optimus Prime, have vehicles provided by subsidiaries of General Motors as their [[alternate mode]]s, which saved Michael Bay $3 million of his budget.<ref name="bayew" />

Many of these cooperations were mutual: Burger King offered the obligatory Kids Meal toys based on the movie characters for the movie's theatrical launch, and General Motors and Mountain Dew ran TV ads under the titles "Transform Your Ride" and "Transform Your Summer", respectively. According to producers Ian Bryce and Lorenzo di Bonaventura, however, some of these brands, such as [[eBay]], were not originally included as part of a sponsoring deal, but had been part of the script from the beginning for story purposes on the writers' behalf.<ref name="lorenzoiesb" /> For the DVD release of the movie, meanwhile, ''additional'' "Cisco" logos were added into the movie that had not been there yet in the theatrical version.<ref name="dvdprod">[http://www.allspark.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=38792 Allspark thread featuring comparison stills of the theatrical and DVD versions of the movie.]</ref>

===Special effects===
* Three quarters of the CG effects were done by [[Industrial Light & Magic]]. The other quarter was done by [[Digital Domain]], a company [[Michael Bay]] bought shortly before signing up to the ''Transformers'' movie.
* As seen in the bonus material for the Movie DVD, at least some of the ILM designers are actually Transformers fans. One of the animators, [[Charles Alleneck]], has his entire office decorated in more ''Transformers'' toys than a lot of "regular" fans might own.
* Physical props and set pieces were built for several of the Transformers' robot modes. Full body props for [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] (the 2009 Camaro body) and [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]] were used for scenes that involved direct interaction with the human cast. The Bumblebee prop (with detached legs) was also used for the scene where he was strapped to a [[Longarm (Movie)|tow truck]]. A set featuring the frozen lower half of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron's]] body was also built. The rest is assorted bits and pieces, such as [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok's]] head and tail, a part of [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]]'s leg (including a wheel) and an unpainted, entirely blue version of his head plus a small part of the upper chest, and various semi-random chunks meant to represent the remains of the destroyed Decepticons dumped into the ocean (some of the parts meant to represent pieces of [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] even feature markings found on a real-life MH-53 Pave Low helicopter).

===Changes before, during and after production===
A lot of details about the movie changed during the pre-production phase (and even still during production and post-production):

