Product Placement in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Product Placement in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen - When the first Transformers movie hit the theaters in the summer of 2007, people were quick to criticize the heavy use of product placement in the film. Director Michael Bay defended product placement in his first Transformers movie by arguing that we live in a world full of brand names. Yes, we do live in a branded world but is it a world where everyone drives a GM vehicle? How about a world where top-level government officials use Macbook Pros? Transformers is easily one of the strongest product placement movies to date. The whole film was essentially a two-hour GM commercial with some very noticeable Mountain Dew, Apple, and Xbox 360 plugs sprinkled in-between the Camaros and Hummers. Even Hasbro (makers of the transformers toys) sunk to a new low when they blew up a big truck of Furby toys. The product placement in the first film installment of the Transformers franchise may be blatantly obvious but what about the sequel?

Revenge of the Fallen: A Brief Synopsis
The new Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen begins with some exposition that explains how transformers and humans encountered each other in 1700 BC. The ancient transformers known as the Dynasty of the Primes traveled across the universe looking for energy that they could draw from the stars. The energy was gathered through machines known as Sun Harvesters; all life-bearing worlds were supposed to be spared from Sun Harvester use but one of the transformers ignored this rule and began building on Earth. The other Primes were not able to stop this rogue member (called the Fallen) so they sacrificed themselves to guard an energy source known as the matrix of leadership.

In the present day, the autobots remain on earth. They are working in secret with the militant organization known as NEST to rid the world of any remaining decepticons. As they track down outlaw decepticons, it becomes apparent through a message delivered by decepticon Demolisher that "the Fallen shall rise again." The new autobots that work for NEST and all the Fallen's evil buddies brought new advertising possibilities for the Transformers franchise - enter product placement.

The Fallen's Product Placement Strategy
The critics that were turned off by the first Transformers' lackluster plot and heavy product placement probably didn't change their minds about the sequel. Luckily, the direction of the product placement strategy in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen has changed. Instead of being one big car commercial for GM brands, this movie incorporates some different car manufacturers that make the automobile lineup more diverse and therefore more believable. New transformers like the Audi R8 and motorcycles such as the Ducati 848, Suzuki B-King, MV Augusta F4, and Aprilla RS don't lounge around in movies for just any reason. They were strategically placed. Most notable are the new Chevy Trax (the twins) and the Corvette Stingray concept (Sideswipe).

Communication companies like LG and Cisco got millions of dollars in exposure from the movie but hey weren't the only organizations to get some plugs in the movie. Sure, GM cars and Cisco logos are easily identified examples of product placement but what about the US military? You normally don't think much about military involvement in actions movies; it's only natural to use soldiers, tanks, jets, and ships to take down the evil alien machines. It is obvious that the Air Force, Army, Marines, and Navy were all heavily placed throughout the movie and a special mention in the end credits only serves as proof. Media like movies and television shows can serve as a public relations function for the military. The US armed forces can easily communicate its message of leadership when the good guys are soldiers that work with cool cars to save the world.

Product placement and unfavorable critic reviews aside, Revenge of the Fallen turned out to be a decent summer blockbuster. Spectacular special effects and crude humor easily make up for all the obvious product placement.