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Author Topic: The Watchmen Movie Thread  (Read 19157 times)

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Doc

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #45 on: January 27, 2009, 03:51:37 am »
I'm looking forward to that one, maybe tonight. It's cheap movie night after all.
« Last Edit: January 27, 2009, 07:49:36 am by Doc »
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dejavroom

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #46 on: March 06, 2009, 02:36:40 pm »
I have pot and it's 8 hours until I'm off to see it - so, mildly contented, yes. Even if the bloated beast fails to work as an integral movie, as I'm almost certain it will, there might be at least some nice visuals/isolated scenes to keep a man's tired brains a-buzz. In what I perceive now is a bizarre, overwrought way of expressing myself, my face will be a battlefield being fought over by the cringe expression and the idiotic, ear-to-ear grin. Please don't take my cans.
« Last Edit: March 06, 2009, 02:40:42 pm by dejavroom »
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lprkn

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #47 on: March 06, 2009, 05:27:55 pm »
I have tickets to go see it this afternoon. I think I'm at the place where as long as it doesn't suck I'll proclaim it a success.

A lot like Metallica's Death Magnetic, really.
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Toaster

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #48 on: March 06, 2009, 06:01:37 pm »
I'll keep this as non-spoilery as possible...

I read in a place that they didn't keep those things that that one guy eats, and they didn't keep the scene of those two guys riding the things through the place with the stuff in it, and the one guy's wearing that thing that fits his general theme in a really cute way. Those were some good elements.
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Ruta Bagas

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #49 on: March 06, 2009, 06:10:00 pm »
I am disappointed that I have not heard any 'who will watch the Watchmen' jokes.

That is my only opinion on the matter.
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lprkn

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #50 on: March 06, 2009, 07:55:02 pm »
Watchmen graffiti.

A somewhat exhaustive list of differences between the movie and the book. (I know, I know. Questionable Content Forums. I know.)

Edit: Also, the AV Club's take on how the movie stands up to the book.
« Last Edit: March 06, 2009, 08:00:57 pm by lprkn »
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jay-ell

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #51 on: March 09, 2009, 01:00:49 am »
Saw it.  Liked it.  

Weirdest moment: Watching a bit of gore, and realizing that while the teenage boys behind me are saying, "augh!" and covering their eyes, I've just leaned forward and said, "Sweet!"  

So...I started to post this...yesterday?  And I just sat back down at my laptop and realized that I got interrupted and never came back.  

Sigh.  
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Ben-San

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #52 on: March 09, 2009, 04:22:01 am »
Saw it yesterday. It was all right but I had some issues with it.
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JorgeFabregas

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #53 on: March 09, 2009, 05:06:46 am »
Anyone read the New Yorker review? Basically the main thrust of it was that the reviewer doesn't like comic books or comic book movies, but this is line, I thought, was kind of interesting and was interested in hearing any responses:

Quote
The problem is that Snyder, following Moore, is so insanely aroused by the look of vengeance, and by the stylized application of physical power, that the film ends up twice as fascistic as the forces it wishes to lampoon.
http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/cinema/2009/03/09/090309crci_cinema_lane
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theinevitable

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #54 on: March 09, 2009, 07:19:37 am »
coverage of this movie makes me so sad and disappointed. not in the movie, in movie reviewers/cultural critics/whoever writes about this movie/comic and do not at all understand it or what it is about.

Reviews that seem to not understand that the comic was written almost 30 years ago (watchmen is a sophomoric attempt at social satire of the bush administration?),
reviews that make weird assumptions/statements about modern comic books (watchmen should have started a movement towards comics that were not about super-heroes, but this never happened)

no good.
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Doc

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #55 on: March 09, 2009, 10:06:12 am »
I thought a lot of the movie was over the top compared to the comic at the time but then when I started discussing it with people afterwards I realised 'oh that's kind of the point, we're meant to be talking about this stuff'. Maybe we are just too used to modern movies being self referential rather than just playing it straight and expecting us to do the analysis on our own?
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dejavroom

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #56 on: March 09, 2009, 12:55:34 pm »
As for the New Yorker's review:

For the most part Lane keeps the movie at arm's length, refusing to engage with it, merely trying to describe the characters humorously, but failing.

The final part of the review is the second blow, attacking the premises upon which Watchmen is built - which is no hard work, given the current political atmosphere, and the original work's admitted shortcomings - but really, all's well: There could not be two more opposite demographics than the New Yorker's, and that of comic book readers.

Personally, I have to say that I find the review biased regarding comic books: Persepolis and Maus, being realistic, grounded in historical facts, get an automatic free pass, while Watchmen, which is not ashamed of working with fantastic elements, is treated like more of the same, run of the mill super-hero stuff, which it clearly isn't.

On to the film itself:

Even though the film keeps the story's plot, structure and resolution, the most noticeable change is in tone in certain scenes, and some fans from the original work might have a problem with that. I did, but obviously I didn't think it to be the wreck I was anticipating (or I wouldn't have paid to see it twice as I did). However, the movie sells short some of the comics cleverest moments. Also, a couple of times it gets hard to shake the feeling that you're watching a big budget high school play (the final face-off between Nite Owl and Ozymandias, which, alas, was inexistent in the comic, hurts).

Expect pacing problems. Scenes don't breathe long enough for some of the big impact moments (there are many) to resonate properly, which, in a story such as this, it's a crime (this might be fixed in the restored Director's Cut to be released on DVD).

My favorite scene was a small Walter Kovacs having his hair tousled friendly by one of his mom's customers while others waited in line (It's in the beginning of the movie, in the montage sequence, only a couple of seconds but I found it really cute, made me grin from ear to ear).

My favorite character was Doctor Manhattan. Everytime he was on screen it was win time; I think Billy Crudup did something really special there. Least favorite was Ozymandias, because he wasn't the same character as in the comics, for the worse, I think.

And that's it, I guess. If you're a fan of the comic, you have reasons to care; if you're not a fan of the comic, why bother? But, if you're a fan of cinema, then this movie offers plenty for you to chew on, both because of its successes and because of its failures. I could go on and on for pages analyzing it, but thankfully being at work prevents me from doing so.
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CortJstr

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #57 on: March 09, 2009, 01:09:07 pm »
Ozymandias seemed way too sinister in his delivery throughout the movie.

I haven't read the book in several years so I forget, how long was the plan in motion? Because that whole cancer thing seems like it would have taken a while.
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Doc

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #58 on: March 09, 2009, 01:13:50 pm »
Yeah the cancer thing was part of the original plot. I think it's implied Ozy was planning it basically from that meeting with the Comedian where he burns the map, certainly from before he retired. That makes it a bit over 10 years I think.

Deja nailed something I hadn't been able to put my finger on with letting the scenes 'breath'. All the impactful scenes are there but it's hard to appreciate them because the film never stops to linger.
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Ben-San

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Re: The Watchmen Movie Thread
« Reply #59 on: March 09, 2009, 09:06:21 pm »
Quote from: Doc on March 09, 2009, 01:13:50 pm
All the impactful scenes are there but it's hard to appreciate them because the film never stops to linger.

Unless it's lingering on Dan and Laurie boning.
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