Watchmen the Movie [R]

Discussion in 'Movies, TV and Music' started by TheSlipperyOne, Jul 17, 2008.

  1. Demosthenes

    Demosthenes Member+

    May 12, 2003
    Berkeley, CA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I don't know... Hellboy, Ghost Rider, the Shadow, Barb Wire, Tank Girl, Judge Dredd, and the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen were all largely unknown to general movie audiences. Daredevil, Elektra and the Punisher aren't exactly cultural icons. But they've all had movies. Most of which sucked, and most of which failed pretty badly.

    EDIT: Also Blade. His movies did well, but I don't think most people had ever heard of the character before the movies came out.

    EDIT AGAIN: OMG, also the Crow, the Mask, Spawn... I keep thinking of more.
     
  2. NoodlesMacintosh

    NoodlesMacintosh New Member

    Aug 24, 2004
    Salt Lake City
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    I grew up reading Marvel comics and even then I had no idea who Blade was.

    But all those characters were established in running series save for LEG. And even then LEG was based around already-created fictional characters. Sure, there were plenty of people with no experience when it came to them but there were still backstories there to be had, different interpretations and characterizations to see. Watchmen is being based on a self-contained comic that had a limited run. It's not just that Watchmen is unknown to the general public, it's that even if the general public wanted to know about it there's only one place, one creator, one run they could reference to.

    Really, the closest parallel out of those examples is [shudder] Barb Wire. That's the one that had a fat guy in a bulldozer shovel, right?
     
  3. Demosthenes

    Demosthenes Member+

    May 12, 2003
    Berkeley, CA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I don't see how it makes a difference. If people have never heard of the Watchmen, they'll go into the film with no expectations beyond those set up by the film's promotion. The same thing went for people who had never heard of Tank Girl, or Ghost Rider, or the Crow. Actually, it's far easier for an uninitiated viewer to familiarize herself with the Watchmen, because she can just go into Barnes and Noble and buy the book. It's a lot harder with an ongoing series, because it's harder to know where to start and how much to read.
     
  4. minorthreat

    minorthreat Member

    Jan 1, 2001
    NYC
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    [​IMG]
     
  5. os_mutante

    os_mutante Moderator
    Staff Member

    Aug 8, 2003
    City of Bad Carls
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    FC Barcelona
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    Yeah. Put me in the camp of low expectations. I don't think any movie adaption could possibly match the joy of reading this story in its original comic book form, but I do think it's possible that a great movie adaption could be made. From the trailers I've seen, and from the other movies the director has made, I don't have high hopes. It looks like it has too much slick, bullet-time sequences. The costumes are too much gloss, not enough grunge. And the voices for Dr. Manhattan and Ozy are just, I don't know, young or something. I really don't like any of the casting except *maybe* Crudup, this is a movie that needs great character actors, not just actors who look good dressed up in superhero costumes, deadpanning their lines over dramatic music. Don't get me wrong, I love the new Batman movies, but Watchmen as a movie would be better served if it was made less like The Dark Knight and more like an espionage/thriller movie, like No Way Out or the Harrison Ford "Jack Ryan" flicks. Something with a more serious tone, not an "everyone is a badass" tone.


    As it looks, it'll be fun for those of us to watch it, but mostly on a "ooh, that looks just like the comic panel!" level. For those who've never read it, it'll probably come off as a Dark Knight with more characters and a slightly heavier storyline.

    Hope I'm wrong though.

    I'll be pleased if the actual tone of the movie is a little more hyper-realistic than what we can guess it will be from the trailers.
     
  6. Steve Holroyd

    Steve Holroyd New Member

    Apr 19, 2003
    New Jersey
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    Anyone catch this?

    Now what? Delay in release? One source said Fox may get to distribute...but will WB settle for that?
     
  7. nicephoras

    nicephoras A very stable genius

    Fucklechester Rangers
    Jul 22, 2001
    Eastern Seaboard of Yo! Semite
    Oh, there have been workings of Sandman out there for a while, but no one's been happy with any of them. Which makes sense - half of Gaiman's storyline have no center, really, and the other half don't make for good films. Season of mists is the one that comes closest, but it wouldn't make a good movie at all. While the Kindly Ones doesn't work without all the previous setups.
    Oh, and I completely agree - Gaiman's writing is very precocious. I enjoyed his Shakespeare Sandman stuff the least, even though that's what won him awards. However, that being said, the Sandman's death and his subsequent funeral packed more of an emotional punch than anything I've seen in comics. Its not even terribly close.
    Incidentally, if didn't like Gaiman's Susano-o interpretation, I hope you didn't read Carey's Lucifer. :p
     
  8. Demosthenes

    Demosthenes Member+

    May 12, 2003
    Berkeley, CA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I guess it doesn't count since it's not a comic, but Gaiman's novel CORALINE is being made into an animated feature.
     
