THE MOTHERFRAKKKIN WATCHMEN PREVIEW

sprunkner · Post by **sprunkner** » Sat Jul 19, 2008 1:15 pm

http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/watchmen/high.html

Some definite love to Dave Gibbons with the scenes. Lots of the Vietnam stuff.

And a naked Dr. Manhatten in the trailer, if only for a few seconds.

I thought this was a Christmas movie? Why March? Why would the most anticipated comic-book-movie frakkin ever come out in movie slow season?

Although the Smashing Pumpkins bugged me a bit.

Post by **Best First** » Sat Jul 19, 2008 1:41 pm

I think i saw his c*ck!

ahem.

Yep.

Hell Yep.

Yeppity hell yeppity yep yep.

0101010101010101010101111111111111111111

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Sat Jul 19, 2008 2:10 pm

Looks to have potential.

Still not entirely convinced, though. Costumes are pretty much nailed, and the action scenes / Mars look like they're in good hands. But until I see actual acting footage, judgement well and truly reserved.

If Rorschach talks like that through the entire film, it could get annoying fast.

But yeah, trailer looks kwal. But then so did the trailer for AvP2.

Post by **Best First** » Sat Jul 19, 2008 2:11 pm

hmm.

indeed.

Post by **spiderfrommars** » Sat Jul 19, 2008 9:29 pm

Er, that trailer actually made me nearly cry. In a good way.

Please be a good film.

PLEASE.

sprunkner · Post by **sprunkner** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 5:47 am

Ehh, 300 was EXACTLY like the source material.

Big dumb, homoerotic.

If Zac Snyder can be that faithful, then I assume Watchmen will follow closely, and have also some bitchin' effects, weird lighting, and slow-motion fight sequences.

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 9:35 am

You know what really strikes me about this trailer?

The fact that it doesn't feel like a comic book movie trailer. It just looks like the trailer for a movie that I REALLY want to see.

Impactor returns 2.0 · Post by **Impactor returns 2.0** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 12:02 pm

the screen play is done by this guy:

Seriously, David Hayter... David provides Snakes voice in MGS4

Can someone explain watchmen to me, as i know squat, trailler looked good tho!

KingMob · Post by **KingMob** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 12:21 pm

Oh **** that looked good. Looks like they got a lot of bits in there that seemed like they'd be difficult to film! Liked the accuracy of the shots to the panels, and all the cogs and watch-interior gubbins running into the logo.

You should read the comic, Impy!

Watchmen...It's set in an alternate 80's where the West and the Soviets are basically winding up to start a nuclear war on each other, and in a world where two groups of superheroes have existed. The first 'watchmen' were about in the 50s, and the second group in the 70s. Apart from the two that were useful to the US military-industrial interest, by the 80s the rest all get outlawed and retire - except one, who becomes a wanted vigilante. The plot follows his investigation into a murder and everything just completely snowballs from there.
It has some of the best technical sequential storytelling in comics, art that pisses all over everything else ever in terms of realising a complete world and lots of fascinating characters.

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 12:42 pm

Impactor returns 2.0 wrote:the screen play is done by this guy:

Seriously, David Hayter... David provides Snakes voice in MGS4

Can someone explain watchmen to me, as i know squat, trailler looked good tho!

It would be impossible to recommend Watchmen highly enough. Pick up the trade. If you don't like it, I will personally refund your money.

Unless you buy the Absolute Edition, in which case, you're on your own.

Impactor returns 2.0 · Post by **Impactor returns 2.0** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 2:00 pm

Ok, is this what I need?

http://thebookcorner.net/epages/eshop10 ... hic%201%22

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 2:12 pm

Impactor returns 2.0 wrote:Ok, is this what I need?

http://thebookcorner.net/epages/eshop10 ... hic%201%22

Yep, that'd do it.

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 2:18 pm

KingMob wrote:superheroes

I've bitchslapped people for using that word in connection to the story before.

Only one of them's technically "super".

I'm actually re-reading it at the moment. But am having to limit myself to a chapter a day, because it's so damn brilliant that if I don't I'll get nothing else done.

Can't remember the last time I was this scared for a movie. Anything less than excellent and it'll just completely tarnish the name in the eyes of the unwashed masses. "Oh, Watchmen - I heard of that. My mate said it was rubbish."

Nice that they're releasing Tales of the Black Freighter as a DVD animation alongside the film. I think I saw somewhere that they're doing a fake documentary to incorporate all the Under The Hood stuff, too. Genius way of getting the info out there. Would lose so much depth with all that stuff hacked out completely.

Impactor returns 2.0 · Post by **Impactor returns 2.0** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 2:37 pm

cheers Smooth - right, thats somthing else to do next week...before I start work...bah

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 2:43 pm

Impactor returns 2.0 wrote:cheers Smooth - right, thats somthing else to do next week...before I start work...bah

Glad to be of assistance. Enjoy!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 10:37 pm

Brendocon wrote:If Rorschach talks like that through the entire film, it could get annoying fast.

According to what's in the Wikipedia entry for Watchmen, what you hear of Rorschach's dialogue in that trailer is more likely to be a voice over of Alan Moore reading from an excerpt of the 2002 film The Mindscape of Alan Moore.

