On Watchmen
Mar. 8th, 2009 11:53 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
maaruWell, it took a bit of noodling from my sister and I, but we actually convinced our parents to take us to the Watchmen movie. Ahahahahah, well it's certainly not a family movie, but it was great, all the same.
My final feeling as the credits rolled up was that of satisfaction. Yes, you heard that right, I was very, very satisfied with what I saw, and even then, this is not the full version that Snyder himself intended, considering that he had to cut out 30-ish minutes of the movie (to comply with limited running time on IMAX projectors, it seems), and boy, did I feel those missing minutes. So, I'll wait for a Director's Cut in the future, but here are some points about the movie that coloured my review:
The bad stuff:
*Those missing minutes - Snyder himself felt horrible at having to cut out Hollis Mason's murder, and I was really waiting for it. I thought it served to cement Dan's involvement with Rorschach's investigationg, because this was the closest it could get. As such, him standing by passively while Rorschach broke fingers in a bar could only be attributed to their standard operating procedure from before, instead of grimly adhering to Rorschach's method for revenge.
*The changed lines - I found myself remembering a lot of lines word-for-word and found them changed in the movie in order to hammer in a couple points that a movie audience, without the luxury of poring over individual panels to fish out answers from the context, to understand what was really going on. I thought that made the narrative a tad cheesy. The most glaring example was:
Jon: The Comedian was your father
and later:
Laurie: Mother, I know that Eddie Blake is my father.
I thought the fact that in the original, no one actually says out loud who Laurie's father is (she breaks into tears before she could even finish the word 'father'), but feeling the realization seep through the context made the moment incredibly powerful, so I was a bit disappointed.
The good stuff:
*The epic opening credits - it was great, seeing all those details, mostly mentioned only in the Under the Hood exerpts (and some just cleverly hinted, like say, a certain assassination) along with Bob Dylan's song, it really made me emotional for an introduction into the movie's mood.
*The little details/easter eggs - I don't know how many I spotted with a single viewing, but the ones I did delighted me - every copy of the 'minutemen' photograph - Comedian's, Mason's, Dreiberg's, the bird calendar, Archie's torpedo button (ahahahahah), Gunga diner blimp, etc. It made me feel that a lot of love did go into the production
Edit: Laurie's photo in Blake's closet, the 'Boys' folder on Veidt's desktop. :D
*Making the new ending work - I didn't hate the new ending, it was compact and very conservative of detail - Doc Manhattan as a device instead of the squid, made the entire set-up completely relevant to the movie. The only disadvantage I see is that, since the Bernies and Malcolm's story were not touched upon (probably cut, since I saw some clips in the production that they DID make scenes in the newsstand) and that the deaths became very neat - it was harder to feel the emotional impact compared to the strewn bodies of the squid ending. However, I was also thankful because my mother, who would cringe at every display of physical harm, didn't have to be treated to the sight of hundreds of corpses.
Hmmm, there were other details that I haven't thought of for now, which I'll probably add later (like acting and stuff - because I was more concerned with how the plot would play out). Anyway, I hope people will enjoy watching it, because I did. :cheers: It was good enough to see an adaptation after 4 or so years of reading it, I can't help but feel that this is nothing compared to older fans (who have been waiting over 20 years!!). It left me thoughtful, even people who have not read the comics - like my father - spent the better part of an hour afterwards grilling me on some points and theories.
Wow, that makes two movies based on epic comics (20th century boys and watchmen) that I've seen in a week. :D Back to thesis!!
My final feeling as the credits rolled up was that of satisfaction. Yes, you heard that right, I was very, very satisfied with what I saw, and even then, this is not the full version that Snyder himself intended, considering that he had to cut out 30-ish minutes of the movie (to comply with limited running time on IMAX projectors, it seems), and boy, did I feel those missing minutes. So, I'll wait for a Director's Cut in the future, but here are some points about the movie that coloured my review:
The bad stuff:
*Those missing minutes - Snyder himself felt horrible at having to cut out Hollis Mason's murder, and I was really waiting for it. I thought it served to cement Dan's involvement with Rorschach's investigationg, because this was the closest it could get. As such, him standing by passively while Rorschach broke fingers in a bar could only be attributed to their standard operating procedure from before, instead of grimly adhering to Rorschach's method for revenge.
*The changed lines - I found myself remembering a lot of lines word-for-word and found them changed in the movie in order to hammer in a couple points that a movie audience, without the luxury of poring over individual panels to fish out answers from the context, to understand what was really going on. I thought that made the narrative a tad cheesy. The most glaring example was:
Jon: The Comedian was your father
and later:
Laurie: Mother, I know that Eddie Blake is my father.
I thought the fact that in the original, no one actually says out loud who Laurie's father is (she breaks into tears before she could even finish the word 'father'), but feeling the realization seep through the context made the moment incredibly powerful, so I was a bit disappointed.
The good stuff:
*The epic opening credits - it was great, seeing all those details, mostly mentioned only in the Under the Hood exerpts (and some just cleverly hinted, like say, a certain assassination) along with Bob Dylan's song, it really made me emotional for an introduction into the movie's mood.
*The little details/easter eggs - I don't know how many I spotted with a single viewing, but the ones I did delighted me - every copy of the 'minutemen' photograph - Comedian's, Mason's, Dreiberg's, the bird calendar, Archie's torpedo button (ahahahahah), Gunga diner blimp, etc. It made me feel that a lot of love did go into the production
Edit: Laurie's photo in Blake's closet, the 'Boys' folder on Veidt's desktop. :D
*Making the new ending work - I didn't hate the new ending, it was compact and very conservative of detail - Doc Manhattan as a device instead of the squid, made the entire set-up completely relevant to the movie. The only disadvantage I see is that, since the Bernies and Malcolm's story were not touched upon (probably cut, since I saw some clips in the production that they DID make scenes in the newsstand) and that the deaths became very neat - it was harder to feel the emotional impact compared to the strewn bodies of the squid ending. However, I was also thankful because my mother, who would cringe at every display of physical harm, didn't have to be treated to the sight of hundreds of corpses.
Hmmm, there were other details that I haven't thought of for now, which I'll probably add later (like acting and stuff - because I was more concerned with how the plot would play out). Anyway, I hope people will enjoy watching it, because I did. :cheers: It was good enough to see an adaptation after 4 or so years of reading it, I can't help but feel that this is nothing compared to older fans (who have been waiting over 20 years!!). It left me thoughtful, even people who have not read the comics - like my father - spent the better part of an hour afterwards grilling me on some points and theories.
Wow, that makes two movies based on epic comics (20th century boys and watchmen) that I've seen in a week. :D Back to thesis!!
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no subject
Date: 2009-03-08 01:43 pm (UTC)and later:
Laurie: Mother, I know that Eddie Blake is my father.
I cringed at that part, actually. :(
Thanks for the links on the easter eggs! I had fun reading them, and learned some things I haven't before. xD
no subject
Date: 2009-03-09 06:08 am (UTC)I liked the way the comic lets you realize Laurie's parentage. I wish they'd do that in the movie too, but the new viewers will miss it. Hurm, oh well.
no subject
Date: 2009-03-09 11:12 am (UTC)Oh yes, I spotted the Boys folder and laughed to myself. No one else in the theater seemed to know the graphic novel, because I heard a lot of people whispering, trying to figure out what was going on. My sister only read the first 2 issues, I think.