* The script was originally supposed to center around the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]], but because the studio wanted to avoid association with the ''Matrix'' movie trilogy, it had to be renamed. For the longest time, the working name was "[[Energon]] Cube", which neither the fans nor producer [[Don Murphy]] were really happy with.<ref name="murphytfcon" /> Ultimately, it was renamed into the [[AllSpark]] for the final movie; however, the name "Energon Cube" is still used in [[Alan Dean Foster]]'s [[Transformers (novel)|novelization]] of the movie, and was also used by [[Shia LaBeouf]] in a CBS interview immediately before the movie's official theatrical launch.<ref name="shiacbs">[http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=3004937n?source=search_video CBS interview with Shia LaBeouf.]</ref>
* One of the Autobot characters in the early Kurtzman/Orci drafts was [[Arcee (Movie)|Arcee]], who would have turned into a motorcycle. Even though Hasbro developed a toy based on the designs for the character, Arcee was dropped from the script and replaced with [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]]: Kurtzman and Orci didn't want to spend time explaining the purpose of "female" Autobots,<ref name="orciign">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/07/02/exclusive-interview-robert-orci?page=3 IGN interview with Roberto Orci.]</ref> and Michael Bay considered her too small as compared to the rest of the Autobots.<ref name="orciwizard">[http://web.archive.org/web/20070714214451/http://www.wizarduniverse.com/movies/transformersmovie/005082421.cfm?page=1 Wizard interview with Kurtzman and Orci]</ref> Despite what fans commonly assume, however, the scene during the final battle in [[Mission City]] where [[William Lennox|Lennox]] uses an abandoned motorcycle for his assault on [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] wasn't added to the script until ''after'' Arcee had already been dropped from the script; however, had she ''not'' been dropped, she ''would'' have probably been that motorcycle.<ref name="arceelennox">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/2288318-post539.html Orci once again clearing up the story between Arcee and the motorcycle Lennox uses during the final battle]</ref>
* Other Autobot characters considered by Orci and Kurtzman were [[Hot Rod]], [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] and [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]].<ref name="orcichara">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=388609&postcount=280 Roberto Orci confirming various characters originally intended for the movie.]</ref> The last was eventually dropped because Orci and Kurtzman preferred the idea of "a Decepticon in disguise as a police vehicle".<ref name="orciprowl">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=365508&postcount=4411 Orci explaining why Prowl is not in the movie]</ref>
* Kurtzman and Orci tried ''twice'' to include [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] in the movie. The first attempt was supposed to turn into a helicopter,<ref name="orciswave">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=351304&postcount=4161 Roberto Orci confirming that Blackout was originally intended to be Soundwave.]</ref> but Hasbro rejected that notion and insisted that Soundwave's [[alternate mode]] should have something to do with music.<ref name="murphyswave">[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showpost.php?p=97507&postcount=23 Post by Don Murphy at his message board.]</ref> The "helicopter" character was then renamed multiple times, among those names being "Grimlock",<ref name="early">Details from an early script draft [http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=2213120&postcount=297 summed up here], [http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=2214148&postcount=303 confirmed as authentic by Roberto Orci here].</ref> "Vortex",<ref name="orcisample">[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showpost.php?p=1120447&postcount=2360 Unformatted script sample from first draft posted by Roberto Orci on Don Murphy's message board]</ref> "Devastator"<ref name="procterdevas">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_32.html "Devastator" concept art at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> and "Incinerator".<ref name="procterinc">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_34.html "Incinerator" pre-production render at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> The character eventually ended up as [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]].
* The second attempt would have infiltrated the CIA headquarters in the form of a "portable stereo" and then transformed (and size-shifted) into a Humvee for his escape and tracked down [[Sam Witwicky|Sam]].<ref name="early" /> The "vehicle" part was later turned into a separate character, who was then given a different alternate mode (as a police cruiser) and eventually ended up as [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]]. Meanwhile, the "portable stereo" character also went through several changes, because Kurtzman and Orci eventually decided that the character didn't really do Soundwave justice, so they decided to change his name and save Soundwave for the [[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|sequel]].<ref name="webcast">[http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808716430/video/2701721/20070418/2048/2701721-300-wmv-s.35907855-,2701721-300-flash-s.35907881-,2701721-100-wmv-s.35907849-,2701721-100-flash-s.35907874-,2701721-1000-wmv-s.35907866-,2701721-1000-flash-s.35907894-,2701721-700-flash-s.35907887-,2701721-700-wmv-s.35907861- Yahoo webcast with Kurtzman and Orci, revealing the final names of the movie characters.]</ref> The character went through some other working names such as "Boombot"<ref name="procterboom">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_45.html "Boombot" concept art at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> and "Soundbyte"<ref name="proctersbyte">[http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_54.html "Soundbyte" head study at Ben Procter's online portfolio.]</ref> and eventually ended up as [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]].
* Other Decepticon characters considered by Orci and Kurtzman, aside from Soundwave, were [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] and [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]].<ref name="orcichara" /> The latter was originally supposed to be a minion of helicopter Soundwave, who would have chased [[William Lennox|Lennox]] and his crew through the jungle after the attack on their base. However, when the scene was changed from the jungle to the desert (and Soundwave was no longer Soundwave), Ravage was replaced by [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]].<ref name="orciravage">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=234188&postcount=2008 Roberto Orci confirming that Scorponok replaced Ravage].</ref>
* Because of the long production run of the toys, Hasbro urged [[Michael Bay]] very early on to decide upon the Transformers characters to be used in the movie and their vehicle forms, even though the script wasn't completed yet by that point.<ref name="bayew" /> As a result, many of the Decepticon characters in particular were chosen somewhat hastily, and aren't really based on established Transformers characters aside from their names. The tank used for [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]] (aka "Devastator") was a recycled prop originally built for the movie ''xXx: State of the Union'', while the mine protected vehicle used for [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] caught the filmmakers' attention because of a giant photoshopped fork depicted on the manufacturer's website.<ref name="enewsi">[http://enewsi.com/news.php?catid=190&itemid=11213 Entertainment News International article on the making of the movie.]</ref>
* Other Decepticon characters featured in an early draft, aside from "Grimlock" (helicopter) and "Soundwave" (portable stereo/Humvee), were Brawl as a Jeep, Frenzy as a Piranha III mortar artillery vehicle, Onslaught as a mobile missile launcher, Octane as a tanker truck, and three jets named Blitzwing, Starscream and Devastator (a cargo plane, a 747 jet and F-16 fighter; the script doesn't say which is which). Instead of having been hiding on Earth for a while, they would have arrived there during the movie after having been summoned by Soundwave.<ref name="early" /> It's possible that the Piranha III later evolved into Stryker/[[Wreckage (Movie)|Wreckage]].
