For its new film, the franchise called on director and screenwriter Josh Cooley who excelled at Pixar with Toy Story 4 et Vice versa. After four promising weeks in the United States, the film hits theaters this Wednesday.
More than fifteen years after the release of the first episode of the saga, Transformers gets a new lease of life, with an animated film prequel, in theaters Wednesday October 23, for which one of Pixar’s big names, author of Toy Story 4 was poached. In Transformers : the beginningalready released in the United States, director Josh Cooley revisits the origins of Optimus Prime and Megatron, two enemy characters in the universe of Transformers .
The American director and screenwriter intends to revive a franchise inspired by Hasbro toys, which grossed more than five billion dollars in seven films, but was beginning to run out of steam more than 15 years after the first film by Michael Bay. In animation, the film plunges the viewer into the heart of the planet Cybertron, long before the Autobots – the heroes – and the Decepticons – the antagonists – clash in an epic war. This prequel looks at the complex relationship between Optimus Prime, then called Orion Pax, and Megatron, known as D-16. Their friendship, built on common ideals, gradually turns into rivalry, marking the start of a conflict.
After eighteen years at Pixar and successes like Toy Story 4 (2019), film which won the Oscar for best animated film, or the screenplay for Vice versa (2015), Josh Cooley was keen to « surpass oneself »to bring « real movement and character on screen, like we’ve never done before ». Other franchises have successfully relied on animated versions in recent years, based on the model of Spiderman : New Generation Oscar winner in 2019. For Josh Cooley, the film represents more than just an addition to Transformers previous ones. « Franchise films are often seen as lacking creativity, but I think this is a different kind of creativity »he confides.
Josh Cooley, who at 45 knows the Transformers since his childhood, explains having wanted « surprising the audience with something familiar, but approaching it in an unexpected way ». He found in this project the opportunity to move away from the traditional patterns of the saga, in particular by emphasizing the emotions of the characters, for a result accessible to the whole family.
Philippe Lacheau and Audrey Fleurot dubbing
Transformers : The Beginning does not just tell the story of a war, it explores universal themes such as betrayal, honor, and the price one pays for one’s beliefs: « This is the most human story we’ve ever told with Transformers »he explains. With a budget of $150 million, the film, which mixes drama and comedy, is a visually impressive action blockbuster. The French voices are entrusted to the very popular Philippe Lacheau and Audrey Fleurotrespectively Bumblebee and Elita-1.
In the original version, the latter is embodied by the voice of Scarlett Johansson, a strong female figure, a deliberate choice by Josh Cooley to rebalance representation in a historically masculine universe. « There were very few female characters in Transformers in its beginnings. I was very happy to include Elita among the main characters, I wanted to push this diversity further by ensuring that half of the population was female. »underlines the director.
« I wanted us to have the impression of a rich and complete population, like our world » he adds. After four successful weeks in the United States, the film is preparing to be released in France during the school vacation period, a country where the talent of animators has long been recognized. Josh Cooley met, during his visit to France, students from the Gobelins school: « I’m blown away by the love of animation and the quality of it »he declared.
