Watchmen...Have you seen it yet??

[Prince Sphinc-Tor]

Well I saw it this morning....It was really good and stayed very close to the original story with some variations but none too major.

 

I don't think I'm letting any cats out of the bag in this post.

 

After waiting over 20 years for the movie to FINALLY come out, I think it was well worth the wait....I'll probably see it again.

 

Tell the forum what you thought.

[Rushman14]

QUOTE (Prince Sphinc-Tor @ Mar 6 2009, 12:50 PM)

Well I saw it this morning....It was really good and stayed very close to the original story with some variations but none too major. I don't think I'm letting any cats out of the bag in this post. After waiting over 20 years for the movie to FINALLY come out, I think it was well worth the wait....I'll probably see it again. Tell the forum what you thought.

I heard its long. did it feel long?

[Prince Sphinc-Tor]

QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Mar 6 2009, 03:06 PM)

QUOTE (Prince Sphinc-Tor @ Mar 6 2009, 12:50 PM) Well I saw it this morning....It was really good and stayed very close to the original story with some variations but none too major. I don't think I'm letting any cats out of the bag in this post. After waiting over 20 years for the movie to FINALLY come out, I think it was well worth the wait....I'll probably see it again. Tell the forum what you thought. I heard its long. did it feel long? Yes...it's 2 hours 40 minutes.   I saw it with my wife who has never even touched the book and she liked it.   Fans of the book should like it, but some will surely hate it. The big question will be if people who are unaware of it will like it...That's a real toss up.   It replicates, and tells the story well, but it is long and unlike a book which you can put down and pick back up at any time, movie goers are stuck in the theater. So if they find it long or boring you can almost be assured of a bad review.   If it was any shorter it would have suffered terribly, any longer...movie goers might.

[Stormtron]

My wife hasn't read the book either and she loved it too. It didn't feel as long as it was to me, but then again I was geeked for it. I was kind of worried about the changed ending, but it actually might've been.....better. Edited March 6, 2009 by Storm Shadow

[Prince Sphinc-Tor]

QUOTE (Storm Shadow @ Mar 6 2009, 04:24 PM)

My wife hasn't read the book either and she loved it too. It didn't feel as long as it was to me, but then again I was geeked for it. I was kind of worried about the changed ending, but it actually might've been.....better.

At first I wasn't too crazy about the end...but after thinking about it I agree...It might actually be a better ending to the story, although I felt it was slightly anticlimactic and really not very exciting....It certainly would have been more believable to those who survived.

[SiriusRushFan]

Well, me and my g/f have heard about the Watchmen a couple times over the years but never knew exactly how the storyline went or anything so, we're both kinda like your wives I guess, and will go into the theater as Watchmen n00bs, Sunday probably.

[syrinxpriest 2112]

It was an amazing movie. Rorschach was just as badass as I hoped he'd be.

[rushgoober]

I'd never heard of The Watchmen before previews came out a little while back. I thought it was great!

[Territorial_Game]

I heard through my roommates that there is an abundance of blue weiner. Not for me.

[PhilCastro]

QUOTE (Territorial_Game @ Mar 9 2009, 01:36 AM)

I heard through my roommates that there is an abundance of blue weiner. Not for me.

 

[Del_Duio]

I saw it Friday night and thought it was better than it was going to be. I like the book a lot, but I have to admit that people who never read it are going to be VERY lost at the movie, since so much is not explored and so much is left out.

 

Case in point, my buddy saw it yesterday and called me afterwards to explain just what it was that he saw haha.

 

 

 

*SPOILERS*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I like the changes they made though, like the non Mad-Max way Rorscach deals with the killer with the dogs.

[Del_Duio]

QUOTE (Storm Shadow @ Mar 6 2009, 04:24 PM)

My wife hasn't read the book either and she loved it too. It didn't feel as long as it was to me, but then again I was geeked for it. I was kind of worried about the changed ending, but it actually might've been.....better.

SPOILERS REDUX

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The only thing I don't like about the ending was that there was no real aftermath of the destruction of 6 major cities. We get a televised speech, a few peace posters and that's it. What?! There was no weight to what had just happened with anyone. 10 minutes after it happens we see one rebuilding scene (courteousy of Veigt ent.) I don't know, that was pretty weak.

