Bumblebee 4K UHD (2018)

[zw94]

Originally Posted by TheSweetieMan

Damn, did this underperform at the box office or what?

No one cares about Transformers anymore. Consumers want superheroes now.

I feel like that’s how the cycles work. Once video game to film adaptations start working, that could be what starts to steal money away from Marvel Studios.

Pokémon is next. If Mario does well, we might be lining up for Smash Bros within a decade or so.

[FilmFreakosaurus]

Originally Posted by rexcrk

Tsk tsk. Still shocked. There are even tons of things lifted directly from the show incorporated.

Mainly the voice actors from the original cartoons and the character names from Hasbro toys, but little else remained. The film series writing crew hired by the producers must have consisted of very immature 12 year old boys.

[chuffster]

Originally Posted by buckeye1

How do you it was 6 seconds? And what is 12A?

BBFC(UK film'censors'/classifiers) website states:

The film was originally passed 12A uncut for moderate fantasy violence for UK cinema release.
However the distributors preferred a cut PG version and the film was resubmitted shorn by about 6 secnds. The BBFC duly passed the film PG for moderate fantasy violence, mild sex references, injury detail, language.

In the US the film was Rated PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi action violence

12A is close to the PG-13 rating.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by ray0414

Looks to have underperformed, but there's alot of good movies at the theater right now. Looks to be a matter of bad timing.

I dunno, I thought that it was going to tank and IMO the other stuff (Poppins and Aquaman, bleh) isn't taking away so many viewers that all Bee has left is the scraps. No, people just aren't turning out for it in general. There was no real buzz, no real hype, the trailers made it look like a sweet coming-of-age adventure (which is what it is, hence Par UK opting for a cut PG to maximise the kiddie market) rather than a must-see cinematic 'event' and not even all the G1 fanwank was enough to get people into theatres.

Still, Paramount would be mad to reboot it all again, they gotta take this one on the chin and see it as a stepping stone to building up goodwill with audiences again after the execrable Last Knight. Someone in the Bee thread mentioned Batman Begins in the same breath and that's a very apt comparison, it didn't take an absolute boatload of money but was a very solid reintroduction to Bruce Wayne & Co, and Warners were handsomely rewarded with The Dark Knight's subsequent runaway success.

[DMRI2006]

Big mistake to kick sand on movies that open the weekend before Christmas, especially ones that have a family audience tag. Everything "underperformed" based on projections and its due to having a weekend right before Dec. 25th. The next few days and especially next weekend will be a better indicator of how its going to fare.

[bradnoyes]

I was hoping to see this in Dolby Cinema but Mary Poppins has monopolized my local DC for an entire two weeks so I'll miss out on this and Aquaman. I have no idea why they decided that showing only Poppins was a smart move, especially since they've had two movies playing concurrently in the past. Oh well, at least I got to see Spider-verse!

[FilmFreakosaurus]

Originally Posted by bradnoyes

I was hoping to see this in Dolby Cinema but Mary Poppins has monopolized my local DC for an entire two weeks so I'll miss out on this and Aquaman. I have no idea why they decided that showing only Poppins was a smart move, especially since they've had two movies playing concurrently in the past. Oh well, at least I got to see Spider-verse!

It's based upon deals struck between the theater chain and Disney (or other studio) as to the monopolization of their premium theaters for certain titles.

[bradnoyes]

They were doing specific Mary Poppins promos for Dolby Cinema before the least few showings I attended, so I knew it would have a large presence. But I'm surprised that the engagement is lasting so long. It's one thing to have exclusivity for a week, but I was hoping that they'd mix in Aquaman or Bee at some point. I guess there's still a chance they will add them after New Years since the next DC title I'm aware of (Glass) doesn't release until 1/18.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by DMRI2006

Big mistake to kick sand on movies that open the weekend before Christmas, especially ones that have a family audience tag. Everything "underperformed" based on projections and its due to having a weekend right before Dec. 25th. The next few days and especially next weekend will be a better indicator of how its going to fare.

Hmm. That never seems to stop Bond or Star Wars? If Bee ever cracks $100M domestic I'll be ****ing amazed.

