tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post3848364190586679610..comments2023-06-06T11:09:18.464+01:00Comments on Screen Insight: Watchmen (Zack Snyder, 2009)simoncolumbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09027922399726786918noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post-16634785300390503142010-06-05T11:09:33.775+01:002010-06-05T11:09:33.775+01:00ps- 'Hallelujah' was painful.ps- 'Hallelujah' was painful.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post-87585295922158538032010-06-05T11:08:38.714+01:002010-06-05T11:08:38.714+01:00gotta agree with simon here. Being also a n00b, i ...gotta agree with simon here. Being also a n00b, i felt robbed of my life while enduring this mess.<br /><br />The thing is, the deep phiosophical lines work better in comics- i can imagine those anecdotes/reflections being amazing on paper, but simply was not converted well onto screen. <br /><br />I thought the desperately 'hip' soundtrack didnt work with the subject matter also. like, you could see what they were trying to do, but it didnt work. i think the 'times they are a'changing' intro is where it began and ended. that bit was cool.<br /><br />after that, all i saw was a few cool fight scenes among dragged-out pretentious monologues, and caracatures desperately trying to find relevance in an irrelevant world.<br /><br />in short, i just couldnt give a shit.<br /><br />Bangor RepAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post-18089047223121240682009-10-26T20:43:19.880+00:002009-10-26T20:43:19.880+00:00Emlyn ...
1) Muse on trailer: http://www.youtube...Emlyn ... <br /><br />1) Muse on trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0WqxOXwWo4<br /><br />2) Is Dr M's tackle the crux of the story? I'm sure, having got the go ahead for an 18-rated movie a willy can't have been the biggest problem. Fuckin' Cohen's Hallelujah ... someone should have said "snyder, no!"<br /><br />Hope you are enjoying the post Emlyn!simoncolumbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027922399726786918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post-41028250181953119352009-10-25T16:38:35.340+00:002009-10-25T16:38:35.340+00:00oh, and the Times they are a changin' intro is...oh, and the Times they are a changin' intro is amazing!<br />EmlynAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post-24547365639288533422009-10-25T15:49:12.220+00:002009-10-25T15:49:12.220+00:00Hi Si,
Thought I'd take a gander at this revi...Hi Si,<br /><br />Thought I'd take a gander at this review, as Watchmen is probably my film of the year. But I'm happy to admit that it's because I'm a comic book geek and read Watchmen years ago. I did, however, suspect that the film would be difficult/rubbish to a newb. Probably one of the best examples of "by a fan, for the fans" (think at one point Dr M even refers to himself in the third person as "Osterman", but they don't actually mention in the film that his real name is Osterman). <br /><br />I mainly just love it's deconstruction of Superheroes (both the book and comic). My main defense for it is "just think how bad it could have been". Snyder must have had meeting after meeting defending the right for Dr M's tackle to be out, or for Rorsharch to explode at the end thereby limiting the sequel opportunities (Hollywood money-men are, in my opinion, fuckwits and will alter source material in order to generate the green).<br /><br />Finally: Alan Moore may have stolen ideas for the darker nature of the story... maybe, but the actual Characters are homages of Charlton Characters that DC had acquired the rights to and that Alan originally wanted to use. Check out Captain Atom and The Question to find Dr Manhattan and Rorsharch.<br /><br />Oh, and unless you saw a different trailer, the song wasn't by Muse. It was "The beginning is the end is the beginning" by the Smashing Pumpkins. Off the Batman and Robin soundtrack... now that's a Superhero film.<br /><br />Keep posting, and I'll keep reading.<br /><br />Cheers<br /><br />EmlynAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post-33107360470146678852009-09-08T20:56:37.454+01:002009-09-08T20:56:37.454+01:00First off,
comic book n. A book of comics strips ...First off,<br /><br />comic book n. A book of comics strips or cartoons, often relating a sustained narrative<br /><br />'Graphic-novel' is a <i>type</i> of comic book, but nevertheless <i>is</i> a comic book.<br /><br />Secondly, I stated that the actor Jackie Earle whatever was great - it was everything that surrounded him that was the problem, thus making such a statement delivered with such intensity fall flat, negating his acting abilities and pushing it into pretentiousness. (is that a word?)<br /><br />The comparison to The Dark Knight merely shows that an adaptation of such dark subject matter - not to mention the adaptation of a 'Graphic Novel' - is not only neccessary and possible but can defy all expectations and be simply stunning ... Watchmen is not stunning.