[Del_Duio]

QUOTE (Territorial_Game @ Mar 9 2009, 12:36 AM)

I heard through my roommates that there is an abundance of blue weiner. Not for me.

Yep you heard right. There were a few (of the same) hecklers who thought it was funny every time they showed it.

 

It got annoying fast. Hrmph.

[Del_Duio]

QUOTE (syrinxpriest 2112 @ Mar 7 2009, 07:29 PM)

It was an amazing movie. Rorschach was just as badass as I hoped he'd be.

Yeah he was everything I wanted him to be and more. I'm really glad too because at first I thought his voice would be as bad as Bale's Batman impression but thankfully that's not the case.

 

And holy shit the guy they got to play him looks EXACTLY like he does in the book, down to the little bandaid on his head. Kudos for that.

[udanax]

that was one cool movie. i think im going to pick up the graphic novels now... Rorschach is such a badass... I just thought I would throw that in there, and the cinematography is awesome in that movie

[rushgoober]

QUOTE (Del_Duio @ Mar 9 2009, 05:18 AM)

I have to admit that people who never read it are going to be VERY lost at the movie, since so much is not explored and so much is left out.

I never read the book/graphic novel/comic book/whatever, but I didn't feel lost at all.

 

*SPOILERS BELOW*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don't get me wrong - I enjoyed the movie a lot regardless, but the one thing I really would have liked to be explained, however, was more about super powers.

 

For example, I really appreciated how they went back and explained how Dr. Manhattan became the way he was, but for all the other costumed heroes - well, they went back and did origins on some of them, but there was a tremendous amount left unexplained. Like how did Rorscach's mask do what it did? From what I could perceive, Dr. Manhattan was the only one with any REAL power. Besides having cool costumes and nifty gadgets, how did the others seem to have all that super strength? Like the woman - all she had was some hot latex outfit. How did that allow her to kill throngs of men twice her size over and over and over again without a bruise?

 

I understand suspending disbelief over what is essentially a comic book, but most great comic book movies like Spiderman, X-Men, etc., at least describe WHY these people are able to do what they do. They showed the older generation of heroes getting older and retiring, so they're clearly only human. I understand their desires to be heroes and help mankind and be vigilantes, but does that give them inhuman super strength, and in one case super speed? Is that explored more in the comic book? I was surprised as the movie was long enough and enough history was added in to explain things that they could have explained that as well.

[Del_Duio]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Mar 9 2009, 08:01 AM)