* The "evil police car Decepticon" that replaced Prowl took over the "vehicle" portion of the second character originally conceived as Soundwave (which eventually became [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]]). His vehicle form was originally supposed to be a Ford Crown Victoria, while his working name was "Brawl".<ref name="policebrawl">[http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-images/events/Botcon-2007/Hasbro-Tour/PICT5108.JPG.html?g2_imageViewsIndex=1 Early design for Barricade with working name "Brawl" shown during the BotCon 2007 Hasbro Tour].</ref> Eventually the character ended up as [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]], with the vehicle mode being changed into a Saleen S281 "Extreme" Mustang, because Ford didn't want one of their cars used as a "villain". Therefore, Barricade sports no "Ford" logos in the movie.<ref name="edmundsveh" />
* Another Decepticon character intended to be in the movie had the working name "Stryker", named after his vehicle mode, a M1126 Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicle.<ref name="stryker">[http://www.seibertron.com/events/fullsize.php?event_id=70&size=2&image=262 Unused design for "Stryker", revealed at the BotCon 2007 Hasbro tour.]</ref> It's possible that he had evolved from a character named "Frenzy" featured in an early script draft, who would have turned into a Piranha III. The character ultimately never made it into the movie, but Hasbro later turned the design into a toy regardless, named [[Wreckage (Movie)|Wreckage]].<ref name="tfwtour" />
* Michael Bay also considered having a Transformers character turn into an aircraft carrier, but eventually scrapped that idea for cost reasons.<ref name="ignround">[http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/06/13/transformers-roundtable-with-michael-bay?page=2 IGN roundtable with Michael Bay from the Australian press conference.]</ref> Orci and Kurtzman included the character in one of their drafts of the script,<ref name="orciaircraft">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=387736&postcount=210 Roberto Orci confirming that the aircraft carrier was in one of the drafts.]</ref> and artist Tim Flattery created concept art.<ref name="flattery">Tim Flattery's concept art for the unused aircraft carrier Transformer: [http://timflattery.com/transformers/4.html Image 1], [http://timflattery.com/transformers/5.html image 2].</ref>
* Working names for the tank Decepticon were "Demolisher"<ref name="hasbrodemolisher">[http://www.hasbro.com/objects/content/wallpaper.cfm?img=wp_transformers651_1280.jpg&brand_id=496&lang_id=1 Wallpaper at Hasbro's website calling Brawl/Devastator "Demolisher".]</ref> and "Devastator", the latter of which had also been a working name for [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] at one point. Even though [[Michael Bay]] confirmed in May 2006 that this was not the final name,<ref name="baysecret">[http://michaelbay.com/2006/05/12/a-little-secret-from-michael-bay/ Michael Bay claiming that the Transformers' names circulating were "aliases".]</ref> screenwriters Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman confirmed the final name to be "[[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]]" in April 2006,<ref name="webcast" /> and Hasbro used that name for all their toys based on the movie character, he identifies himself as "Devastator" in a subtitle in the movie itself. According to a fan who attended the Australian press conference, Bay had decided to use that name regardless,<ref name="griffin">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showpost.php?p=1360922&postcount=122 Australian fan griffin-of-oz reporting from the Australian press conference].</ref> while Hasbro considered the name in the movie a "continuity error",<ref name="hasbrofuture">[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=139268 Hasbro Transformers Future Product Unveiling panel at BotCon 2007.]</ref> and Orci even claimed that he and Kurtzman had pointed out said "error" in the editing room twice.<ref name="orcidevastator">[http://boards.transformersmovie.com/showpost.php?p=368555&postcount=4479 Orci confirming the name "Devastator" to be an "error".]</ref>
* Michael Bay decided to have [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] not turn into a Volkswagen Beetle because he wanted to avoid similarities with Disney's ''[[Wikipedia:Herbie|Herbie, the Love Bug]]''.<ref name="bayew" /> Production Designer Jeff Mann originally suggested using a Dodge Super Bee as Bumblebee's alternate mode,<ref name="edmunds1976">[Edmun Edmunds.com article on the classic Bumblebee Camaro.]</ref> but eventually Bay signed a deal with General Motors that saved him $3 million of his budget, which is why Bumblebee turns into a Chevrolet Camaro in the movie.<ref name="bayew" />
* [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] was originally intended to transform into a fire truck rather than a Search & Rescue Hummer. After being changed into a Hummer, he initially still retained a red and white deco, which later served as the inspiration for Hasbro's "Rescue Ratchet" redecos of the movie toys.<ref name="ratchettour">[http://www.seibertron.com/events/fullsize.php?event_id=70&size=2&image=285 Early designs for Ratchet shown at the BotCon 2007 Hasbro tour.]</ref>
* After designs of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] had leaked on the internet, his head design was slightly revised following massive fan complaints.<ref name="murphysunday">[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showpost.php?p=764141&postcount=1 Don Murphy confirming that Megatron's head design was changed due to fan complaints.]</ref>
* The studio had originally preferred the Transformers not to talk ''at all'' throughout the movie, a notion Hasbro heavily contested.<ref name="tfwtour" /> Bumblebee still ended up being mute throughout most of the movie, which, according to Orci and Kurtzman, was inspired by Spielberg's ''E.T.'' and is supposed to signify that his friendship with Sam transcends words.<ref name="mtv" />
* Most drafts of the script started the movie with [[Archibald Witwicky]]'s discovery of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. In the actual movie, this scene was moved to a later point, shown as a flashback (actually at two points, split into two parts). [[IDW Publishing|IDW's]] [[Movie Adaptation issue 1|comic adaptation]] of the movie still has this as the opening scene.
* Also in one of the early drafts, the original reason for Mikaela's falling out with [[Trent DeMarco|Trent]] was not because he wouldn't let his "little bunny" drive his car, but because she refused to let him drive after having drunk beer. [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Anvilicious Anvilicious] much?
* In an early draft, [[William Lennox|Lennox]] and his crew would have defeated [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]] with a simple grenade, which would have "dissolved him at a molecular level". The air strike would have never happened, and Lennox wouldn't have established contact with the Pentagon until around the time when [[Sam Witwicky|Sam]] and [[Mikaela Banes|Mikaela]] were apprehended by [[Sector Seven]].<ref name="early" />
* In the same draft, Sam had left his grandfather's glasses at school. The Autobots would have distracted a security guard while Sam and Mikaela would have broken into their school. It would have been there that Sam would have learned about Mikaela's criminal past, and the scene would have ended with their arrest by Sector Seven.<ref name="early" />
* In some earlier drafts of the script, [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] was supposed to kill [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] too after he had finished off [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]]. That scene never made it into the final movie, and Barricade simply disappears with no explanation after Bonecrusher transforms; however, the scene still made it into Alan Dean Foster's [[Transformers (novel)|novelization]] of the movie and IDW's [[Movie Adaptation issue 4|comic adaptation]].
* Also in earlier drafts of the script, [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] was supposed to kill [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]] by consuming his [[Spark]]. Again, this is only explicitly confirmed in the novelization and IDW's comic adaptation of the movie, but not in the movie itself.
* During the rather truncated chase scene between Barricade and Bumblebee (see also "[[#Errors|errors]]" above), Barricade was to deploy some serrated drill-like missiles from his hood and fire them at the fleeing Autobot. Though these weapons were constructed and fitted to one of the Barricade prop vehicles, this scene was ultimately cut, explaining the abrupt shift to night time at the conclusion of the chase. Until artist [[Sean Haworth]] uploaded a photo of the weapon prop onto his website, the only official proof of the existence of these weapons was page 12 of IDW Publishing's [[Movie Adaptation issue 2]] and the RadioShack [[Barricade (Movie)/toys#XMODS Evolution Transformers|''XMODS Evolution'' Barricade radio control car's weapons and light uppgrade kit]].

