Chicagoist: Watching Watchmen

Kaonashi

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 17:09:36 -0600

The DVD director's cut is going to weigh in at three and a half hours; I'm looking forward to it!

mr_reno

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 21:40:07 -0600

I feel the same way as Tankboy, but completely understand what Marcus is saying. I think ultimately to appeal to both those familiar with the book and those not Snyder had to make the movie he ended up making. I think it was successful for both audiences, perhaps slightly favoring those familiar with the book. I only read it last year in anticipation of the film though, and maybe not having lived with it for years and years I went in with a different mindset? beats me. good discussion

doggo

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 17:00:58 -0600

Uh, wasn't this already a graphic novel? But seriously, Hollywood needs to produce original screenplays for movies. No more remakes of perfectly good, if not awesome films, into "updated" crap. No more comic book movies. No more movies based on books... maybe.

Tankboy

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 14:22:39 -0600

Oh, as time goes on Doc Manhattan sees no reason the bother himself with even creating clothes. You could also take it as a symbol of his continued distancing from anything that could be considered "human." The only time he dons a suit after a certain point is for a government approved TV interview... What use does the most powerful man in the universe have for modesty?

Karl Klockars

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 14:16:27 -0600

I just didn't understand why sometimes there was a suit, other times a nuke-blue Speedo, other times, wang. I'm sure they go into why there's occasional wang in the graphic novel - another reason to check out the source material, I guess. But "it" must have been terribly distracting to the guys behind me, making a point to giggle every time it was on screen. They had apparently never seen a penis before. You think you're going to escape the idiots by going to a matinee at the Davis, think again... Also: The term "blue pipe" makes me Laugh Out Loud.

Tankboy

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 14:09:42 -0600

I was actually surprised at how un-distracting all that blue pipe ended up being after the first 3o seconds...

Karl Klockars

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 14:00:19 -0600

As someone who's not yet read the graphic novel (but is planning on it), I thought the movie was a success, if not a little too long. I don't know if anyone who comes into the movie after reading the GN will ever be completely happy with it - but I don't think that's possible. It's a flawed effort, but one that is so packed with ideas that it's an effort that demands you go back to the source material. The opening credits were awesome. I don't know if I've ever said that about a film before. Also: There's one more camp to this movie. That's the camp that comes out of the screening saying, "Man, there was a lot of digitized penis in that film."

Louis Frascogna

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 13:47:30 -0600

I'm agreeing with TB. Though there were a lot of things missing as with any deeply layered story, I went into the film with this mindset: 1. Were any of the major ideas from the comic book lost? Answer: I thought Rorschach was completely fleshed out, and it could have been Watchmen Part 1: Rorschach. Since it is an "under ten-hour" movie, Rorschach had to act as the archetype for everyone else's varying psychological issues. We are forced to sort of piece together the rest; Dr. Manhattan is losing touch, Night Owl II yearns for the glory years, Silk Spectre II is dealing with her mother's pushing and past glory. So they covered the damaged superhero well. As for cold war subtext, yes, my generation probably doesn't have that, but you know we are on the brink of war, it is discussed throughout the movie. Snyder has a hand tied by not being able to add footage to add context. I can't think of any thing I was disappointed with giving up in the adaptation. And in the end, I think the story did an adequate job of building up the setting to pose the tough question that our heroes are faced with. Destroy or not, tell or not. 2. Was the movie enjoyable on its own merit? Answer: Absolutely, I thought the opening credits were perfect and I could watch them over and over again. Dr. Manhattan's long soliloquy in the middle was brilliantly delivered by Billy Crudup. Again, Rorschach was perfect, and I loved him and felt for him more than I did in the book. I also enjoyed the fight scenes since they gave the impression that these people didn't just run around in capes, they actually were good at fighting crime. Finally, the ending was better. There I said it. Making Dr. Manhattan the common enemy was more effective and understandable than the book's alien invasion.

Samantha Abernethy

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 13:32:31 -0600

I agree with Marcus. They took the wrong meat. They spent too much time on the violence and gawking at Laurie, when that time could have been better used to bring in more of the subplot. Spend more on actors, less on blood.