Bumblebee will open on December 8th for an Early Access Showing

Discussion in 'Transformers Movie Discussion' started by Music, Nov 18, 2018.

  1. TFXProtector

    TFXProtector TFW2005 Supporter

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    Agreed.

    It failed in the US, most of the countries it showed up in barely turned out to watch it. It was more like 2.75 (being kind) times its budget in returns, that doesn't actually make it a success. Ben Affleck's Daredevil did rather well at the box office and had at least a lukewarm response, even with all of that it didn't do well enough to merit a sequel and they canned it. Justice League made money but still underperformed in terms of expectations and the audience to the point that WB has dropped it and the future of their cinematic universe is up in the air.

    Just because a movie makes money doesn't mean it's a success. I thought that was how it worked, as well, but it's not just the money. It's audience reaction, it's the critic reviews, it's whether or not someone will take a chance on another one. In time, that moneymaker will bring in diminishing returns, much like TLK did.

    Bumblebee could be a fantastic movie, it could be a moneymaker in the right hands and the right time, but being shackled by TLK isn't going to help it at all. When a movie like AOE makes a billion, that's a success. When a movie like ROTF makes nearly that, that's a success. TLK made just slightly more than half of its budget in the US, which is indeed a failure considering it's an American picture. Plus, Paramount owes China some big bucks and the movie fell flat with everyone. By the time they had advertising budget in the mix, I'm certain it was even less of a return.

    I only went to see it twice because I had to take family members at different times and the second time I had to reassure myself it wasn't the film, the first time, and that it was just me. It even pulled the wool over my eyes and I thought "Okay, that was better." Watched it again when it hit video (because it does look gorgeous in 4k) and I realized that no, it wasn't me, the film really was as bad as I initially thought it was and should've walked out of the theater and kept on steppin'.

    It might have made money, period, but it wasn't a success. When Hasbro, Paramount and even the producers take the series in another direction and indefinitely shelve the previous storyline, that's not a success.
     
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  2. artiepants

    artiepants Transformers '84!!!

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    yeah, i'm with ya'll, it FEELS like a flop to me (especially if Mary Poppins and Bumblebee are well reviewed and get good word of mouth) but James Wan seems to have a golden touch, pretty much everything he's done, even things that have sounded like bad ideas, has gotten good reviews and been commercially successful. But dude. Aquaman. (i'm also a tiny bit salty that they more-or-less cast Namor as Aquaman.)
     
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  3. TFXProtector

    TFXProtector TFW2005 Supporter

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    I've been a fan of Momoa's since his Stargate Atlantis days. He's got a good comedic timing, he can act quite well and his looks are striking. He's worked hard to get where he is and we're finally getting to see what he's capable of. That said, I'm not sure Aquaman is the best option for him. I do hope, for his sake, that it's a success though. Wan does seem to have the golden touch, as you say, but everyone's run comes to an end sooner or later.

    This feels like disaster is written all over it, honestly. If it does succeed, I think it'll be a sleeper hit. It also seems to be the most lighthearted of the DC movies, so far, maybe because it seems tonally different that's the problem with it...

    I'll see Bumblebee first, then Aquaman and we'll go from there. Ol' miss nannypants gets a rental on video, if at all.
     
  4. artiepants

    artiepants Transformers '84!!!

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    yeah, I'm afraid it'll have the taint of TLK on it no matter what, much like Solo suffered from being released in much to close proximity to the execrable The Last Jedi and despite being a much more enjoyable (if not particularly great) film it definitely was a victim of franchise fatigue (not to mention really poor marketing)
     
  5. artiepants

    artiepants Transformers '84!!!

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    oh, i'm not out for that one, but unless it gets atrocious reviews, hard not to imagine that's probably going to be the "family movie of the season"
     
  6. TheSoundwave

    TheSoundwave Bounty Hunter

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    I think it's possible to make a movie about a goofy character like Aquaman and make it a success (look at something like the Guardians of the Galaxy), but to me this doesn't look tastefully done. Aquaman just kind of acts like a stereotypical 'dumb cool dude', and makes jokes about peeing on things and whatnot. They can do fish-out-of-water humor and still keep him dignified. Also, the effects for Atlantis look like video-game quality, and they're not very well-choreographed, they're very cluttery. Some people have complained that the Cybertron effects for Bumblebee look poor, but at least the shot composition is pleasing (and the colors). Aquaman just kind of looks like a blurry mess.
     
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  7. artiepants

    artiepants Transformers '84!!!