==Notes==
* The Autobot computer generated models consisted of 35,592 total pieces, 7,435,478 polygons, 95,247 rig nodes, and 20,258 texture maps. If laid end to end, the pieces would stretch 3.11 miles.
* For all the robots combined, there are 60,217 pieces of geometry, 123,509,502 polygons, 144,341 rigging nodes, and 34,215 texture maps.<ref>Robertson, Barbara (2007). Heavy Metal. ''Computer Graphics, 30''(7), 12–17.</ref>
* The events of the movie span 4–5 days.
* Within the movie, neither the Autobots nor the Decepticons are referred to as "Transformers".
* As confirmed in the audio commentary on the movie DVD, director [[Michael Bay]] has a brief cameo as an innocent bystander getting flicked against a taxi cab by [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]].
* The "<tt>[322] days without a safety breach</tt>" sign behind Agent Simmons before they bring the [[Nokia-bot|cell phone]] to life relates to a piece of backstory that was cut from the final film. A researcher named [[James Farr (Movie)|James Farr]] was killed when a [[AX9-8946-09SU-1|robot they brought to life]] ran amok, causing the damage Glen comments on. The [[Sector Seven (game)|viral marketing campaign]] gives a date for Farr's death; [[March 16]], [[2006]]. This would chronologically place the primary events of the film as occurring over a 3-day period, [[January 30]]–[[February 1]], [[2007]].
*The two guard dogs that Sam encounters are played by a Belgian Malinois named Ammo and a Rottweiler named Nadine.
* In an interesting showing of unified marketing, the Japanese dub of the movie uses the English-market character and factions names (e.g., Autobot, Decepticon, Optimus Prime, Bumblebee) rather than the terms previously established in Japanese Transformers continuity (e.g., Cybertron, Destron, Convoy, Bumble). This has subsequently influenced Takara's subsequent dub of ''[[Transformers Animated (franchise)|Transformers Animated]]'', where (for the most part) they retain the English-market names and factions.
* In a bit of a shocker, [[Simon Furman]] has said he personally isn't a fan of the films, though he believes they're great for what he inaccurately (and worryingly) described as "the intended audience" of young kids.<ref>[http://mindlessones.com/2009/07/20/transformers-terminators-and-the-rest11-questions-with-simon-furman/ Interview at Mindless Ones blog]</ref>
* In an unexpected celebrity-related moment, famed multi award-winning British actress Helen Mirren, a Dame Commander of the British Empire, was one of the guests at the June 27, 2007 Los Angeles Film Festival premiere of ''Transformers''. One wonders what she thought of it.<ref>[http://movies.about.com/od/transformers/ig/Transformers-Premiere-Photos/transformersprem34.htm Helen Mirren at the June 27, 2007 Los Angeles premiere of ''Transformers'';Rebecca Murray, Movies.About.com Guide]</ref>
* ''Transformers'' (ahem) "inspired" a [[Knockoff|direct-to-video movie]] called [[Wikipedia:Transmorphers|''Transmorphers'']]. It got a [[Wikipedia:Transmorphers: Fall of Man|prequel]] in 2009, starring [[Wikipedia:Bruce Boxleitner|Bruce Boxleitner]], of all people. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
* Somewhat less embarrassing, ''Transformers'' also inspired the [[Wikipedia:Knight Rider (2008 film)|2008 ''Knight Rider'' television movie]] and the [[Wikipedia:Knight Rider (2008 TV series)|short-lived revival/sequel series]] that followed it.<ref name="varietykr">[http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117972829?refCatId=14 Variety article about the then-upcoming 2008 ''Knight Rider'' revival]</ref> Furthermore, the special effects<ref name="madeatl">[http://madeinatlantis.com/movies_central/2008/iron_man_production_details.htm ''Iron Man'' Full Production Notes]</ref> and the marketing campaign<ref name="imtie-ins">[http://www.brandweek.com/bw/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003692165 Brandweek article about the ''Iron Man'' marketing campaign.]</ref> both served as inspirations for the 2008 [[Wikipedia:Iron Man (film)|''Iron Man'' movie]].