Legion · Post by **Legion** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 10:46 pm

am really, really, trying hard not to get too excited about this!

the trailer looks really good but i'm so concerened that the film itself it gonna be *****...

sprunkner · Post by **sprunkner** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 10:57 pm

yep.

I remember saying: "George Lucas knows what he's doing. Episode 1 will be just as good as Ep. 4"

Nope.

But then, the next time I got this excited for a movie was Fellowship of the Ring, and that remains my very favorite flick ever.

Two out of three?

Post by **spiderfrommars** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 10:59 pm

The video diaries on the Watchmen website make it look pretty faithful.

sprunkner · Post by **sprunkner** » Sun Jul 20, 2008 11:01 pm

oh yea, the storyboard bits where they cut up the comic into it are fantastic.

Plus, Dave Gibbons was really involved.

Don't know if it's so much a script as just an abridgment of the comic.

Shanti418 · Post by **Shanti418** » Mon Jul 21, 2008 8:55 pm

It looks awesome in a "Hey, it's that bad ass Graphic Novel in live action format," type way, but.....I dunno.

It's like, I'm pretty sure I'M going to like it. That doesn't mean that it couldn't still flop with the general public, though.

Here's one analysis that leaves me worried:

1.
I’m pretty sure that any “faithful” film version of Watchmen is going to be not-for-me because I think that the story told is deeply, deeply rooted in its native medium. Moving it to film requires a lot more than a simple transposition of scenes: it necessitates a ground-up revision of the work, perhaps commenting more on cinematic clichés and how the form speaks to its audience versus using the comic book as a storyboard.

2.
I’m also pretty ******* sure the guy who made Dawn of the Dead and 300 ain’t gonna do that.

So without the metatextual comic book commentary (possibly) can Watchman not only stand but shine on its own as "ex superheroes come out of retirement to investigate a killing yada yada yada Ozymandis." amd that's it?

I don't know. But Silk Spectre is hot.

Oh yeah, another thing that worried me?

sprunkner wrote:Although the Smashing Pumpkins bugged me a bit.

TOTALLY a song from the Batman and Robin movie soundtrack. You can't get much more bad superhero movie mojo than that.

Snowcat · Post by **Snowcat** » Mon Jul 21, 2008 10:28 pm

Plus the fact that Doc Manhattan looked like something out of ReBoot.

KingMob · Post by **KingMob** » Tue Jul 22, 2008 4:16 pm

The story itself transcends superhero tropes, but that's what they are. If Rorscharch and Nite-Owl aren't superheroes then neither are the Question and Blue Beetle etc etc. [composite word including 'f*ck'], Batman can't explodo people with the power of his mind, he's just a rich guy whose parents are dead. I suppose, 'in-universe' they're referred to as, what, masked adventurers? Crimefighters? Outlaw vigilantes? That the word/concept of 'superhero' doesn't exist in their world is a given, but to us, or to me at any rate, experiencing it as a reader, they're superheroes and it's a superhero story. Sorry for rambling.

It probably is too much to hope for, but i reckon there's signs of the metatextual conceit being played out in this movie - check out the costumes! Nite-Owl and Ozymandias look like they come from the same conceptual school as that which created the 90's Batman movies. The original Minutemen look like they could hang out with the cast of the 60's Batman series. That ain't an accident. In that veign, the music choice for the trailer would then make more sense beyond simply mood music. Probably stretching a bit with that one.

I think any meta-commentary is going to be subtle, rather than overt and structural. Like the analysis said, there's basically no other way to do it.

edit:

Rebis wrote:
Brendocon wrote:If Rorschach talks like that through the entire film, it could get annoying fast.
According to what's in the Wikipedia entry for Watchmen, what you hear of Rorschach's dialogue in that trailer is more likely to be a voice over of Alan Moore reading from an excerpt of the 2002 film The Mindscape of Alan Moore.

Can't be. Sounds nothing like him...His version of Rorscarch is pretty cool though, sounds pantomime gruesome, all guttural and moist. No way you could use it in a movie, however. Unless you alter it so much it's barely recognisable...

Post by **spiderfrommars** » Tue Jul 22, 2008 10:37 pm

Plus Alan Moore wants nothing to do with it.

Lets hope this is the one adaptation he'll actually like.

As if.

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Tue Jul 22, 2008 10:58 pm

spiderfrommars wrote:Plus Alan Moore wants nothing to do with it.

Lets hope this is the one adaptation he'll actually like.

As if.

Unless somebody ties him down, Clockwork Orange style, he won't like or dislike it.

Metal Vendetta · Post by **Metal Vendetta** » Wed Jul 23, 2008 11:46 am

Doubleplus good.

Loses half a mark for Smashing Pumpkins, but otherwise excellent.

*wanders off to redub the trailer with PWEI*

Post by **Best First** » Wed Jul 23, 2008 1:53 pm

Everythings Cool?

Metal Vendetta · Post by **Metal Vendetta** » Wed Jul 23, 2008 2:17 pm

Been having a try with The Fuses Have Been Lit - which almost fits, but not quite...I'll try Everything's Cool too. If I get something that works I'll stick it on youTube

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Wed Jul 23, 2008 3:36 pm

Their Law?

Post by **Best First** » Wed Jul 23, 2008 3:52 pm

Trouble by Shampoo?

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THE MOTHERFRAKKKIN WATCHMEN PREVIEW

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