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Transformers: Age of Extinction

Peter Oberth — Thu, 26 Jun 2014 14:18:12 +0000

Transformers: Age Of Extinction

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FUN FACT

Bay's Pain & Gain star Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson was offered the lead role but turned it down to star in Hercules. Johnson's P&G co-star Wahlberg got the role instead.

Grade:

3.28

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Transformers 4

Transformers

Transformers 4: Age of Extinction

Transformers: Age Of Extinction

I'll go ahead and say that this movie isn't going to be popular with the critics. First off, it's a Michael Bay film. Second off, it's a Transformers film that isn't the first one. Because of the disaster that was the second and third movie, a fourth installment had a completely insurmountable hole to dig out of. I have a strong feeling that Bay was sitting in his private Transformers branded jet NOT caring about this problem when he decided to go forward with a "relaunch" of this worldwide juggernaut.

Transformers: Age of Extinction was a reboot within a sequel. It takes place about 5 years after the events that nearly decimated Chicago in Dark of the Moon. Crazy Shia LaBeouf (Sam Witwicky) is nowhere to be seen and the only real major familiarity returning is the voice of Peter Cullen as a defeated Optimus Prime. Though a major cast overhaul in a later sequel is usually the stuff of straight-to-DVD fair (or straight-to-Torrent for you kiddies), it only aided in helping a franchise that was spiraling out of control. Mark Wahlberg (whom Bay used in his previous film, Pain & Gain) plays Cade Yaeger, the new human hero that is aided by the Autobots. The movie immediately sets a darker tone, interweving the character arc of the down-on-his-luck Yaeger, his daughter Tessa (Bates Motel's Nicola Peltz) and their comic relief friend Lucas (Silicon Valley's T.J. Miller) while updating us on the aftermath of the Chicago robot wars with Bay's usual lazy narrative storylines.

The war led to a career C.I.A. black ops leader, Harold Attinger (played by the brilliant Kelsey Grammer) charged with hunting and destroying all of the Decepticons while having the hidden agenda of also taking out the Autobots to rid the world of all the aliens that started the war. Attinger partners with new robot baddie Lockdown (and he is a badass), an intergalactic bounty hunter that is neither Autobot nor Decepticon but is all bad and defense contractor Joshua Joyce (the always entertaining Stanley Tucci).

The movie had reboot written all over it. It recycled characters (Miller takes the place of Anthony Anderson, Tucci takes the place of John Turturro, Wahlberg takes the place of Josh Duhamel but in a lead role, Peltz takes the place of Megan Fox, Jack Reynor takes over for LaBeouf only in the backup rolle and Grammer is the much more evil version of Jon Voight). It shares some similar storylines and jokes with the first, including a few in-jokes for those of us that watched the original cartoon. The issue is that it also shares a few things with the dreaded sequels, including humorless appendages on robots. In Revenge of the Fallen it was Devastator's testicles and in this one it's Hound's (voiced by John Goodman) beard and cigar. It also had the borderline racist robots with Drift (voiced by Ken Watanabe) and his "samurai" design and cliche Japanese lines.

With all of that said, I actually enjoyed the movie. Not nearly as much as the first, but far more than the last two. What people have to remember here is that this is a movie based off of a cheesy cartoon that was made simply to sell some plastic toys, in the 80s no less. The Dinobots (who are only in the movie for about 20 minutes or so) were not the world-ending inclusion that I thought they would be (thanks in large part to the decision to not have them talk), the comedy was placed well and the new cast was a very welcome addition as the original was getting quite stale. The opening story was interjected enough with Walhberg's usual charm and the action of the Transformers hunt and, once Prime made his first appearance, the action was heavy and non stop. It could have used a trimming of about 30 minutes (it clocks in at a series-record 2 Hours and 37 Minutes) but, overall, I didn't have a whole lot to complain about when comparing it to the first. There was a lot of talk of a new director for this "reboot" and ultimately Bay decided to stay on board and I think it actually helped in the long run. Afterall, it's a movie about giant robots who use earth as their battle arena. What other director should helm such a ridiculous and explosive-laden idea? It's absolutely ridiculous, but it's still fun.

Nicola Peltz

Matt Rodriguez — Thu, 26 Jun 2014 14:02:44 +0000

Nicola Peltz

Actor

Birth Name:

Nicola Anne Peltz

Birthday:

Monday, January 9, 1995

Sign:

Capricorn

Birth Place:

Westchester County, New York, USA

Height:

5' 6"

Years Active:

2006

@nicolaannepeltz

Nicola Peltz is emerging as a force to be reckoned with, on both the big and small screen. Her most prominent roles include the series Bates Motel (2013), and the films The Last Airbender (2010) and Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014).

Nicola was born in Westchester County, New York, to Claudia (Heffner), who has worked as a model, and Nelson Peltz, a billionaire businessman whose assets include the Snapple brand of drinks. Nicola is of Ashkenazi Jewish (from her father) and German, Welsh, and English (from her mother) heritage.