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''''Transformers''''' (トランスフォーマー ''Toransufōmā'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''''Pièn-hsíng Chīn-kāng''''' (Taiwan, 變形金剛, "Transformers"), '''''Biànxíng Jīngāng''''' (China, 变形金刚, "Transformers")
*''Russian:'' '''''Transformery''''' (Трансформеры, "Transformers")

==External links==
* [http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=68329&p=irol-newsArticlePR&ID=421174 June 11, 2003 Press Release announcing the movie.]
* [http://www.transformersmovie.com/ Transformersmovie.com]
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0418279/ ''Transformers'' at IMDB.com]
* [http://www.transformersalbum.com/ ''Transformers The Album'']
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transformers_%28film%29 ''Transformers'' 2007 film on Wikipedia]
* Designer portfolios: [http://www.benprocter.com/storage/oldersites/sitev2/html/PROJPAGE_Trans_01.html Ben Procter], [http://www.jamesclyne.com/projects.php?gallery_id=297 James Clyne], [http://timflattery.com/main.html Tim Flattery], [http://features.cgsociety.org/story_custom.php?story_id=4150 Alex Jaeger] (at CG Society), [http://2d2cg.com/# Jeremy Cook]
* [http://www.capalert.com/capreports/transformers.htm ''Transformers'' CAPalert.com review]

==References==
{{reflist|3}}

[[Category:Movie| ]]
[[Category:Movie media]]
[[Category:MSTF]]
[[Category:Real world films]]

Shelfwarmer

2017-05-24T22:28:10Z

The Predacon: Italicization fixes. Also fixed some sentence structure.

{{disambig2|toys from a long time ago that still haven't been sold|toys that have lots of kibble|Shellformer}}
[[Image:ShelfwarmersTRUGermany.jpg|right|upright=1.5|thumb|You ''know'' something is wrong when you see toys from no fewer than ''four'' different lines, released several years apart, all side by side on the same store shelf.]]
'''Shelfwarmer''' is the colloquial term for a toy or product that either fails to sell well or is over-produced, leaving residual quantities on store shelves for months or even years after its original release, generally far in excess of other toys from the same [[wave]]s. Just like a "benchwarmer" in sports, one who contributes nothing to the game except sitting on a bench and keeping it warm with his butt, a "shelfwarmer" does the same thing to a toy store shelf by sitting on it for prolonged periods of time.

The related term '''pegwarmer''' refers to toys packaged on cards, which thereby hang on pegs, rather than in boxes that sit on shelves.

==Shelfwarmers and ''you''==
[[Image:ShelfwarmersGermanyNovember2015.jpg|left|upright=0.7|thumb|Sometimes shelfwarmers are a localized phenomenon, occasionally even limited to one particular store.]]
The inherent problem with just coming up with a list of shelfwarmers is that it varies drastically from locality to locality. Some toys will sell like gangbusters in one state or country, yet warm shelves forever in other places. On occasion, a toy that's considered rare and hard to find in the United States can very well end up as a shelfwarmer in other countries (''Energon'' [[Ultra Magnus (Energon)|Ultra Magnus]] is a rather infamous example of this.) Usually this is due to the toy being only shipped to US stores in limited quantities, often even getting [[Shortpacking|shortpacked]], while European stores sometimes get those toys in solid [[case]]s, with nothing but multiples of the same one or two toys.

Toys might even shelfwarm based on the chain to which they're distributed, disappearing instantly at [[Target]] but sitting for months at [[Walmart]]. Sometimes it's even just one particular store that still has leftover stock of certain toys that all other stores in the area (including other stores belonging to the same chain) got rid of ages ago. Maybe the chain put the remainders on clearance but that one store never got the memo.

This all has led to some heated (or at least obstinate) debates online over which toys are/were vicious shelfwarmers. But even then, nearly everyone agrees that [[Injector]] just wouldn't go away until he was marked down to only a buck.
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==Supply vs. demand==
As was touched upon earlier, there are some toys which were very hard to get in some regions but available so freely in others that they warmed some very cold shelves. Certain toys were in desperate demand in the fandom when they were difficult to get, but didn't do so well when released more widely. One online example of this phenomenon is [[Battle Unicorn]]. This ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (toyline)|Beast Machines]]'' toy was part of the very last wave of that series' product and was thus barely shipped to retailers. As such, it was ''very'' hard to get. It was so rare, in fact, that the online store [[BigBadToyStore]] made a large special order for them from Hasbro — but despite the [[fandom]]'s previous clamoring for the toy, they were stuck sitting on a lot of that stock for quite a long time.