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    Which is really why i think he'd have been amazing as Namor. I hate to give in to tin foil hat theories, but i swear WB cast him as Aquaman just to keep Marvel from casting him as Namor (although, as i understand it Namor's movie rights are mired in some complex legal issues between multiple studios)

    To me, at his best, Aquaman is more-or-less King Arthur under the sea, and none of the "looks" he's rocked really sync up to Momoa. (where as, he might be a tad buff for Namor, who's usually depicted with a lithe build, but he's got the perfect face for him)
     
  8. TFXProtector

    TFXProtector TFW2005 Supporter

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    I don't know that I'd blame the marketing. I knew the movie was coming, people knew the movie was coming, there were trailers and ads all over the place. Honestly, I think LESS advertising would've been better. If given a chance to get off of the minds of people for a bit, it might've been a slight refresh in the brain, instead of "We've changed hands behind the scenes, we want you to know we're doing all we can to not entirely screw you over."

    There probably is a bit of fatigue, I can't deny that. I mean, we're going on year...41 or 42? With nothing for nearly 20 years, then a decade plus of nothing after the prequels and now we're getting full force this and that... Yeah. A little bit of burn out.

    The biggest problem is the fans. "We don't need a Han Solo movie. He was awesome a rogue and a smuggler. Why does he have to be anything else?!" The flaw in their argument is that the original trilogy already made him something more than that (long before Lucas's edits) and because Kathleen Kennedy is at the helm ("Oh, noes! They're letting a girl pilot the ship, now!") they're just going to dig in their heels and cry and not go and make a pretty good film suffer for nothing but some bruised egos and small peckers. I'm no fan of Kennedy and I don't think some of her comments have been necessary and she's even made it somewhat about sex/gender/whatever you wish to label it, but Lucas has done enough it himself, so when they complain about her, it really does come off as being misogynistic. Neither one of them should've made it political, it was risky enough making it about spirituality and religion, but to double down and go full bore? Yikes. Blame 'em both, not because one's reproductive organs are hidden on the inside.

    Solo was an enjoyable and fun romp of a film.

    That's sad that we can even say that. This is the 6th film in the series, by now it should just be printing money and making people happy to camp their fat behinds in the seats, instead we're saying "It's better than TLK, at least, so it should make some money!" which is not a great selling point at all. I've seen old school phone company commercials with more emotional depth than TLK, so being "better" isn't much of a selling point.

    I just hope that it actually IS good and ends up being a success. It's happened before with movies, it could happen again. I'm not holding my breath, though...

    I think Disney would split their wigs if they didn't somehow hit the mark for the family flick of the season. I almost, kind of, want to see that happen just for that.
     
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  9. transf0

    transf0 “Well Connected” The GOAT

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    Really don't think Aquaman will flop. Have any of you seen the extended trailer? Not sure how you can say that's bad. In the end, no one should be personally invested (note the distinction between this and being a fan) in how these films would do, because I can tell you with certainty the studios could care less what you think as long as they get $.
     
  10. Aimless Misfire

    Aimless Misfire Banned

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    Aquaman looks great! For such a stupid lame character I think they did a great job. And I love Black Manta. I don't know if it will be successful but I want to see it.

    Bumblebee? Well, FUCK BUMBLEBEE! I'm not a mindless drone puppet that let's Hasbro tell me who my favorite character is. I'll choose my own favorite characters because I have a mind of my own. I won't go see Bumblebee because I don't appreciate Hasbro shoving that character down my throat for the past decade. I'm sick & tired of the little yellow mute bastard. It's a matter of principle.
     
  11. MrJoshimusPrime

    MrJoshimusPrime Well-Known Member

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    Isn\'t Bumblebee supposed to be going up against Spider-Man into the Spiderverse too? 
     
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  12. Primus Omega

    Primus Omega Well-Known Member

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    lol did I really just read that
     
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  13. snokoan

    snokoan Well-Known Member

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    Sure you're gonna end up watching it ;) 
     
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  14. GirlBot

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    Have you seen Aquaman's new (final) trailer that dropped today? It rounded the story up rather nicely and some of the effects also started looking better (but some scenes do remind of Avatar, color-wise at least). TBH, it looks a lot like a fantasy movie about a king of Atlantis now. Not much superhero-ing there.
     
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  15. TheSoundwave

    TheSoundwave Bounty Hunter

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    I saw it, I thought it looked a little better than the previous trailers, but still not the greatest. I still think the digital effects look very cluttery and too busy.
     
  16. transf0

    transf0 “Well Connected” The GOAT

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    On the flip side, I feel Bee is too cartoony to be live action. To each their own I guess.
     
  17. oku

    oku Chill.

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    How do I find out which AMC ?
     
  18. snokoan

    snokoan Well-Known Member

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    It would show the nearest one in your location
     
  19. MV95

    MV95 @marlinfan1995 Veteran

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    Waiting patiently for the tickets to go on sale
    waiting.jpg
     
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  20. Sixshot93

    Sixshot93 Well-Known Member

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    So close yet so near... :cool: 
     
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