Nicola made her stage debut in 2007, opposite Jeff Daniels and Alison Pill, in the Laurence Olivier Award-winning production of "Blackbird", at the Manhattan Theatre Club, directed by Joe Mantello. In 2012, she starred, alongside Melanie Lynskey and Campbell Scott, in Eye of the Hurricane (2012), a compelling family adventure about a small Everglades community struggling to put their lives back together in the wake of a devastating hurricane. In 2010, Peltz starred in M. Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender (2010), opposite Dev Patel and Jackson Rathbone. The film was written, directed and produced by Shyamalan and was based on the first season of Nickelodeon's animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005). Peltz made her feature film debut in 2006 in Deck the Halls (2006), with Danny DeVito, Matthew Broderick and Kristin Chenoweth.

In Michael Bay's Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014), Peltz stars alongside Mark Wahlberg and Jack Reynor. She plays Tessa Yeager, the daughter of a mechanic (Wahlberg) who makes a major discovery that catches the attention of the Autobots, Decepticons, and the U.S. government. The film is the fourth in the blockbuster series of live-action films, and is scheduled for release by Paramount on June 27th.

Later this summer, Peltz will also star in Kevin Asch's Affluenza (2014), which is set for limited release in July. The film is a coming- of-age story, inspired by "The Great Gatsby" and is set amongst the upper-class in the Long Island suburb of Great Neck, during the weeks leading up to the financial meltdown of 2008.

On the small screen, Peltz reprised her role as "Bradley Martin", a troubled high school student, in the second season of A&E's critically-acclaimed series, Bates Motel (2013). The series is a modern re-imagining and prequel to the 1960 Alfred Hitchcock cult classic, Psycho (1960), which focuses on the life of "Norman Bates" and his mother, "Norma Bates", portrayed by Freddie Highmore and Vera Farmiga.

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Nicola Peltz

Transformers: Age Of Extinction (Meet Cade)

Pandora — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 13:53:06 +0000

Transformers: Age Of Extinction (Meet Cade)

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Transformers: Age Of Extinction (Meet Shane)

Pandora — Sun, 22 Jun 2014 04:00:00 +0000

Transformers: Age Of Extinction (Meet Shane)

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Transformers: Age Of Extinction (Villian)

Pandora — Mon, 16 Jun 2014 14:14:46 +0000

Transformers: Age Of Extinction (Villian)

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Transformers: Age Of Extinction

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Mark Wahlberg

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Jack Reynor

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Affluenza (Trailer #1)

Pandora — Tue, 03 Jun 2014 12:43:07 +0000

Affluenza (Trailer #1)

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Transformers: Age of Extinction

Peter Oberth — Sun, 17 Feb 2013 04:51:10 +0000

The Transformers film series continues with this fourth entry from director Michael Bay and executive producer Steven Spielberg. Mark Wahlberg and Jack Reynor star.

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Transformers Films,

Transformers 4,

Transformers,

Transformers 4: Age of Extinction,

Transformers: Age Of Extinction,

Transformers: Age Of Extinction

In Theatres:

Jun 27, 2014

Starring:

Studio(s):

Hasbro,

Di Bonaventura Pictures,

Tom DeSanto/Don Murphy Production,

Ian Bryce Productions

Director(s):

Edited by:

Music by:

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Genre:

Producer(s):

Lorenzo di Bonaventura,

Brian Goldner,

Mark Vahradian

Running Time:

2 Hours, 37 Minutes

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PG-13

for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, language and brief innuendo

The Last Airbender

Pandora — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 03:36:35 +0000

The Last Airbender

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Theatrical

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Grade:

3.35

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I am a huge fan of the cartoon as is my 10 year old brother and my would kill me if I told you how old he is Dad and tonite we all joined up to go see “The Last Airbender”. Now pre-watching I had heard some things about the movie and went in prepared so that might be why I ended up enjoying it as much as I did.

Starting off I was a little worried about the story. It seemed rushed. In about 5 minutes they find Aang, the Fire Nation is attacking, and Aang is captured. But it is to be expected if they are going to cover all of Book One Water in a movie and still manage to keep it short enough for children. In fact the whole movie pretty much hit some of the highlights from the cartoon instead of going into a lot of detail with some of the individual storylines. They do show Aang, Katara, & Sokka helping Earthbenders get free from Fire Nation captivity but in the movie it is a prison in their own village not on a ship. Many other skirmishes with the Fire Nation are shown in a quick montage as they journey North to the Northern Water Tribe. Gone completely are things like Aang tinkering with Firebending, and characters like Jet, June, Teo and Suki.

