The Watchmen (film and graphic novel)

[rimaa]

Alan Moore's "Watchmen" is considered one of the greatest graphic novels of all time. As for me, I really enjoyed "Watchmen" and after viewing the trailer for the upcoming movie (due out in march 09), I'm really excited about it. I really love how the trailer starts off with Dr.Manhattan's transformation, as that was one of the more memorable scenes from the novel. I also liked how they used "The End Is the Beginning Is the End" by The Smashing Pumpkins since that song was also used in the movie Batman & Robin (another DC comic). As a result, the song reminds me of masked crime fighters and really sets the tone of the movie. The voice of Rorschach fits perfectly to what I imagined it to be when I read the novel. It's great how the trailer has his opening lines of the novel when he says "The world will look up and shout "save us", and I'll whisper "no"".

In the end, you can't judge how a movie is going to be based on how the trailer is. But since the trailer seems to indicate that they're going to be following pretty close to the graphic novel and since the source material is really amazing; I think the movie is going to be REALLY GOOD.

So what are yall's thoughts on the novel, and what do you think of the trailer?

Links:
Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watchmen
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4blSrZvPhU

[Papaya]

I can't wait to see Rorschach in action.

I love the casting choices, with the exception of Ozymandias, who I think is WAY too skinny to do the kind of stuff he did in the comics.

[Quzor]

Personally, I'm really excited to see the movie. When I saw the trailer, I knew immediately what it was, and was fidgeting around in my seat I was so excited. I'm fairly confident that it will be a good movie because if anyone has proven that they're able to do quality adaptations from graphic novel to feature film, it's Zack Snyder. That, coupled with his personal interest in the graphic novel, and his desire to stick as close to it as possible, has me feeling like it's going to be a great film.

In a recent article with Entertainment Magazine, the following was revealed:

"...That school still includes Watchmen creator Moore, who has disavowed the film because of his general disdain for Hollywood, and his long-standing conflicts with DC Comics, a Warner Bros. sister company. ''Watchmen works perfectly fine as a comic,'' says the British scribe, who has scrubbed his name from the film's credits and abdicated his royalty check to Gibbons. 'There are things we did that could only work in a comic, and were indeed designed to show off the things that comics can do that other media can't.'" (Read the full article here: http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20213273,00.html There's also a Q&A with Moore available to read on the same site.)

Even if Moore is wrong, and those things "that comics can do that other media can't" can indeed be pulled off with CG and other movie-making techniques, it is still upsetting to hear that the creator of this great story does not want any association with the film. For me, movies of this nature always carry so much more weight and promise when the people who originally wrote them share comparable excitement with the fans of their stories.

Regardless of all of that, the trailer makes this appear to be a movie worth seeing, and one that could completely change the face of comic book movies as we know it. Unfortunately, this movie will have a big obstacle to overcome; can a movie adapted from a graphic novel heralded as possibly the greatest of all time, do any justice to that story itself? If it can, Snyder will probably be heralded as one of the greatest adaptive film makers of our generation. If it can't, fans will inevitably drive this movie into the dirt as one of the worst of all time (LXG style), and Snyder may not have a career left.

We'll have to wait and see what the future holds for 6 March 2009.

[Sokar]

I don't like the look of the trailer, too much slow-motion and CG for me. I think Watchmen will do very well though, just because of the hype. All Synder needs to do is to stick to the source material for most fans of the graphic novel, which is not that hard. Plenty of people are just happy that it's being made.

[james0246]

Since this is just going to be a 'straight' adapatation (more or less), I am only partially interested in the film. More than anything, I am interested in the different ending that Synder is going to use.

[Papaya]

Originally Posted by Sokar

I don't like the look of the trailer, too much slow-motion and CG for me. I think Watchmen will do very well though, just because of the hype. All Synder needs to do is to stick to the source material for most fans of the graphic novel, which is not that hard. Plenty of people are just happy that it's being made.

I think most people are afraid there's going to be too much slow-mo, like 300. I personally think most of the slow-mo was to fit in with the pace of the trailer's music.

[Southern Cross]

Originally Posted by Papaya

I think most people are afraid there's going to be too much slow-mo, like 300. I personally think most of the slow-mo was to fit in with the pace of the trailer's music.

I agree!

Man, I remember how seeing the trailer during the 'The Dark Knight' silenced the jam packed audience before the movie even began. It was a mesmerizing sight.

I'm really looking forward to the movie. As a matter of fact, I'm glad that the movie industry in general has been showing a lot of good life on the contrary to what I was nearly driven to believe at the turn of the century. For the most part, it's been on a good roll. I'm pretty confident that they'll be able to keep it up with this movie.

[Clarste]

Originally Posted by Quzor

Even if Moore is wrong, and those things "that comics can do that other media can't" can indeed be pulled off with CG and other movie-making techniques...

I'm pretty sure what he's talking about has absolutely to do with CG or other special effects. Remember, he's the writer, not the artist. What he's talking about likely has to do with panel composition and size, pacing of text relative to image, and other aspects of the mixed visual/temporal medium that is the comic. No amount of twisting is ever going to get a movie to do that, simply because a movie by definition moves at its own pace and requires at least a somewhat realistic connection between dialog and action. The temporality of a comic is relative to the reader and his/her attention, whereas the temporality of a movie is relative to the director and the illusion of causality.

