The Transformers: The Movie

The Transformers: The Movie
Original theatrical poster
Directed by	Nelson Shin
Produced by	Joe Bacal Tom Griffith Nelson Shin (co-producer) Margaret Loesch (executive) Lee Gunther (executive)
Written by	Ron Friedman
Starring	Peter Cullen Judd Nelson Leonard Nimoy Orson Welles Robert Stack Frank Welker
Music by	Vince DiCola
Studio	Hasbro Marvel Productions Sunbow Productions Toei Animation
Distributed by	De Laurentiis Entertainment Group Rank Organisation
Release date(s)	USA: August 8, 1986 (1986-08-08) AUS: December 26, 1986 (1986-12-26) UK: August 8, 1986 (1986-08-08) JPN: August 9, 1989 (1989-08-09)
Running time	84 min.
Country	United States
Language	English
Gross revenue	$5,849,647 (Domestic)

The Transformers: The Movie is a 1986 animated feature film based on the animated series of the same name. It was released in North America on August 8, 1986.

The film was directed by Nelson Shin, who produced the original Transformers television series, and features the voices of Eric Idle, Judd Nelson, Leonard Nimoy, Casey Kasem, Robert Stack, Lionel Stander, John Moschitta, Jr., Peter Cullen and Frank Welker. It also marked the final roles for both Orson Welles^[1] and Scatman Crothers.

The story takes place in 2005, 20 years after the events of the TV series' second season and serves to bridge into the third season. Set to a hard-driving metal music soundtrack, the movie has a decidedly darker tone than the television series, with detailed visuals in Toei Animation's typical animated feature film styling, and Decepticon villains that are more menacing, killing without hesitation. The film features several grand battles in which a handful of major characters meet their end. The film's tagline was: "Beyond good. Beyond evil. Beyond your wildest imagination."

Plot

Unicron, a roaming artificial planet, devours robot planet Lithone. Though many inhabitants attempt to flee the planet in spaceships, only one escapes.

The evil Decepticons have gained control of the Transformers' homeworld, Cybertron at some point in the twenty years since the beginning of the struggle between the robotic warriors on Earth. The heroic Autobots are using two of Cybertron's moons as staging areas, preparing to strike against the Decepticons. A supply shuttle is readied for launch to Autobot City on Earth. A transmission is intercepted by the Decepticons, who ambush the shuttle and kill its crew, intending to use the ship to infiltrate Autobot City.

On Earth, Daniel Witwicky and Hot Rod fish in a lake near Autobot City, discussing Daniel's loneliness, as his father Spike is on one of the moon bases. They pick up the shuttle's signature, and race up to Lookout Mountain to see it land. They spot the Decepticons and launch a preemptive strike. After a brief battle, the Decepticons attack Autobot City. The Autobots, including Ultra Magnus, Blurr, Springer, Perceptor and Arcee, transform Autobot City into a fortress. As a siege ensues, Ultra Magnus orders Blaster to radio for assistance from Optimus Prime. The next morning Optimus and the Dinobots repel the Decepticons.

Optimus confronts his arch-enemy, Megatron. Though Megatron is defeated, Optimus is critically wounded due to Hot Rod's interference. Starscream takes command of the Decepticons and retreats with their fallen leader and other wounded aboard Astrotrain.

Perceptor informs the other Autobots that Optimus Prime's wounds are fatal. Optimus calls on Ultra Magnus to assume command of the Autobots and tries to give him the Autobot Matrix of Leadership. The Matrix falls out of Optimus' hand, but is caught by Hot Rod, who then passes it to Ultra Magnus. Before dying, Optimus asserts that the Matrix will one day light the Autobots' darkest hour.

Astrotrain's shortage of fuel prompts the Decepticons to eject several of their injured — including Megatron. The remaining Decepticons argue over who should lead them. The Decepticon castoffs encounter Unicron, who offers to give Megatron and the others new bodies on the condition that they destroy the Autobot Matrix, which Unicron says is the only thing that can defeat him. Megatron agrees and Unicron converts him into a new form: the Decepticon warrior "Galvatron". His underlings are reformatted into Cyclonus, Scourge and the Sweeps. Unicron provides them with a craft in which they travel to Cybertron, where Galvatron obliterates Starscream and takes command of the Decepticons.

On Earth, the Autobots are alerted as Unicron consumes Cybertron's moons, along with Autobots Jazz, Bumblebee, Cliffjumper and Spike. Galvatron leads the Decepticons in another assault on Autobot City. The Autobots board a pair of shuttles and flee toward Cybertron. Hot Rod, Kup and the Dinobots are shot down over the planet Quintessa, while Ultra Magnus and company evade their pursuers and set down on the planet Junk for repairs.