I can understand the cutting of some of the storylines. It may work for ½ hour weekly episodes but if you try and cram them all into a 2 hour movie it would become jumbled and feel more like a bunch of little stories instead of one cohesive tale. That doesn’t mean I don’t wish they could have kept a bit more; but cuts are to be expected. A few other changes to note: there isn’t as much comedy in the movie as the cartoon and Uncle Ironh isn’t as laidback & goofy in fact he is pretty B.A.

Now then those are a few things that fans of the cartoon can expect going in that are different. As far as the movie itself though I found it to be entertaining, to go by rather quickly, and to have me looking forward to the other Books being brought to life. The three standout actors are Dev Patel as the tortured Zuko, Shaun Toub as the strong-willed caring Uncle Ironh, and finally Noah Ringer as Aang. I was amazed at some of the choreographed fight scenes that the young actors were able to pull off. The bending were beautiful dance-like moves (perhaps a bit too long) that reflected many you see in the cartoon. The effects of the elements were excellent. A surprise was how well Appa & Momo looked as I thought those would be two of the most difficult creatures to capture in motion.

I have seen some complaints about horrible acting and bad lines and I went in expecting that. Honestly after watching the movie there is nothing that really stands out as supporting either of those in my mind. This could be because I was ready for it, or because I have seen the cartoon and many of the lines in the movie were taken from it. Either way there was nothing that distracted me enough to ruin it for me.

What I can say about “The Last Airbender” is this. I walked out surprised that almost 2 hours had passed, I was pleased with what I got though not blown away, I am looking forward to the other movies (if they get made), my brother could not stop chatting away about how much he liked it and how great Zuko was in it, and my Dad gave it his seal of approval. The only things I would change if I could make it my perfect movie is I would have added some more comedy that usually Sokka or Ironh contributed to in the cartoon, I would have shortened the bending moves a tad, I would have tried to add a bit more of their adventures on the way to the Northern Water Tribe, and I would have had them pronounce Aang & Sokka correctly. For Aang you are suppose to stress the A like in hang not make it sound more like the u in the word hung and it is pronounced Sock-ah not Soak-ah.

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The Last Airbender

Matt Rodriguez — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 15:09:17 +0000

The Last Airbender

Review:

Theatrical

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RANDOM FACT OF THE DAY

Grade:

2.25

Voice actor Dee Bradley Baker voiced Appa and Momo in the original animated show "Avatar: The Last Airbender" (2005) and reprises those roles for the live-action film adaptation.

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M. Night Shyamalan is famous for his larger than life stories that typically feature some sort of twist towards the end. His latest feature, The Last Airbender, is not one of those films.

Based off the popular Nickelodeon cartoon by the same name, the film follows four kingdoms based on the elementals of Earth, Wind, Fire and Water. A select few known as Benders are able to control the elements and bend them to their will. That was around a century ago as currently the Fire Nation has practically taken over and forbidden the practice of bending. All hope seems lost when suddenly Aang (Noah Ringer) appears and happens to be the Avatar, a special being with the power to bend all four elements.

The film takes place over the first season or book of the show. You see, Aang has been frozen in captivity for 100 years and is still a little boy. He also can only bend his natural element, air. To defeat the Fire Nation, he's going to have to learn the rest of the elements, beginning with Water.

Turning a cartoon into a live-action film can be troublesome. On one hand, you don't want to disappoint the fans of the series but then again, you want to attract a new audience as well. Avatar was colorful and lighthearted yet still had action and adventure. The Last Airbender seems to forget the former two and simply focus on the action and adventure parts. Colors typically consist of varying shades of blue and red. While I can see why that is done, the film will never match the vibrancy of the cartoon.

Some of the coolest effects come from the manipulation of fire and water. If you've seen the trailer, you know what I'm talking about. What I don't understand is why it takes so long for them to start bending. First they must do these ridiculous looking motions before they're able to control the elements. In reality, they'd be dead by the time anything got done.

The majority of the characters are represented in the film. Aang is accompanied by Katara (Nicola Peltz) and her brother, Sokka (Jackson Rathbone) on his quest. Then there is the disowned prince of the Fire Nation, Zuko (Dev Patel) who must regain his honor by capturing the Avatar. Truthfully, Patel is one of the few characters who shows any sort of depth. Fans of the series will be familiar with his inner struggle for acceptance and I think the film portrays that well. As for the rest of the cast, I wasn't too impressed with their acting skills. Sure they may be able to throw a punch or swing a sword, but when it comes to having a conversation they completely fail.

I'm not going to even talk about the film in 3D. Let's just say that if a film is produced in 2D, it should remain that way. We've seen how good 3D can look and simply converting it afterwards just doesn't cut it. Don't waste the extra money on it. That is all.

The Last Airbender has its faults like any other movie but manages to tell a decent story. Besides, up was the only place to go after M. Night Shyamalan's last abomination that was The Happening. The bending effects are cool and should the film do well, we can expect to see a few sequels in the following years. Still, I can't help but feel that it would have been better off as a high production animated film.

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