QUOTE (Del_Duio @ Mar 9 2009, 05:18 AM) I have to admit that people who never read it are going to be VERY lost at the movie, since so much is not explored and so much is left out. I never read the book/graphic novel/comic book/whatever, but I didn't feel lost at all.   *SPOILERS BELOW*                   Don't get me wrong - I enjoyed the movie a lot regardless, but the one thing I really would have liked to be explained, however, was more about super powers.   For example, I really appreciated how they went back and explained how Dr. Manhattan became the way he was, but for all the other costumed heroes - well, they went back and did origins on some of them, but there was a tremendous amount left unexplained. Like how did Rorscach's mask do what it did? From what I could perceive, Dr. Manhattan was the only one with any REAL power. Besides having cool costumes and nifty gadgets, how did the others seem to have all that super strength? Like the woman - all she had was some hot latex outfit. How did that allow her to kill throngs of men twice her size over and over and over again without a bruise?   I understand suspending disbelief over what is essentially a comic book, but most great comic book movies like Spiderman, X-Men, etc., at least describe WHY these people are able to do what they do. They showed the older generation of heroes getting older and retiring, so they're clearly only human. I understand their desires to be heroes and help mankind and be vigilantes, but does that give them inhuman super strength, and in one case super speed? Is that explored more in the comic book? I was surprised as the movie was long enough and enough history was added in to explain things that they could have explained that as well. SPOILERS AGAIN     If I remember right, they explain Rorscach's mask in the book. I think he found his first one in a trash can in an alley but his good one he gets this special cloth from somewhere and I guess the patterns move due to the heat from wearing it (although it looks way more like it moves due to his feelings instead). The blots do move in the comic book from frame to frame but I didn't expect them to be moving as much as they did in the movie- that is almost nonstop. He calls the mask his "face" and they were true to that in the movie.   The thing about the super strength for them all though, that was really weird because aside from having some training BEFORE the Keen Act (which banned costumed heroes and was mentioned slightly once or twice in the movie) most of the Watchmen are out of fighting shape by 1985. (Except for Rorscach- who goes against the act and has never stopped fighting crime- and the Comedian, who has been working for the government the whole time anyhow) I thought they did a really great job with Rorscach for the movie, which should sit well for a lot of fans of the book because he's likely their favorite character from it. As you know he has the last laugh at the end and foils the cover-up just like he does in the book.   Another thing is in the book Night Owl II and Silk Specter II are jumped in the alley by maybe 2 or 3 guys but in the movie it's more like 10. After the fight they're pretty exhausted but in the movie it's like it was a piece of cake. And in the book when Rorscach is surrounded and he jumps out of the window he's tackled and subdued by the police almost immediately and they say all kinds of bad sh!t to him like how he smells and he has a hole in his sock. They basically take him down a few pegs from superhero to worthless bum. In the movie he beats up like 15 cops before they finally arrest him. I thought it was cool that he put up a better fight, but the whole point of the book I thought was to make these guys / girl seem more like ordinary people. And no ordinary person is going to be able to beat up 20 cops I'd guess.   Anyhow, there's so much they still left out so I'm really looking forward to the rumors of a 4-hour director's cut. It's very obvious to me Zack Snyder is a huge fan because so much from the movie is almost exactly the same so I can't wait for his total vision to be realized.

[AnalogKid15]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Mar 9 2009, 08:01 AM)

QUOTE (Del_Duio @ Mar 9 2009, 05:18 AM) I have to admit that people who never read it are going to be VERY lost at the movie, since so much is not explored and so much is left out. I never read the book/graphic novel/comic book/whatever, but I didn't feel lost at all.   *SPOILERS BELOW*                   Don't get me wrong - I enjoyed the movie a lot regardless, but the one thing I really would have liked to be explained, however, was more about super powers.   For example, I really appreciated how they went back and explained how Dr. Manhattan became the way he was, but for all the other costumed heroes - well, they went back and did origins on some of them, but there was a tremendous amount left unexplained. Like how did Rorscach's mask do what it did? From what I could perceive, Dr. Manhattan was the only one with any REAL power. Besides having cool costumes and nifty gadgets, how did the others seem to have all that super strength? Like the woman - all she had was some hot latex outfit. How did that allow her to kill throngs of men twice her size over and over and over again without a bruise?   I understand suspending disbelief over what is essentially a comic book, but most great comic book movies like Spiderman, X-Men, etc., at least describe WHY these people are able to do what they do. They showed the older generation of heroes getting older and retiring, so they're clearly only human. I understand their desires to be heroes and help mankind and be vigilantes, but does that give them inhuman super strength, and in one case super speed? Is that explored more in the comic book? I was surprised as the movie was long enough and enough history was added in to explain things that they could have explained that as well. as far as superpowers go Dr. Manhattan is the only actual superhero. The rest of the people are only human. In the book it goes into a little more detail about how the original Nite Owl did basic strength training also it is mentioned in the book that Laurie the "girl with the hot latex outfit" was being trained by her mother since she was at least 13. Yeah the characters did seem to have a little too much strength but hey it is a movie so u have to expect it to be a little over the top. Now my opinion on the movie.   *SPOILERS BELOW*               WOW this movie followed the book nearly to the letter it is almost as if the director opened up the book and said okay lets shoot this first shot, make sure it looks just like the page. I couldn't believe how many shots and lines were taken right out of the book. The few changes they did make were small and understandable. For instance I can understand making Dr. Manhattan the bad guy in the end instead of a fake alien invasion that part never really sat right with me. My one complaint is that they never explain what in the hell the Veidt's tiger looking thing is. Not one single word the audience is just supposed to accept that Veidt has a pet tiger that has horns. For anyone confused about this it is a genetically engineered cat. Final word this movie rocked.

