My Watchmen Review

[skywaterblue]

dianora2 said she was waiting to hear it, which uh, very flattering.

I REALLY LOVED IT. I saw it with powerof3 and a bunch of her people, all of whom are really nice. I was worried that the people in the group who hadn't read the book would get lost, but it's actually so faithful to the story that I think everyone followed it well enough. It's an interesting movie, on the very bleeding edge of discussion about adapting books to film.



I think the choice of getting rid of the giant squid and making the weapon a faux-Manhattan blast actually strengthens the story. The giant squid has always kind of been an asspull on Moore's part, with a fair amount of duly deserved criticism going towards the fact that Martian tentacles is a leap too far. Faux-Manhattan blasts all around the world in a coordinated attack manages to both clean up that hangnail of the story and clarifies Dr. Manhattan's decision to support Ozymandais's cover-up before leaving the planet forever.

This has always bothered some people as it comes directly on the heels of his personal reevaluation and private peacemaking with the nature of life. The movie makes it slightly easier by removing any chance Dr. Manhattan has of falling back into his status-quo.

Billy Crudup is a really good choice for Dr. Manhattan - his performance reminds me of his voice work in "Princess Mononoke" as Ashitaka. The characters are similar. Patrick Wilson as Nite Owl was another inspired choice because slightly confused, WASPish self-righteousness clothed as apathy seems to be his wheelhouse. I think the costuming does the best job with him, casting him in the mold of that mid-80s nebbish, yet romantic hero of oh-so-many science fiction and fantasy films. I also liked Jeffrey Dean Morgan as the Comedian, who really ate up the screen with that character, which is good because he really does only live in the flashbacks of others so you need someone with that vividness to make his role in their lives really hit the audience.

Jackie Earle Haley - I was so impressed by the work they did with Rorschach mask in the film. It's really far more stunning than Doctor Manhattan. I was worried that he wouldn't look enough like the person under the mask, but once he does become unmasked he looks exactly like what you expected. Brilliant!

The others were okay, don't really know what I think of Matthew Goode as Adrian Veidt. I thought he did a great job with Veidt the corporate giant and much less with Veidt as a costumed hero. He's too slight to fit the costume out quite right. Alas. And even though the line delivery of "Do it? I did it thirty five minutes ago," is probably far closer to the original intent of Moore than the line has been built up to be in comics fandom, it still disappointed me that it didn't get a little more space to breathe. But. Bubastis! Bubastis made it in the movie! Yay, I love the random mutant cat.

Malin Åkerman was good at Laurie, she didn't let the movie down, looked suitably fit in the fight scenes. I don't think it's that good of a part, just like I don't think she's that well written in the comic: Laurie is supposed to represent everywoman-as-a-superheroine, but she's trapped between far bigger and more interesting people for most of the story. Her mother, her father, Dr. Manhattan.

This is where some judicious shifting around of material might help. I think you might care more about Laurie's romance with Doctor Manhattan if it were introduced to the backstory earlier in the story, before we learn about Doctor Manhattan's first relationship. And frankly, if that material was from her perspective. Åkerman does the best she can with it and her effort goes a long way to smoothing over one of the big faults of the book.

Which brings us to where I think the movie actually doesn't do that well: the very edge of translation from script to screen. Yeah, Moore's plot is there in its entirety. (Minus the inter dicta and pirate stuff, but they're actually not critical to your understanding of the main plot, merely reflections upon it.) Where the movie loses the audience is in the very bare atoms of the translation: music choice and action sequences. (Cohen's Hallelujah, really? The entire audience broke out in a barely surpressed groan.)

Likewise, it's no wonder some of the old fogey movie reviewers left confused about who had superpowers and who didn't given the ultrastylized fight sequences. I liked them, but they open the film up to more misinterpretation than the comic. Yes, there were always people who misread Watchmen, missing Moore's detached style that clues you in to the fact that these characters are not okay. Unfortunately, it's harder to detach an audience from liking film characters, especially when they are slo-mo snapping elbows.

The movie is really good, you could use a razor to cut the differences between it and the source material, but oh, once you do, what a gap there is.



I for one, cannot wait for the Nite Owl/Rorschach slash.

Comments

[persephoneflame.livejournal.com]

I for one, cannot wait for the Nite Owl/Rorschach slash.

There was subtext in the book. In the movie it was text. It was so text. It was like, "my crazy ex-boyfriend, let's bust him out of prison".

I think Laurie translated as well as possible. Sally is, as you say, way more interesting a character, though more fucked up. Really it's amazing Laurie is as normal as she is. Relatively. I REALLY wished they hadn't turned the lighting a cig into randomly pressing buttons. We see so little of Laurie acting on her own in the film that when what we do see is a big 'oops, I set shit on fire' moment is pretty damning. I'm pretty sure the change was because good guys can't smoke in movies any more, though.

Last thing I want to address is-- holy crap it totally looked like they all had super powers due to the filming style.

[skywaterblue.livejournal.com]

What I like is that they show up and he's already busted himself out.

I'm pretty sure the change was because good guys can't smoke in movies any more, though.

Too sad and too true.

Last thing I want to address is-- holy crap it totally looked like they all had super powers due to the filming style.

I'm pretty sure that if Alan Moore ever saw it he'd be pissed about how it glorifies the violence. And as you say, it makes them look like supers.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

There is already some Nite Owl/Rorschach slash out there, based on the novel. I think the logistical problem you have there (if you don't just wave it away and go for a PWP) is Rorschach's attitude towards all sexuality, he's so repressed and has channelled so much self-loathing into all the rants about homosexuals and whores that I have a hard time believing he'd ever admit to himself he loves Dan. Which he clearly does.

(andrastewhite wrote a great subtexty story about Rorschach and Nite Owl, as I recall, which I can recommend.)

it's no wonder some of the old fogey movie reviewers left confused about who had superpowers and who didn't given the ultrastylized fight sequences.

You know, you're right there. I hadn't thought of it, but yes, if you haven't read the novel you might think these guys have superpowers as well, albeit just in strength and speed, instead of Dr. Manhattan being the only metahuman around.

[skywaterblue.livejournal.com]

persephoneflame and I were just chatting about that on AIM. I'm a firm believer that there can't be Rorschach porn (even though he is strongly implied to be homosexual in my opinion, were he to have a healthy sexuality). Rorschach really is a guy who has completely given up his humanity. But... if andrastewhite did it, it's probably pretty good.

The crank ass reviewer at either the New York Times or the New Yorker panned it, and because he never read the source material, said he left confused as to who had powers and who didn't.

[dianora2.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the review! I still haven't made up my mind whether I will see it in the theater or not, but it's encouraging to hear that you liked it. Although I don't remember the comic that well, so am really just more concerned as to whether I will find it an enjoyable movie at this point, you know? I'm not going to remember so much if they get something wrong.

[skywaterblue.livejournal.com]

I haven't read it in years. I think the people who are liking it best are those familiar with it, but not TOO familiar with it, you know?