Transformers

Transformers (film)

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This article is about the 2007 live action film. For the 1986 animated film, see The Transformers: The Movie.

Transformers
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Michael Bay
Produced by	Don Murphy Tom DeSanto Lorenzo di Bonaventura Ian Bryce
Screenplay by	Roberto Orci Alex Kurtzman
Story by	John Rogers Roberto Orci Alex Kurtzman
Based on	Transformers  by Hasbro
Starring	Shia LaBeouf Tyrese Gibson Josh Duhamel Anthony Anderson Megan Fox Rachael Taylor John Turturro Jon Voight
Music by	Steve Jablonsky
Cinematography	Mitchell Amundsen
Edited by	Tom Muldoon Paul Rubell Glen Scantlebury
Production company	di Bonaventura Pictures Hasbro
Distributed by	DreamWorks Pictures (United States) Paramount Pictures (International)
Release dates	June 12, 2007 (Sydney premiere) July 3, 2007 (United States)
Running time	144 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$150 million[1]
Box office	$709.7 million[2]

Transformers is a 2007 American science fiction action film based on the Transformers toy line. The film, which combines computer animation with live-action, is directed by Michael Bay, with Steven Spielberg serving as executive producer. It is the first installment of the live-action Transformers film series. It stars Shia LaBeouf as Sam Witwicky, a teenager who gets caught up in a war between the heroic Autobots and the villainous Decepticons, two factions of alien robots who can disguise themselves by transforming into everyday machinery, primarily vehicles. The Autobots intend to use the AllSpark, the object that created their robotic race, in an attempt to rebuild Cybertron and end the war while the Decepticons desire control of the AllSpark with the intention of using it to build an army by giving life to the machines of Earth. Tyrese Gibson, Josh Duhamel, Anthony Anderson, Megan Fox, Rachael Taylor, John Turturro, and Jon Voight also star while voice actors Peter Cullen and Hugo Weaving voice Optimus Prime and Megatron respectively.
The film was produced by Don Murphy and Tom DeSanto. They developed the project in 2003, and DeSanto wrote a treatment. Steven Spielberg came on board the following year, hiring Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman to write the screenplay. The U.S. Armed Forces and General Motors (GM) loaned vehicles and aircraft during filming, which saved money for the production and added realism to the battle scenes.
Hasbro organized an enormous promotional campaign for the film, making deals with hundreds of companies. This advertising blitz included a viral marketing campaign, coordinated releases of prequel comic books, toys, and books, as well as product placement deals with GM, Burger King, and eBay.
Transformers received mixed to positive reviews and was a box office success.^[2] It is the forty-fifth highest-grossing film and the fifth highest-grossing film of 2007, grossing approximately $709 million worldwide. The film won four awards from the Visual Effects Society and was nominated for three Academy Awards, for Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Visual Effects. The performance of Shia Labeouf was praised by Empire, and Peter Cullen's reprisal of Optimus Prime from the 1980s was well received by fans. A sequel, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, was released on June 24, 2009. Despite mostly negative reviews, it was a commercial success and grossed more than its predecessor. A third film, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, was released on June 29, 2011, in 3-D and went on to gross over $1 billion, despite receiving mixed reviews. A fourth film, Transformers: Age of Extinction, was released on June 27, 2014, which also grossed over $1 billion, though it got mixed to negative reviews. A fifth film, tentatively titled Transformers 5, is scheduled for a Summer 2017 release.^[3]