The original releases of ''[[Transformers: Alternators| Alternators]]'' [[Tracks (G1)|Autobot Tracks]] and [[Jazz (G1)/toys|Meister]], which only shipped in two [[wave]]s each, also demanded a high rise in aftermarket prices... until Hasbro decided to re-release them as part of a semi-relaunch of the ''Alternators'' line. Now, Tracks and Meister suddenly became major shelfwarmers.

A similar thing happened with ''Alternators'' [[Nemesis Prime (G1)|Nemesis Prime]]: In North America, he was released only at the [[San Diego Comic-Con]] and via the [[Hasbro Toy Shop]] website for the few people who were able to get him from there, and so was very difficult to get. Fans of the ''Alternators'' line who desperately wanted the toy were furious about its release only at a non-Transformers [[convention]] and complained at length about it not being easily available. Then suddenly the toy turned up in Australia. It hit the retail store Toyworld in massive numbers, and at half the price of usual Alternators. But... no one there wanted it. The American fans had gotten over it by that point, and no one in Australia gave a damn.

Boy, did that thing sit around for ''ages''. It was still available in some stores as of September 2009!

Another example is the [[Unicron/toys#Transformers_.282010.29|25th Anniversary Unicron]] figure. When it was released as an [[Amazon (website)|Amazon.com]] exclusive in the US, it sold out quickly and was subject to much [[toy scalping|scalping]], but when it was released to mass retail stores in Canada and South-East Asia, the demand wasn't as high, and there he warmed shelves.

==Shelfwarmers in Generation 1==
[[File:G1toy frenzy.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Cartoon-accurate or not, you sure weren't buying the two-pack for this guy.]]
The toy industry and the [[fandom]] were very different things during the original toy line's run. Due to the much much slower turnaround time on retail toy shelves in the '80s, any given toy could stay on the shelves (or simply continue shipping to replenish stock) for two, three, or even four years and this would be a sign not of shelfwarming, but of the toy's longevity and success. Toys like Optimus Prime and Starscream stayed on the toy shelves for many years because they '''were''' popular, not because they weren't, with chains getting new shipments of older product on a regular basis. This makes it hard to gauge if there were shelfwarmers compared to the toys in modern lines, which are only meant to have a shelf life of a few months.

That said, there certainly were some Transformers which stayed on toy shelves during Generation 1 for way longer than should have been expected. The most prominent example would be the [[Jumpstarter]]s, over-produced in such numbers that even today they are legion in the aftermarket. The smaller [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]] were also seen to hang around on shelves long after they had ceased to ship. During the 1986 and 1987 Christmas shopping seasons, animal-based Transformers such as [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]], the Decepticon [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]]s, and the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacon]]s, were known to linger on shelves longer than their more popular vehicular counterparts.

==Shelfwarmers in ''Beast Wars''==
It was ''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (toyline)|Beast Wars]]'' that stuck the concept of shelfwarmers in the fandom's head. The fandom was maturing, communicating thanks to the internet, and starting to notice these sorts of patterns. At the same time, the attitude of retailers (and the distribution system as well as a consequence) was changing, and toys no longer had the multi-year shelf lives they had in the 1980s. Action figures now shipped in multiple [[wave]]s per [[size class]], and toys that remained on the shelves for an entire year were suddenly unsuccessful.

Toys that were noted for their abnormally high shelfwarming capacity in ''Beast Wars'' included [[Injector]], [[Scavenger (BW)|Scavenger]], [[Transquito]], and even show character [[Inferno (BW)|Inferno]]. Some reports even had Transquitos holding six or seven years after their initial release. Now ''that's'' a shelfwarmer.

==Shelfwarmers in later series==
[[Image:ShelwarmerTRUWheelie.jpg|thumb|150px|left|The same German TRU store as in the photo above, two years later. Generations? Hunt for the Decepticons? Why, buy ROTF Wheelie instead! Still plenty left!]]
As the fandom became more aware of the concept of shelfwarmers, [[Hasbro]] changed its production strategies to avoid both the reality of toys sitting around for months, and the ''perception'' of certain toys as 'warmers. (Because any toy which clogs shelves must suck, right?) Toys had progressively shorter shelf lives, so Hasbro leveraged their [[mold]]s by adding [[redeco]]s and [[retool]]s, and by revamping lines and packaging on a much swifter basis to sell more of the same toy. ''[[Transformers: Armada (toyline)|Armada]]'' had "[[The Unicron Battles]]" as a [[subline imprint]] with a new packaging style roughly halfway through its lifespan, and then the entire line became ''[[Transformers: Energon (toyline)|Energon]]'' six months after that. Turnover times have become swifter and swifter.

