i did last night and i saw that it was good!
so they finally filmed the comic book adaptation that many said they couldn't film and many more said they shouldn't film and i for one am glad they did, if only because it will bring about a renewed interest in comics.
that said, i went on the Friday night of the opening weekend to the 8pm showing and the cinema was half empty...
Watchmen won the 1988 Hugo Award for Best Novel and is in TIME Magazine's top 100 books of the 20th century. In 2008, Entertainment Weekly placed it at number 13 on its list of the best 50 novels printed in the last 25 years, describing it as "The greatest superhero story ever told and proof that comics are capable of smart, emotionally resonant narratives worthy of the label *literature*."
so what's it about?
*Watchmen* is set in an alternate reality which closely mirrors the contemporary world of the 1980s. The primary point of divergence is the presence of superheroes. Their existence in this iteration of America is
shown to have dramatically affected and altered the outcomes of real-world events such as the Vietnam War and the presidency of Richard Nixon. In keeping with the realism of the series, although the costumed crime fighters of *Watchmen* are commonly called "superheroes", the only character who possesses obvious superhuman powers is Doctor Manhattan. The existence of Doctor Manhattan has given the U.S. a strategic advantage over the Soviet Union, which has increased tensions between the two nations. Additionally, superheroes have become unpopular among the public, which has led to the passage of legislation in 1977 to outlaw them. While many of the heroes retired, Doctor Manhattan and the Comedian operate as government-sanctioned agents, and Rorschach continues to operate outside the law.
whilst some scenes were changed from the original comics/graphic novel, the casting at least was absolutely perfect and the characters spot on. although i found Dr Manhattan a little too human.
many scene's were removed for the sake of time, including the whole Tales of the Black Freighter, it's still 2 hours 43 minutes. later in the year there will be a DVD release of the animated Tales of the Black Freighter and a director's cut of the Watchmen film coming in at 3 hours 11 minutes.
my main complaint was the unnecessary changes, all of which served to make it a more graphically violent film, yet weren't changed because of time. e.g.;
- - in the book, Larry (the fat guy in prison) has his throat cut. in the film he has his arms cut off with an angle grinder...
- - in the book Rorschach handcuffs the child killer, gives him a saw then douses him in kerosene and torches the room, explaining that he won't cut through the cuffs in time. he leaves the burning building and there are screams from behind him. in the film Rorschach hacks the child killer's head to pieces with a very large meat cleaver...
then of course there's the big change...
no big psychic monster...
and here's (i know some may find it blasphemous) where i think the change is actually for the better! yep, that's right folks, i think the changed for movie ending is better than the original comic book ending!
also the soundtrack's pretty damn good
basically, go and see it, but read the comic book too - before or after, your choice.
Tags: books, comics, movies
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