Captured by Quintessa guardsmen, Hot Rod and Kup witness the sentencing and execution of Arbulus, a native of Lithone. While imprisoned they meet Kranix, now Lithone's last survivor, who tells them about Unicron before he is fed to the Sharkticons. Hot Rod and Kup are subjected to a mock trial by Quintesson executioners, who sentence them to execution. Battling the Sharkticons, they are rescued by the arrival of the Dinobots. Grimlock persuades the Sharkticons to rebel against the Quintessons while the Autobots escape. With help from the Dinobots' new ally, Wheelie, the group locates a ship and departs to join the other Autobots.

Galvatron hunts down the Autobots on Junk. Ultra Magnus fails to awaken the Matrix's powers, and is dismembered by the Sweeps. Galvatron, no longer willing to serve Unicron, steals the Matrix, stating that he will make Unicron his slave. The remaining Autobots are harassed by hostile Junkion natives, led by Wreck-Gar, until Hot Rod's party arrives and befriends them. The Junkions repair Ultra Magnus and provide a vessel to help the Autobots fight against Unicron.

Galvatron attempts to subjugate Unicron using the Matrix but is unable to unleash its power. Unicron transforms into a planet-sized robot and attacks Cybertron. Galvatron opens fire on Unicron, but Unicron swallows him. Decepticons attempt to counter Unicron's attack, to no avail. When the Autobots arrive Hot Rod crashes their ship through one of Unicron's eyes and they find themselves separated within his body. Wreck-Gar and the Junkions fight back against Unicron, but Unicron crushes their ship. The Dinobots also attack Unicron with little success.

Inside Unicron, Hot Rod confronts Galvatron while Daniel and the other Autobots rescue Spike and the survivors of Unicron's assault on Cybertron's moons. The Autobots and Decepticons work together to fight Unicron. Galvatron tries to assist Hot Rod, knowing that Unicron is a greater threat, only for Unicron to take control of Galvatron. Hot Rod recovers the Matrix and unleashes its power, transforming him into Rodimus Prime. Rodimus throws Galvatron deep into space freeing the Decepticon from control. Rodimus then unleashes the Matrix's true power, obliterating Unicron. Rodimus leads the Autobots out of Unicron's body before it explodes. The Autobots reclaim Cybertron. Unicron's head orbits Cybertron as a new satellite.

Character deaths

Autobot casualties outnumbered those of the Decepticons. Among the Autobots shown dead on screen are Optimus Prime, Ironhide, Prowl, Ratchet, Brawn, Windcharger, and Wheeljack. Outside of these characters, a substantial number of Autobots from the first two seasons of the show do not appear after the film, leaving their fates uncertain.

Aside from Starscream and several Sweeps, there are virtually no permanent Decepticon deaths in the movie. Most of the Decepticons who were dead or dying are reformatted by Unicron, and while it is clear that Galvatron has Megatron's memories, it is less so with Cyclonus and Scourge, as Thundercracker, Skywarp and Starscream are depicted as having grave markers in a subterranean Decepticon crypt on Cybertron in the episode "Starscream's Ghost". Shockwave's death was scripted but cut from the finished film;^[2] it was reinstated for IDW Publishing's adaptation of the feature, printed in 2006. However, a rather different-colored Shockwave makes a couple of appearances in the season premiere sequel Five Faces of Darkness. One of the intentions of the movie was to rid the Transformers cartoon universe of the majority of characters from Seasons 1 and 2. Story consultant Flint Dille elaborated:

The movie was produced by Sunbow/Marvel simultaneous to G.I. Joe: The Movie. The writers of the G.I. Joe film asked for permission from Hasbro to kill a character, Duke. Hasbro not only approved the request but "insisted" that the writers of Transformers: The Movie adopt the same fate for Optimus Prime.^[4] However, Optimus Prime's death sparked much controversy and incurred so much backlash that it caused the writers to make changes so that Duke simply ended up in a coma (and eventually woke up from the coma).^[5]

Cast

In addition to the above-listed characters, many additional Transformers appear throughout the film in non-speaking roles.

The Transformers: The Movie was the final film to which Orson Welles contributed, although not the final film released. He was in declining health during production. Shortly before he died, he told his biographer, Barbara Leaming, "You know what I did this morning? I played the voice of a toy." He elaborated, "I play a planet. I menace somebody called Something-or-other. Then I'm destroyed. My plan to destroy Whoever-it-is is thwarted and I tear myself apart on the screen."^[6] Welles' voice was apparently so weak by the time he made his recording that technicians needed to run it through a synthesizer to salvage it. The voicework for Transformers: The Movie was the last movie project he worked on; his voice session was on October 5, 1985, and five days later Welles died of a heart attack.^[7]

The credits list several characters that either do not appear or do not speak in the finished film. Bell is also credited as Prowl, who does not speak. Messick is credited for Gears, who doesn't speak, instead of Scavenger, who does. The credits include Bud Davis as Dirge, who had lines cut from the film's original script, and Walker Edmiston as Inferno, who does not appear in either the film or script.