Due to fans' impatience, the term "shelfwarmer" has started to become more specialized to mean "toys that stay on the shelves longer than their casemates," regardless of whether they've really been there a long time. That said, there are still some toys that just don't sell, even in the more recent ''Transformers'' franchises. In addition, as we said before, distribution is slightly different in other countries than it is in the USA so some toys don't necessarily ''have'' any casemates to be judged against. For example, ''Armada'' [[Scavenger (Armada)|Scavenger]], ''[[Movie (toyline)|Movie]]'' [[Swindle (Movie)|Swindle]] and [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] ended up as royal shelfwarmers in many European stores because they were the ''only'' toys from their respective [[Size class|size classes]] those stores would ever get from Hasbro. It didn't help that the latter two shipped after the movie line nominally ended.

Each series has had its own quintessential shelfwarmers. In North America, ''Armada'' clogged shelves with flocks of [[Laserbeak (Armada)|Laserbeaks]] and fleets of [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Smokescreens]]. ''Energon'' made sure there was no shortage of [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]]. ''[[Transformers: Cybertron (toyline)|Cybertron]]'' gave us unmoving armies of [[Mudflap (Cybertron)|Mudflaps]], who often stayed on the shelf long enough to sit beside their [[redeco]], the first movie [[Mudflap (Movie)|Mudflap]] (''itself'' a shelfwarmer). In the [[Transformers: Universe (2008 toyline)|''Universe'' toy line]], any of the ''Cybertron'' redecos stayed on shelves for years on end, and you could still find [[Dropshot (G1)#Universe (2008)|Dropshots]] on the shelf at some Walmarts years after its release.

With the [[Transformers (film)|2007 ''Transformers'' movie]], the playing field was changed slightly. Suddenly, Transformers were '''big''' again. Toys were in short supply and any toys that stayed on the shelves for very long did so very conspicuously. During the Christmas shopping period following the 2007 movie, [[Payload (Movie)|Payload]]s could be found in hordes, even as ''everything'' else Transformers (including leftover ''Cybertron'' and ''Classics'' stock) was disappearing from shelves.

[[Image:ShelfwarmerSupremeGrimlock.jpg|thumb|200px|right|And yet another German TRU store, where Stomp & Chomp RID Grimlock follows his predecessor Stomp & Chomp AoE Grimlock as supreme shelfwarmer!]]
Then the fickle movie hype ended. Toys which were incredibly popular months before suddenly were out of the public consciousness. This meant, depending on your region and availability, that some of the later 2007 movie toys might as well have been glued to the shelf, and in some cases shared it with their new 2009 counterparts, likely dooming the originals from ever leaving the store. After all, would you rather have the original Leader Class [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] or the super duper shiny ''new'' one from ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]?'' Further, despite his starring role in ''ROTF'', Deluxe Class [[Mudflap (ROTF)|Mudflap]] and his "Tuner" redeco have been known to warm every peg in the Transformers section, like both Mudflaps before it. It got worse when retailers ended up overstocking on Wave 1 of the ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (toyline)|Dark of the Moon]]'' toyline, leading to figures from the line shelfwarming well into the summer of 2013, ''two entire years'' since the release of [[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|the film]]. This also had the rather nasty side-effect of leading to figures of [[Soundwave (ROTF)|Soundwave]] and [[Wheeljack (Movie)|Wheeljack]] being cancelled in most markets, only being released in the Asian market.

The mediocre reception of the ''Dark of the Moon'' toy line may also have led to the severely reduced [[Transformers: Age of Extinction (toyline)|toy line]] for the ''Age of Extinction'' franchise three years later, with a comparatively low number of new releases in each wave. Despite this, however, many unsold ''Age of Extinction'' toys still clogged various toy shelves years after the release of the film, especially the non-transforming Dino Sparkers and the oversized Stomp & Chomp Grimlock. Said Grimlock's [[Toys"R"Us]] exclusive ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 toyline)|Robots in Disguise]]'' redeco started clogging the same shelves while his predecessor was still there, too.

The ''[[Combiner Wars (toyline)|Combiner Wars]]'' toy line led to a number of new shelfwarming problems. A number of toys under the line that did not possess the ability to combine with other toys would often be passed over for the combining toys, while redeco-exhaustion and lack of legacy-G1 gestalts may have contributed to the poor sales of Waves 4 and 6 on the Autobot side. Additionally, ''Combiner Wars'' Motormaster was re-released with improved hip joints late in the toyline's life, but was a strong shelfwarmer as far as 2017. [[File:AEON-Malaysia-TR-Brainstorm-Shelfwarming.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Meanwhile in Malaysia, some shops thought that Brainstorm is everyone's favorite G1 character.]]The ''[[Titans Return (toyline)|Titans Return]]'' toy line saw Scourge and Blurr as recurring pegwarmers in stores, which may have been attributed to their sparse paint apps in comparison to the rest of the line. In Asia, the Deluxe Class Brainstorm figure is also a ''massive'' shelf/pegwarmer, since department stores like AEON overstocked them compared to other ''Titans Return'' Deluxes. Ironically enough, Brainstorm is a Walgreens exclusive in the US, a store that generally carries 2 to 4 deluxes at a time with infrequent restocks.
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==Expensive toys==
Sometimes, it doesn't matter how desirable a toy is if the asking price is too high! Large scale Transformers toys are often too expensive for parents to purchase lightly and are often reserved for special occasions. As a result, they tend to warm the shelves until the holiday season. That said, some duds stay on the shelves well into the new year. Supreme Cheetor was such a flop that Hasbro stayed away from big, expensive Transformers until the tail end of ''Armada'', when they released Unicron. Unlike Cheetor, Unicron was a runaway success, with even the kids who didn't like Transformers wanting to get Unicron. As a result, Hasbro began putting out several large class figures with each line, hoping to find the same success.