<br /><br />I take your point about Cold War relevancies - and more importantly the alternate timeline possibilities. The point that 'destroying the enemy' is not neccessarily the problem with the world is valid. But I counter that with a concern that is that maybe Dr M VS Bin Laden might actually be better ... because I really didn't give a toss about Dr M and the Russians.<br /><br />Research the different endings though ... because it is good reading. Or, maybe, read the comic book. Its only a comic book for fucks sake - hardly War & Peace.simoncolumbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027922399726786918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post-22599166635992781212009-09-08T17:46:46.951+01:002009-09-08T17:46:46.951+01:00Kudos for having a reader from Iran, jolly excitin...Kudos for having a reader from Iran, jolly exciting.Johttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07779265264692198309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post-32187591446162844042009-09-08T17:44:06.436+01:002009-09-08T17:44:06.436+01:00I may have to keep this brief given I'm at wor...I may have to keep this brief given I'm at work but that attitude may disappear out of a very high window depending on how worked up I get. Bear in mind I'll not address your points in any logical order but travel all over the place, skipping backwards and forwards like a carefree child...<br /><br />Makes perfect sense to start at the end. You say the quote could have been delivered with sadness & intensity but came across as false and pretentious. Whose fault is the delivery if not the actors? I found Jackie Earle Haley gave a performance of tremendously angry bitterness and the line works because he delivers it as such. The reason this movie shouldn't be compared to The Dark Knight is because it is a different beast entirely. I fear this may cause your eyes to roll in your head so dramatically that they won't come back but this is a graphic novel not a comic book...<br /><br />Whoops. So this is no place for a discussion about the difference between comic books and graphic novels although perhaps it is a space to chat about the difference between graphic novels and this graphic novel. I must humbly beg your pardon because I am a out of the loop on this particular subject having not actually read Watchmen but I'll quickly put some ideas in the mix before my head gets torn to shreds.<br /><br />I have only a vague understanding of where this text fits in the history of the world and thus a vague interest in the film which, if memory serves correct, was exacerbated by the trailer which was proper incredible. Essentially to my mind this is different to The Dark Knight (and other superhero films you might have quoted) because the content goes (pardon the expression) to the max, hence the 18 certificate (they're tough to get dontchaknow. There's (again you'll have to pardon my language) balls to the wall sex, tough talking language, rather extreme and graphic violence and a massively complex and intriguing series of moral and philosophical questions. This ain't your friendly neighbourhood Spider-man, surely the massive blue penis (even bigger in Imax) should have given that away...<br /><br />So here's little old me, loving both the Dark Knight and Watchmen (and Sin City and the Spider-man trilogy and the Tim Burton Batman films) but not loving The Spirit or the Punisher (or Hellboy or the Lord of the Rings Mess or Bryan Singer's Superman for those keeping count). I think the tone is different from those (and they have differences in amongst themselves) because it's nice to have different films. Nice to contrast such unpleasant themes with some garish colours. Nice to have a sexy lady is a tight yellow uniform. Nice to be true to the source material. Nice to see fights and know what is going on because there are some lights on.<br /><br />Also I think the Cold War themes are still super relevant. This idea of an alternate path for the world to travel upon is intriguing and still raises questions about how our current society might exist with a few changes (and the introduction of a bunch of vigilantes backed up by an increasingly bored all powerful God on earth). The Vietnam War, the nuclear race with the Soviets, the legacy of Tricky Dick still resonate to various degrees today. Let's enjoy a bit of a history lesson, a bit of history both subtly and conspicuously rewritten and see what we can learn to apply to the present and future. What would Doctor Manhattan do about Osama bin Laden? And would that solve the problem?<br /><br />I think that's me done for now, gonna watch some more rubbish trailers and get excited about the hype for some other rubbish film. <br /><br />P to the S I just wanted to check as I may have misread it but I don't believe you detailed the ending of the graphic novel which is awfully generous to dreadfully behind the times people such as me.Johttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07779265264692198309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2836661004273915348.post-38222050272359794202009-09-07T13:28:22.523+01:002009-09-07T13:28:22.523+01:00I have not seen this film so have no comment on it...I have not seen this film so have no comment on it. The cluster maps tool, howeve,r is very cool.Alnoreply@blogger.com