Peter Cullen is credited above Scatman Crothers, even though the cast members are usually listed in alphabetical order.

Release

Although the trailer hails the film as "spectacular widescreen action", the movie was animated in 4:3 "fullscreen" format. The feature was vertically cropped to widescreen dimensions for theatrical showings and released in fullscreen on home video and DVD. The 20th anniversary release of the movie by Sony, however features the cropped widescreen presentation.^[8] The UK version of the film features scrolling text and narration at the beginning of the film replacing the cast credits, and an additional closing narration assuring viewers that "Optimus Prime will return."^{[9] [10]} The Japanese version of the movie also includes these additions, and displays each character's name briefly at the bottom of the screen when they first appear. The film has been released on Blu-ray Disc outside the United States, however those versions are region-free and will play in an American Blu-Ray machine.

Reception

The Transformers: The Movie received mixed reviews and currently has 50% positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes with 8 of 16 counted reviews giving it a "fresh" rating. The film has an average rating of 5.0 out of 10.^[11]

Stan Bush's song "The Touch", which prominently featured in the film, was originally written for the Sylvester Stallone movie Cobra. ^[12]

Commercial releases

The film was originally released in 1987 on VHS^[13] in North America by Family Home Entertainment.

The film was first released on DVD in 2000^[14] by Sunbow Productions and distributed exclusively in Canada by Seville Pictures.^[15] This version restored Spike's "Oh, shit!" line. The film was later released on DVD by Rhino Entertainment in North America and Maverick in the UK, both in 2001. Metrodome later licensed the movie to Prism Leisure to release a budget version in June 2003.

Metrodome Distribution released an Ultimate Edition of The Transformers: The Movie DVD in June 2007 in the UK (Region 2).^[16] The extras include many of the extras that were contained on the "Remastered" edition of the film on the first disc, with fan commentary serving as the only addition besides a fan-made Transformers movie trailer. The second disc contains interviews with Peter Cullen and Flint Dille. Despite promises of the only episode of Transformers: Zone,^[17] only "Scramble City" is included.

Comic book adaptations

Soundtracks

Inter-series references

In the first live action Transformers film, Optimus Prime says to Megatron, "...one shall stand, one shall fall," in a homage to their confrontation in the animated film.^[18]

The Transformers video game released for the PS2 in 2004 referenced numerous lines from the film. The following lines were spoken in the game:

1. Optimus Prime: "'til all are one." (Said by many Autobots in the film, including Optimus Prime, Rodimus Prime, and Ultra Magnus)
2. Megatron: "I would have waited an eternity for this."(Said by Megatron in the film)
3. Starscream: "I'll rip out your optics!" (Said by Megatron in the film)
4. Unicron: "You cannot destroy my destiny." (Said by Unicron in the film)

Merchandise

A Unicron figure was designed, but was never produced due to cost concerns.^[19] In 2003, the first Unicron figure was released as part of the Transformers: Armada toyline. No Arcee figure was made for the film or the TV series.

Cultural references

• "The Touch" by Stan Bush was covered by Mark Wahlberg in the 1997 film Boogie Nights. Bush's original version also appeared in the 2008 Chuck episode "Chuck vs. Tom Sawyer".
• The 2008 series Transformers Animated has numerous homages to this film. Ultra Magnus' voice, done by Jeff Bennett, emulates that of the late Robert Stack, Magnus' original's voice. Wreck-Gar (voiced by "Weird Al" Yankovic) referenced the Yankovic song "Dare to Be Stupid", a song from this film's soundtrack. Judd Nelson reprised his role as Rodimus in one episode of the series. In the end of the series, the Allspark is contained in a casing that resembles that of the Matrix of Leadership.
• "The Touch" by Stan Bush was used for a training montage in an episode, "Cops and Roger", of American Dad in 2010.

References

External links

• The Transformers: The Movie at Transformers Wiki
• Transformers The Movie 20th Anniversary Edition DVD by Sony BMG - Region 1
• Transformers The Movie DVD by Metrodome - Region 2
• The Transformers: The Movie at the Big Cartoon DataBase
• The Transformers: The Movie at the Internet Movie Database
• The Transformers: The Movie at Allmovie
• The Transformers: The Movie at the TCM Movie Database
• The Transformers: The Movie at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Transformers: The Movie at Box Office Mojo
• Storyboards from Transformers The Movie not included on the DVD