[DJR662]

Originally Posted by chuffster

BBFC(UK film'censors'/classifiers) website states:

The film was originally passed 12A uncut for moderate fantasy violence for UK cinema release.
However the distributors preferred a cut PG version and the film was resubmitted shorn by about 6 secnds. The BBFC duly passed the film PG for moderate fantasy violence, mild sex references, injury detail, language.

In the US the film was Rated PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi action violence

12A is close to the PG-13 rating.

Jesus H.C.

I'm glad I don't live in the UK. Stuff like this annoys the hell out of me.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by DJR662

Jesus H.C.

I'm glad I don't live in the UK. Stuff like this annoys the hell out of me.

It's not the "nanny state" BBFC doing it though, this is entirely Paramount's decision to aim for a softer rating.

[DJR662]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

It's not the "nanny state" BBFC doing it though, this is entirely Paramount's decision to aim for a softer rating.

Still because of BBFC guidelines though.

[Geoff D]

No it isn't. Paramount could release it as an uncut 12A and ickle kids can still go and see it accompanied by parent/guardian. Clearly they're happy with the PG-13 rating in the US too, but for whatever reasons they want to position it as even more of a kiddie-friendly family adventure in the UK.

[DJR662]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

No it isn't. Paramount could release it as an uncut 12A and ickle kids can still go and see it accompanied by parent/guardian. Clearly they're happy with the PG-13 rating in the US too, but for whatever reasons they want to position it as even more of a kiddie-friendly family adventure in the UK.

Hmm, fair enough...

Hate to admit it though. Still can't stand these kinds of things happening, I hate it with a passion.

Let it be known I loathe the MPAA, BBFC and the cowardness of distributors at times.

[FilmFreakosaurus]

You think that's bad? Movie studios, in their ongoing quest of raking in Chinese money, are self-censoring movies at an alarming rate in order to gain the approval of China's dictatorship.

[Agent Kay]

Originally Posted by FilmFreakosaurus

You think that's bad? Movie studios, in their ongoing quest of raking in Chinese money, are self-censoring movies at an alarming rate in order to gain the approval of China's dictatorship.

Fight the power

[jayman3]

Originally Posted by FilmFreakosaurus

You think that's bad? Movie studios, in their ongoing quest of raking in Chinese money, are self-censoring movies at an alarming rate in order to gain the approval of China's dictatorship.

Not to mention the shoe-horn addition of Chinese actors to appeal to the Chinese audience

[erikottowegner]

This was great in 3D...waiting on 3D bluray release info...

[CYMBOL]

Just saw this.

Now, I have been in to some fairly extreme stuff in my life and am no prude... but Transformers just became mind numbing eye candy, occasionally interrupted for shots of women's @ss's (or inappropriately young teen girls)... and just lost any kind of entertainment as family films.

It was nice to see a Transformers film that my kid enjoyed, but more than that, was affected by. Sure it's a paint by numbers coming of age story, but obviously, everyone understood the tone when making this movie. Have heart.

The main girl character wasn't sexualized, the parents actually cared, and loss (and even depression), were handled in an affectionate way.

It was nice. The whole family of multi-generarions all found something to chuckle at, and the action was just enough to be engaging without becaming exploding, metallic wall paper that the Transformer movies had become.

If you aren't into musicals, and are a little tired of superheroes; then consider this fairly basic, but heartwarming take on Transformers for your popcorn munching pleasure.

Recommended.

Pre-ordering the 4k...

[pottyaboutpotter1]

I think Paramount knows that Age of Extinction and The Last Knight really tarnished the brand. But by keeping Bumblebee's budget low they've ensured it'll be profitable no matter what. The excellent reviews and good WOM will lead more people to seek this film out down the line (home video/streaming) and rebuild audience faith in the Transformers franchise. There's reports they're considering using Bumblebee as a soft reboot of the series which, considering the response to this film, is a very good idea.

Plus, as a spin-off, there's less expectation on it. This isn't Transformers 6 so Paramount doesn't expect it to be making $1 billion. The Batman Begins comparison has already been made but is really apt; coming after an installment destroyed all audience faith in the franchise and made it a laughing stock, getting glowing reviews and good WOM, lower box office than some might expect but rebuilds audience trust in the franchise ensuring the sequel makes much more.