13 things you didn’t know about Transformers

Leave the cinematic critique to Barry Norman and impress your mates down the pub with this list of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen trivia instead. Megan Fox’s bra-size isn’t the only interesting film stat…

1. It took seven months to create the 1,000-gallon gasoline bomb used in the Giza Guerilla scene of Revenge of the Fallen – longer than the time taken to shoot the entire film.
2. Looking for some cinematic references? Michael Bay described the tone of the film as Ben-Hur meets Apocalypse Now.
3. 2007’s Transformers was the fastest selling DVD of the year.
4. Next month’s release of Revenge of the Fallen coincides with the 25th anniversary of the original Transformers film.
5. Michael Bay took a 30 per cent pay cut to ensure that the budget would allow for an American production set. Meanwhile, rather than take a salary, Tyrese Gibson actually PAID filmmakers for his role in the film.
6. According to Industrial Light & Magic studio, if you took all the CGI blocks from all the Transformer models and placed them side to side, they’d reach to the moon and back with enough left over to build the Italy’s Roman Colosseum twice.
7. The word ‘transformer’ is only used once in the entire film (Ron Witwicky says “looks like they’ve got a blown transformer”).
8. Michael Bay was rejected from USC’s prestigious film school and starting out directing for Playboy (bagging himself a centrefold girlfriend while he was at it).
9. Shooting on Revenge of the Fallen started one day after the first film won MTV’s Best Movie Award.
10. USA Today hosted a poll asking the public who they would like to see in the Revenge of the Fallen. The winner, Soundwave, got 20 per cent of the vote, while Devastator and Grimlock both had 16 percent, Jetfire had 11 per cent and Ultra Magnus and Shockwave tied with 9 per cent.
11. To ensure the film looked realistic, the US Department of Defense provided its vehicles for use as the alternate modes of the Decepticons Starscream, Bonecrusher and Devastator. It also allowed its F-117, A-10, AC-130, and CV-22 aircrafts to be filmed (being captured on the big screen for the first time) and soldiers to work as extras.
12. Female Transformer Autobot Arcee was included in the first film’s script but later omitted as writers felt it was too much of a challenge to explain gender variations. This was worked around in Revenge of the Fallen, though, and she does appear.
13. Transformers holds the record for the biggest opening week of a non-sequel with $152.5 million.

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