Transformers: the Movie (1986)

Hudson · Post by **Hudson** » Fri Sep 27, 2002 1:38 am

Does anybody know just why Orson preformed the voice of Unicron in "Transformers: The Movie"?

Harvey Chartrand · Post by **Harvey Chartrand** » Fri Sep 27, 2002 8:04 am

Welles was old, sick (dying, actually), broke. He couldn't sit back and have an easy retirement. He desperately needed the cash from voicework in crappy cartoons like The Transformers. Elia Kazan said in an interview in the 80s that people had forgotten how towering a figure Welles was in the 1930s and that it was sad to see the Great One doing commercials 50 years later. Kazan speculated that Welles' financial situation was such that he desperately needed the money from those Paul Masson wine commercials. Then Welles was deemed to be too fat for the image that Paul Masson wanted to convey and was replaced by John Gielgud.

Terry · Post by **Terry** » Wed Oct 16, 2002 9:44 pm

Ouch! We've had this debate before. The memory of Americans just isn't longer than fifteen minutes. The French do beat us there.

Anyway, Little Orson Annie also did the voice for a sparrow in an anime called The Enchanted Journey towards his latter days.

I liked that old Chuck Jones cartoon he did, though it's been more than fifteen minutes since I've seen it.

Harvey Chartrand · Post by **Harvey Chartrand** » Thu Oct 17, 2002 9:03 am

According to one unkind critic (David Thomson?), Welles' gluttony and girth made him the ideal choice to provide the voice for Unicron, a planet-devouring demon. But Welles' charm, wit and resilience allowed him to rise above the necessity of hamming it up in other people's bad pictures or doing voicework for banal cartoons — although I would have liked his career to end on a higher note than The Transformers: The Movie and Henry Jaglon's atrocious Someone to Love (one of the worst films of all time).

Jeff Wilson · Post by **Jeff Wilson** » Thu Oct 17, 2002 9:49 am

I had the misfortune of watching the Transformers movie a couple years ago with a friend who had the movie out of childhood nostalgia, and Welles' voice is almost unrecognizble due to electronic filtering. Also, he isn't featured much, and he speaks in a monotone, so it's hardly an acting job at all. The film is otherwise best avoided, unless you want to hear the vocal work of Leonard Nimoy, Judd Nelson, and Scatman Crothers, among others.

Terry · Post by **Terry** » Wed Oct 23, 2002 10:03 pm

I have a pet mental project of editing together all of Orson's appearances from the bad films and voice overs and TV interviews and commercials and so on - it'd make for a silly romp, and with just a little editing skill might be surprising.

Here's my current favourite quote, from Billy Joel: "I'm not a genius, it's only the fact that I live in an age of incompetence that makes me seem exceptional."

jaime marzol · Post by **jaime marzol** » Thu Oct 24, 2002 2:08 am

great quote.

that quote made my day

maxrael · Post by **maxrael** » Thu Oct 24, 2002 11:17 am

Quote (Harvey Chartrand @ Oct. 17 2002,15:03)...although I would have liked his career to end on a higher note than The Transformers: The Movie and Henry Jaglon's atrocious Someone to Love (one of the worst films of all time).[/quote]

yeah Someone To Love is awful, indulgent stuff...

though i must admit i loved the ending! :-D

atb,
max!

Jaime N. Christley · Post by **Jaime N. Christley** » Thu Oct 30, 2003 10:47 pm

http://www.hasbro.com/transformers/?CFID=889901&CFTOKEN=19850172

Of course, this is always mentioned by Wellesers in a sorrowful tone, but the fact remains that Unicron is awesome, Welles is awesome, they were both connoisseurs in fine dining, and both could be charaterized as spheroidal.

Jeff Wilson · Post by **Jeff Wilson** » Fri Oct 31, 2003 1:15 am

God, was that Transformers movie shitty. But what other film combines the talents of Welles, Judd Nelson, Scatman Crothers, Eric Idle and Leonard Nimoy among others, though? While watching BOOGIE NIGHTS, I was highly amused to hear Dirk Diggler and sidekick singing one of the songs from it in their ill-fated stab at a musical career.

Le Chiffre · Post by **Le Chiffre** » Sun Nov 02, 2003 2:49 am

I thought The Transformer's Movie was kind of cute- in spots, that is. It's amusing to hear Welles' voice electronically altered, and I believe that may have been the only time it was ever done.

It's too bad Welles didn't get a chance to do more for kids. There's the screenplay he did for THE LITTLE PRINCE and the snippets he directed for DAVID AND GOLIATH, and a few of the radio shows were aimed towards youngsters, but the only kid's film that he ever had any significant creative input on was the mediocre Treasure Island from 1972.