For the most part, Supreme class toys are not shelf warmers in the sense that people don't want them, but that they are waiting for the right time to buy them. Timing is everything for the expensive toys. For example, ''Cybertron'' Starscream sat idly for months until vanishing by Christmas. ''Cybertron'' Primus wasn't so lucky, since he was overshadowed by the less expensive and more relevant movie toys. Movie toys doubled the prices of Supreme class toys from $50 to $100. ''Revenge of the Fallen'' Devastator outraged collectors and parents alike and failed to sell. ''Age of Extinction's'' Stomp and Chomp Grimlock also outlasted his toyline.

Masterpiece toys are an interesting case. Despite being stocked in very small quantities, they are so expensive that they can still warm the shelves. While masterpiece figures of popular characters like Optimus Prime and Starscream are guaranteed, masterpiece figures of minor characters are unlikely to sell with younger fans who are unfamiliar with them. Masterpiece Skywarp wound up being marked down to $30 at War Mart. Good luck finding a masterpiece seeker for that price now!

The entire Platinum Edition line is composed of shelfwarmers. Platinum Edition figures are all retools and repaints of previous toys, sold as store exclusives at such a steep premium that only the most hardcore of collectors seek them out. Among this entire line of shelfwarmers, the biggest dud is the "Autobot United" set from ''Age of Extinction'', which contained 5 minor repaints of figures.

==Names commonly associated with shelfwarmers==
[[File:ShelfwarmersBumblebeeTRUGermany.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|Low sales? A LARGE INFLUX OF '''BEES''' OUGHTTA PUT A STOP TO THAT! (Or not)]]
For whatever reason, toys named "[[Mudflap (disambiguation)|Mudflap]]" tend to end up as shelfwarmers regardless of the sculpt: ''[[Transformers: Cybertron (toyline)|Cybertron]]'' Voyager Class [[Mudflap (Cybertron)|Mudflap]], the first toy using the name, started the trend, which was continued by his [[redeco]], ''[[Movie (toyline)|Movie]]'' [[Mudflap (Movie)|Mudflap]] (thus accompanying his ''Cybertron'' predecessor on many a store shelf). ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (toyline)|Revenge of the Fallen]]'' gave us a [[Mudflap (ROTF)|Mudflap]] [[character]] with multiple toy incarnations: Deluxe Class Mudflap generally moved more slowly than his [[The Twins|twin]] brother, [[Skids (ROTF)|Skids]], from the same assortment. Likewise, [[Fast Action Battlers]] Grapple Grip Mudflap was easier to find than Missile Blast Skids, and things got even worse with the Deluxe Class Mudflap redeco, Tuner Mudflap, a ''colossal'' shelfwarmer. Presumably, the only reason [[Human Alliance]] Mudflap didn't share the same fate was the fact that the toy was stocked in low numbers by stores in the first place, thus ironically making this particular toy hard to find.

In recent times, Hasbro has had a tendency to pack more [[Kid-appeal character|kid-appealing]] Bumblebees into a case relative to his wavemates, and to pad later waves with same-character redecoes of him. This has led to the character's [[Live-action film series|movie]] and ''[[Transformers: Prime (franchise)|Prime]]'' incarnations becoming notorious in the fandom for pegwarming. During 2012, it was not an uncommon sight to see ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (toyline)|Dark of the Moon]]'' and ''[[Transformers: Prime (toyline)|Prime: Robots in Disguise]]'' Bumblebees pegwarming side by side. In addition, ''First Edition'' Bumblebee was often the ''only'' First Edition figure that could be found in American [[Toys"R"Us]] stores due to Wave 1 being packed with four 'Bee's per case (which is ''half of the goddamn case'') while [[Arcee (WFC)|Arcee]] and [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] were both [[Shortpacking|shortpacked]] at two per case.

Skywarp has also become a recurring character among pegwarmers. In Seeker tradition, a Starscream figure is released first, followed by a Thundercracker redeco, and barring any non-traditional seeker releases, finally Skywarp around the tail-end of the then-current line. Such examples include the ''Thrilling 30'' line's FOC Skywarp, Legends Class Skywarp, and ''Combiner Wars'' Leader Class Skywarp, which remained on store shelves long after their lines had ended.
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