[Del_Duio]

*SPOILERS AGAIN*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah I agree, my wife was asking about the cat and I said it's his genetically enhanced Lynx but I forgot its name. They also left out a pretty huge detail in the murder of Hollis Mason (the 1st Nite Owl). It's important because one gang member overhears somebody talking about Nite Owl 2 (Dan) and he says "Hey I know where that guy lives, let's get him!" or something like that but he's thinking of the 1st Nite Owl, the old guy. Anyhow they kill him and Dan feels awful and semi-responsible for Hollis' death due to the moniker misunderstanding.

[rushgoober]

***SPOILERS***

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

QUOTE (Del_Duio @ Mar 9 2009, 09:13 AM)

As you know he has the last laugh at the end and foils the cover-up just like he does in the book.

 

Ok, so I didn't really get that part. I guess I'd have to see it again to remember more clearly the sequence of events, but didn't Rorshach drop off his journal BEFORE they went to the antarctic pyramid thing and found out about the plan to destroy some major cities to bring about peace and that it had to be covered up? How could he have foiled the cover-up if he didn't know the full story of what really happened until after he dropped off his journal? Maybe I'm just forgetting something and he knew more at that point then I think he did - there was so much going on that it's hard to keep every detail straight...

Edited March 9, 2009 by rushgoober

[Del_Duio]

*SPOILERS HERE ON OUT*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah he does drop it off before going to the south pole but if you listen he says something like "Rorscach's journal- final entry." Then he says something like Veidt was behind the whole thing (I'm pretty sure). What's cool in the book is that he drops the journal off and you kind of forget about it, then he gets wasted and you learn of the cover-up and it gets you pissed off.. and then at the very end you see the kid finding the journal again and you see the plan will get discovered anyhow, presumably negating the US / Russian truce and more importantly that Rorscach "wins" and his death meant something.

 

At least that's how I interpet it.

Edited March 9, 2009 by Del_Duio

[Prince Sphinc-Tor]

SPOILERS

 

The lynx's name was Bubastis.

 

There was mention in the books of how Laurie got her strenght athough I'm sure, in the film, they had "super strength" to make the story more entertaining to movie goers. The same is true for the alley fight and Rorschach fighting the cops.

 

The book does indeed mention the material Rorschachs mask is made of and how he got it, although I don't remember off hand what it was. I think he was working in a garment shop and it was an unwanted material a designer wasn't happy with....I always imagined it like two pieces of vinyl with a liquid between them.

 

Rorschach dropped of the journal just before they headed to Antarctica.....He had "one more stop to make"....a mailbox.

 

 

I thought the end was weak and the Ozymandias character was weak too.

At first I didn't like the blaming of Manhattan on the blast, but now think it was a better alternative to "the squid". I agree that there was too little mention of the after affect of the blasts that wiped out so many...kind of made it seem unimportant.

 

I always felt the books should be used as story boards if they ever made a film...glad to see that they did, and used some of the script as well....

 

[Rushian King]

QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Mar 6 2009, 04:06 PM)

I heard its long. did it feel long?

Yes.

[udanax]

QUOTE (AnalogKid15 @ Mar 9 2009, 11:15 AM)