  9. nicephoras

    nicephoras A very stable genius

    Fucklechester Rangers
    Jul 22, 2001
    Eastern Seaboard of Yo! Semite
    Well, Stardust was already made into a movie, so hardly his first foray. :p
    I had thought Coraline was a children's book; I've never read it. Also, I'll add that while I read American Gods, I didn't find it nearly as amazing as some other people did. It dragged on a lot and seemed to be a long aside prompted by the meeting of all those gods in Season of Mists.

    Now that I think about it, some sort of short film about Hob's life would be pretty cool. Although, if they can extend a short story by Fitzgerald into the 2.5 hour Benjamin Button, Hollywood can (and will, sadly) do anything.
     
  10. os_mutante

    os_mutante Moderator
    Staff Member

    Aug 8, 2003
    City of Bad Carls
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    While I enjoy Gaiman, please for the love of God don't make Sandman movies. The epidemic of emo kids in America is bad enough at it is.
     
  11. Cabster22

    Cabster22 New Member

    Feb 2, 2007
    Washington, DC
    I've been happy with the casting so far. Apparently Jackie Earle Haley really badly wanted the part of Rorschach and killed it in his audition. The only one I thought was questionable was Malin Akerman. Freakshow's wife? Seriously??
     
  12. nicephoras

    nicephoras A very stable genius

    Fucklechester Rangers
    Jul 22, 2001
    Eastern Seaboard of Yo! Semite
    Actually, if those movies were made, it'd probably decrease the amount of emo kids, since the movies would likely be terrible.
     
  13. Dante

    Dante Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 19, 1998
    Upstate NY
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    So FOX has said they want to halt the movies release, Warner countered by saying see you in court mother********ers.
     
  14. riverplate

    riverplate Member+

    Jan 1, 2003
    Corona, Queens
    Club:
    CA River Plate
    Attorneys: 'Watchmen' Settlement Talks Productive - Associated Press

     
  15. spejic

    spejic Cautionary example

    Mar 1, 1999
    San Rafael, CA
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    It's meant for older kids, but it is a very fine read for adults as well. If you have read Gaiman's short stories you will be familiar with the writing style. I strongly recommend it.
     
  16. riverplate

    riverplate Member+

    Jan 1, 2003
    Corona, Queens
    Club:
    CA River Plate
    Studios Try to Settle ‘Watchmen’ Dispute - N.Y. Times

     
  17. Demosthenes

    Demosthenes Member+

    May 12, 2003
    Berkeley, CA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The Crow was terrible, but it didn't seem to matter.
     
  18. Dante

    Dante Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 19, 1998
    Upstate NY
    Club:
    Juventus FC
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    United States
    My opinion of you has fallen greatly.
     
  19. Demosthenes

    Demosthenes Member+

    May 12, 2003
    Berkeley, CA
    Nat'l Team:
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    Because I pointed out that the Crow was a terrible movie? SRSLY?
     
  20. nicephoras

    nicephoras A very stable genius

    Fucklechester Rangers
    Jul 22, 2001
    Eastern Seaboard of Yo! Semite
    I like Gaiman's comics a lot more than his prose. And, truth be told, I think his run on Sandman leads people to overrate him.
     
  21. nicephoras

    nicephoras A very stable genius

    Fucklechester Rangers
    Jul 22, 2001
    Eastern Seaboard of Yo! Semite
    Yeah, but that movie coincided with the Cure, Sandman, all of it. Besides, I highly doubt Hollywood will make Sandman nearly as emo as they did the Crow. (Which I've never read but I agree, the move was bad.)
     
  22. Dr. Know

    Dr. Know Member+

    Dec 5, 2005
    Macondo
    Didn't you know? Emo is out, vampire is in.

    [​IMG]
     
  23. JeremyEritrea

    JeremyEritrea Member+

    Jun 29, 2006
    Takoma Park, MD
    Club:
    DC United
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    United States
    I just saw a new trailer for Watchmen during the AFC playoff game.
     
  24. Dante

    Dante Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 19, 1998
    Upstate NY
    Club:
    Juventus FC
    Nat'l Team:
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    It was far from terrible... and the Crow was more Goth then Emo.
     

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