Cyberstrike · Post by **Cyberstrike** » Sat Jun 03, 2006 6:09 pm

SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT USHERS IN A NEW ERA OF TRANSFORMERS-MANIA WITH TRANSFORMERS: THE MOVIE 20TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL EDITION DVD

Icons OPTIMUS PRIME and MEGATRON Star in Special Edition DVD to Hit Retail Shelves This Holiday Season

New York, New York, May 30, 2006 - When MEGATRON said, “It’s over Prime,” he had it all wrong. This fall, the home entertainment group of SONY BMG Music Entertainment pulls out all the stops for the 20th Anniversary of the pop culture phenomenon and original theatrical release, TRANSFORMERS: The Movie with an explosive special edition DVD.

The new DVD marks the return of the out-of-this world animated big screen bonanza that catapulted the likes of OPTIMUS PRIME, MEGATRON, STARSCREAM, SOUNDWAVE and even the DINOBOTS into pop culture icons. The TRANSFORMERS: The Movie 20th Anniversary Special Edition DVD will be packed with premium features and behind-the-scenes footage developed with input by and for TRANSFORMERS fans across the country.

TRANSFORMERS: The Movie 20th Anniversary Special Edition DVD will tap into the huge, multi-generational TRANSFORMERS fan base. The special edition DVD will power into retail stores across North America in November 2006 -- just in time for the holiday gift giving season.

“The TRANSFORMERS franchise continues to thrive across multiple platforms, and we are excited to celebrate this pop culture phenomenon with a compelling new DVD tribute,” said Jim Wilson, Executive Vice President, General Manager of Home Entertainment for SONY BMG. “By teaming with TRANSFORMERS fans, we have developed an exclusive product with premium content and special features that will be sure to attract fans of all ages.”

The 20th Anniversary Special Edition DVD includes never-before-seen footage, exclusive interviews, interactive games and collectible packaging. The film features the voice of Orson Welles in his final role, as well as stars Eric Idle, Judd Nelson, Leonard Nimoy, Casey Kasem, Robert Stack, John Moschitta, Peter Cullen, and Frank Welker. The DVD also features a winning soundtrack featuring the iconic theme "The TRANSFORMERS" performed by Lion, and the popular "The Touch," performed by Stan Bush.

For more information on TRANSFORMERS: The Movie 20th Anniversary Special Edition DVD log onto www.TRANSFORMERSthemovieDVD.com.

To coincide with the special edition DVD release, this fall Hasbro will pay a special tribute to the rich history captured in the saga that is MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE with the TRANSFORMERS Classics line of figures. Available in November 2006, these new figures will feature updated versions of the first generation of TRANSFORMERS (or “G1”), inspired by the look and spirit of the original figures and characters.

About SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT

SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT is a global recorded music joint venture with a roster of current artists that includes a broad array of both local artists and international superstars, as well as a vast catalog that comprises some of the most important recordings in history. SONY BMG is 50% owned by Bertelsmann A.G. and 50% owned by Sony Corporation of America.

About Hasbro

Hasbro (NYSE: HAS) is a worldwide leader in children’s and family leisure time entertainment products and services, including the design, manufacture and marketing of games and toys ranging from traditional to high-tech. Both internationally and in the U.S., its PLAYSKOOL, TONKA, MILTON BRADLEY, PARKER BROTHERS, TIGER and WIZARDS OF THE COAST brands and products provide the highest quality and most recognizable play experiences in the world.

maxrael · Post by **maxrael** » Mon Jun 05, 2006 7:06 am

i've never seen TRANSFORMERS... is it any good?

Cyberstrike · Post by **Cyberstrike** » Mon Jun 05, 2006 8:27 am

maxrael wrote:i've never seen TRANSFORMERS... is it any good?

If you're expecting an action packed (and somewhat violent)
sci-fi comdey action movie, then yes.

If you're expecting a thought provoking movie, with complex 3-dimenional charatcers then no.

tadao · Post by **tadao** » Mon Jun 05, 2006 4:19 pm

Haven't ever seen the film, but an article about Welles by Damon Wise in the May 2006 UK edition of "Empire" magazine had an interesting word about it:

It seems fitting that, despite its ludicrous premise, Transformers: The Movie might say more about Welles than the work he cared so passionately about. As he took the pay cheque, and if only for a second, Welles must have seen the irony. Although compared to his early work it was junk, Unicron followed firmly in the lineage of his more famous roles, from Kane, through The Third Man's Harry Lime, to Othello, as a creature driven by ambition - voracious and insatiable.

Macbeth might be a more apt role than Othello in terms of ambition, in fact I'm not sure that the writer isn't confusing the two. Don't know about "might say more about Welles than the work he cared so passionately about" either, I'm sure no-one here would consider it more telling than F For Fake, Don Quixote, or The Other Side of the Wind, but an interesting statement nonetheless.

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