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Mar 9 2009, 08:01 AM) QUOTE (Del_Duio @ Mar 9 2009, 05:18 AM) I have to admit that people who never read it are going to be VERY lost at the movie, since so much is not explored and so much is left out. I never read the book/graphic novel/comic book/whatever, but I didn't feel lost at all.   *SPOILERS BELOW*                   Don't get me wrong - I enjoyed the movie a lot regardless, but the one thing I really would have liked to be explained, however, was more about super powers.   For example, I really appreciated how they went back and explained how Dr. Manhattan became the way he was, but for all the other costumed heroes - well, they went back and did origins on some of them, but there was a tremendous amount left unexplained. Like how did Rorscach's mask do what it did? From what I could perceive, Dr. Manhattan was the only one with any REAL power. Besides having cool costumes and nifty gadgets, how did the others seem to have all that super strength? Like the woman - all she had was some hot latex outfit. How did that allow her to kill throngs of men twice her size over and over and over again without a bruise?   I understand suspending disbelief over what is essentially a comic book, but most great comic book movies like Spiderman, X-Men, etc., at least describe WHY these people are able to do what they do. They showed the older generation of heroes getting older and retiring, so they're clearly only human. I understand their desires to be heroes and help mankind and be vigilantes, but does that give them inhuman super strength, and in one case super speed? Is that explored more in the comic book? I was surprised as the movie was long enough and enough history was added in to explain things that they could have explained that as well. as far as superpowers go Dr. Manhattan is the only actual superhero. The rest of the people are only human. In the book it goes into a little more detail about how the original Nite Owl did basic strength training also it is mentioned in the book that Laurie the "girl with the hot latex outfit" was being trained by her mother since she was at least 13. Yeah the characters did seem to have a little too much strength but hey it is a movie so u have to expect it to be a little over the top. Now my opinion on the movie.   *SPOILERS BELOW*               WOW this movie followed the book nearly to the letter it is almost as if the director opened up the book and said okay lets shoot this first shot, make sure it looks just like the page. I couldn't believe how many shots and lines were taken right out of the book. The few changes they did make were small and understandable. For instance I can understand making Dr. Manhattan the bad guy in the end instead of a fake alien invasion that part never really sat right with me. My one complaint is that they never explain what in the hell the Veidt's tiger looking thing is. Not one single word the audience is just supposed to accept that Veidt has a pet tiger that has horns. For anyone confused about this it is a genetically engineered cat. Final word this movie rocked. Haha thanks, I was wondering about that myself...

[rushgoober]

SPOILERS, OF COURSE!

 

 

This is all IMHO, so please take it with a grain of salt:

 

While I enjoyed the movie a lot, the more I think about the movie, the lower my opinion gets. I think it bothered me more than I wanted it to that these characters (with one exception) had no legitimate super powers, and yet seemed to have all this incredible super strength and speed. It might have been explained in the comic, but it wasn't in the movie. Then there was that goofy love scene in the Owl that was completely unnecessary. Don't get me wrong, that woman is totally hot, but the scene was pretty cheeseball at best. Finally, there was the blue penis phenomena which was a bit excessive. The blue penis stole every scene it was in, and I don't think that's a good thing except for maybe it's only fair to balance out all the female nudity in films over the years with some male nudity. Still, would fans of the comic book have been unreasonably outraged if they stuck a pair of speedos on him or something?

 

One thing I loved about my very favorite comic book movies (the first two Spidey's and the first two X-Men), is that there's an explanation for why the heroes have the abilities they do. Yes, logic and plausibility is stretched, but in science fiction, of which I've read PLENTY, you have to have a science behind the fiction, i.e. some kind of internally consistent logic, or it becomes fantasy where anything is possible and logic is eschewed for magic. Nothing wrong with magic and fantasy at all, but this was clearly science fiction.

 

I understand there's a certain amount of suspension of disbelief that needs to take place in big Hollywood movies in general, moreso spcifically in sci-fi, and even moreso in comic book adaptions, but there's only so much stretching of reality before it just gets a bit silly and I kind of lose interest in the characters - one of them could die and I really wouldn't care very much.

 

It's just personal preference I guess. I'm not really a fan of comic books in general. I have a somewhat wide tolerance for outlandish scenarios as I do love science-fiction and fantasy to death (first Star Wars trilogy, Star Trek, Terminator, first Matrix, LOTR, Harry Potter, etc.), but at some point if it loses real plausibility and internal cohesion, I feel like I might as well be watching Spongebob or some cartoon. An don't get me wrong - I love that goofy yellow spongy dude.

 

 

Sorry, had to vent. I actually really enjoyed the movie despite all that, and I'll happily see it again one day on tv or dvd or whatever, but certain aspects I found annoying. I'm hard to please when it comes to comic book adaptions, and I think it's a tough genre on a good day to pull off well enough to surpass the genre and make something truly universally accessible outside of the major fans of the source material.

 

I have no doubt I'm being way too analytical about what is essentially a comic book movie, and perhaps really a fun popcorn movie, but it seemed to strive for a lot more than that. It partially succeeded.

Edited March 13, 2009 by rushgoober