Bleh. In short, movies are different from comics, and the somewhat widespread belief that comics are merely a kind of storyboard for movies is probably exactly why Moore is disassociating himself from this project. As an anime and manga fan who's seen hundreds of anime adaptations of manga and thus been exposed to the limitations of each medium, I'd have to agree with him.

On the other hand, I have no problem with the idea that this could be a good movie. I'm moderately excited about it, and I'll certainly watch it when it comes out, but in the end it's going to be different from the comic, and will have to sacrifice quite a bit of what made Watchmen Watchmen in order to be a movie. With any luck, the director will replace those bits with things that can only be done in movies rather than leave those gaps empty.

[raikage]

Originally Posted by james0246

Since this is just going to be a 'straight' adapatation (more or less), I am only partially interested in the film. More than anything, I am interested in the different ending that Synder is going to use.

...?

I understand why they felt they had to change the ending, since the current one might not be... comfortable for mainstream movie audiences, but the ending is really what makes the story.

[rimaa]

Originally Posted by raikage

...?

I understand why they felt they had to change the ending, since the current one might not be... comfortable for mainstream movie audiences, but the ending is really what makes the story.

yeah I completely agree. The "plot twist" at the end was really something but it may be too much for some audiences'.

And Regarding Moore's comments on the file; this is not the first time hes said something like that. He said something similar about the film version of "V for Vendetta", a movie I really enjoyed.

[james0246]

Originally Posted by raikage

...?

I understand why they felt they had to change the ending, since the current one might not be... comfortable for mainstream movie audiences, but the ending is really what makes the story.

The new ending, while somehow different (no one currently knows how it is different, except that the confrontation in Antartica is the same, as well as the outcomes of that confrontation), is supposed to still be exactly the same in scope, just different details. I am guessing that it will be the same tpye of twist only more world wide, rather than just focused on America.

[Hunter]

Originally Posted by james0246

More than anything, I am interested in the different ending that Synder is going to use.

... What? ಠ_ಠ

[Shii]

Hey guys, guess what? Fox is going to get the movie cancelled!

http://www.variety.com/article/VR111...goryid=13&cs=1

[Royal_Devil]

They don't want it canceled, they just want a cut of the profits. Why get rid of it when you stand to make profits, especially with all the bombs Fox has had this summer. This may delay the film but it's highly doubtful that it'll prevent it from ever being released

[Shii]

Originally Posted by Royal_Devil

They don't want it canceled, they just want a cut of the profits.

Why would they say that they want it cancelled, then? Are they aching for bad publicity?

[Daughter!]

Assuming I do get the chance to see this movie, I hope they don't ruin such an amazing comic. I saw 300 and did not like it. I found it to be way too macho, homophobic, and down right stupid for me to enjoy. Watchmen however is watered down compared to that so I'm hoping for a movie that isn't being made to create memes on the internet. "Spartaaaaaaaa llololololololololo" isn't that funny.

[Royal_Devil]

Originally Posted by Shii

Why would they say that they want it cancelled, then? Are they aching for bad publicity?

The original article about this was misinformed and now most articles about it are. They're not canceling it, they're negotiating how to cut the profits

I saw 300 and did not like it. I found it to be way too macho, homophobic, and down right stupid for me to enjoy.

I hear this a lot. Wasn't the original comic like that?

[Quzor]

Originally Posted by Shii

Hey guys, guess what? Fox is going to get the movie cancelled!

http://www.variety.com/article/VR111...goryid=13&cs=1

Yeah, this is one of the more ridiculous articles I've read in a while. In the article, Fox says it would rather see the film killed than earn a percentage of the box office profits and then, in the very same letter, states a direct instance where the exact opposite was true (Dukes of Hazzard, 1974).

This is all about money. Fox will either suspend litigation once they're awarded a percentage, or the judge will deny Fox's right to a percentage because of the small difference in titles ("Watchmen" v. "The Watchmen"). Either way, the movie is going to be released.

This is actually a pretty bullshit move on Fox's part. They waited until the entire film had been shot, and moved into post-production, and now bring this lawsuit against Warner Bros. in regards to the film. It would seem that what they're trying to do is get their hands on the film, so that they can finish post production and release it themselves.

[Sokar]

Originally Posted by Royal_Devil

I hear this a lot. Wasn't the original comic like that?

Most of Frank Miller's comics can be described as macho and somewhat misgynostic. There's even a "whores whores whores" meme that describes his writing, which is rather exaggerated imo, as memes tend to do. The claims of homophobic in the original comic is based on one line that Spartans insults Athenians as people who like little boys, which is extremely historically inaccurate. Other than that there's really nothing homophobic about 300, but it is very macho in tone, which combined with that one line can seem rather homophobic to some people.

[Royal_Devil]

Originally Posted by Sokar

Most of Frank Miller's comics can be described as macho and somewhat misgynostic. There's even a "whores whores whores" meme that describes his writing, which is rather exaggerated imo, as memes tend to do. The claims of homophobic in the original comic is based on one line that Spartans insults Athenians as people who like little boys, which is extremely historically inaccurate. Other than that there's really nothing homophobic about 300, but it is very macho in tone, which combined with that one line can seem rather homophobic to some people.

So in other words the 300 movie is the way it is because of the source material. If so, I don't see how Synder can be faulted except maybe for too much slow mo and that who story with the queen