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WATCHMEN - Movie Discussion and Grading (SPOILERS)

Grade the movie


  • Total voters
    291
Sex scene too long and made audience laugh.
I was unsure if I was supposed to laugh or what during that scene-- the use of "Hallelujah!" being so over-the-top-- but the... ah... climax of the scene left no doubt in my mind that the whole thing was being played for laughs. Because, let's be honest, a guy who has to dress up like Nite Owl to get it up is pretty funny.
 
Jackie Earle Haley nailed Rorschach role, but Malin Akerman was a little weak in acting despite rocking body. Was very impressed by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. Enjoyed seeing Matt Frewer and Garry Chalk on big screen too. Happy for them getting work.

A fellow TF/Botcon buddy of mine leaned over and gave me the thumbs up when Gary Chalk hit the screen. Having seen it once before him I told him to be on the look out for a TF 'easter egg'.

Investigate it in IMAX God Magnus, I did. I think you'll find the revisit worth your time. :techman:
 
Ah yes, I'd forogtten Gary Chalk. Generally, I always forget what he looks like but then I looked away for a second and realized immediately who he was. :)
 
Loved it. A+

I've been waiting 20 years for this movie, and it was worth every minute of the wait.

I thought Rorschach was the best part of the movie.

and the whole cast was superbly . . . umm . . . cast. :D

the only thing that bugged me was the out of place electric cars at the end
yeah I know that Ozy made those possible, but they didn't come around until the late 90s so it just seemed kinda weird

Actually, in the book the electric cars had been around for a long time by '85, thanks to Doc Manhatten being able to synthesize the proper materials. That's why the sign for Hollis Mason's auto repair shop said "Obsolete models (meaning internal combustion engines) a specialty!" With the electric cars not showing up till the end, that makes the sign in front of Hollis' shop make between little and no sense.
actually, did some research and I think it was the Honda Insight that was shown at the end of the film, which was made from 2000-2006 . . . totally wrong for the time period
bit still better than the jellybeans from the comic :lol:
 
I'm late to the party, so maybe this has been said, but god... Snyder manages to direct a film that's more boring than 300. I get the whole fanboy rage thing about raping childhoods or whatever, but comics are comics and films are films. There's a reason why each medium exists and not using the strengths of film to tell what should be a film story is just idiotic.

That said, I very much prefer the new ending. For me, it just works more effectively than the original.
 
I don't think Hollis specializing in the repair of obsolete cars is meaningless if you remove the original context - just a somewhat different meaning.

I enjoyed the sex scene, largely because it was rather goofy comic relief without being too far over the top (as sex between superheroes in high-altitude hovercraft goes...). And the flame-thrower bit is from a panel in the comic. :LOL:

I finally saw "300" on cable and did think it was quite a bore. "Watchmen" was far more entertaining.
 
And the flame-thrower bit is from a panel in the comic. :LOL:
Yup!

archieflame.jpg


Nevertheless, I found the movie version very funny. :D
 
B+. The unfilmable comicbook was filmed, and mostly faithfully. I thought some of the acting felt more like a dress rehearsal and less like a performance. I disliked the rubber suit take on the 80s costumes and felt some of the actors weren't the best choices for their roles. I disliked how the ending was changed, because the alien invasion thing seemed more thematically correct (most 50s alien inavasion movies are regarded as expressions of anti communist hysteria). Jackie Earle Haley was inspired casting for Rorshach. I'll see it again.
 
(most 50s alien inavasion movies are regarded as expressions of anti communist hysteria)

But Watchmen isn't a 50s alien invasion movie. Moore used the fake alien because that's what was used in the Outer Limits episode he riffed it from. Making Dr. Manhattan the the movie's fall guy was an inspired display of logical creativity.
 
Saw it last night in IMAX. :D Good stuff.

It was probably about the best adaptation of Watchmen we were likely to get. However, as I figured would happen, some things just didn't quite translate to the big screen as well as others. There is a main storyline throughout the book, obviously, but it's also somewhat episodic, with entire chapters devoted to one particular character, giving us extensive flashbacks about their lives. In a film, this makes the pacing a bit choppy, IMO, and it doesn't quite flow as well as it should. This is but a minor quibble, though.

Visually, it was terrific. Great-looking film. Slow-motion was a bit overused in places, as were a few of the accompanying songs (I did like the sex scene in the Owlship, however -- I thought it struck the right balance between comedy and sensuality).

Casting was generally good. I'll echo the sentiment that Jackie Earle Haley nailed the character of Rorschach -- he was pitch-perfect in the role. Patrick Wilson really brought Dan Dreiburg to life quite effectively: I completely bought him as the impotent and subtly frustrated man who needs to don a costume and engage in heroics to get excited again about life. Morgan was terrific as the Comedian, and Crudup did well as Jon (even if the "Manhattan Project" being visible so often was a little distracting ;)).

I've heard some folks complain about Akerman, but I had no problems with her portrayal (and certainly no problems with her appearance -- she was quite stunning). The main issue I had with Laurie was that her mommy issues and hatred of the Comedian were downplayed, and I felt that kind of gutted her character (especially towards the end when she learns of her true relationship with Blake and later makes peace with her mother). I hope we see this expanded upon in the DVD Director's Cut... even if it does make the pacing even worse.

Goode was decent, but a bit miscast as Veidt, mainly physically, I felt. He also didn't quite seem to inhabit the character as well as others did with theirs, but I can live with it.

The changed ending worked fine for me. The original could have been interesting, but the "alien squid" might have seemed a bit too out-of-left field for modern audiences.

All in all, I liked it. I look forward to seeing the extended version on DVD -- in fact, I may purchase a copy when it comes out.

B+, almost an A-. :bolian:
 
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B+. ... I thought some of the acting felt more like a dress rehearsal and less like a performance. I disliked the rubber suit take on the 80s costumes and felt some of the actors weren't the best choices for their roles. I disliked how the ending was changed, because the alien invasion thing seemed more thematically correct (most 50s alien inavasion movies are regarded as expressions of anti communist hysteria).

All that and you still gave it a B+?

My how the rating system has fallen ... unless an A now just means "didn't suck" instead of "highest in excellence". But I'm not surprised. Even mediocre concerts, artists and events get standing ovations these days as a regular practice.

--Ted
 
(most 50s alien inavasion movies are regarded as expressions of anti communist hysteria)

But Watchmen isn't a 50s alien invasion movie. Moore used the fake alien because that's what was used in the Outer Limits episode he riffed it from. Making Dr. Manhattan the the movie's fall guy was an inspired display of logical creativity.

That part of the story is about mutually assured destruction coming from our rivalry with the Soviets. The threat of Communism (which is alsoa preoccupation of Rorshach). An alien invasion uniting the world wasn't just riffed from an OL episode, it was also riffed from one of Reagan's speeches, and is thematically similar to The Day The Earth Stood Still, whose poster is seen through out the novel, and especially during the panels lingering over the carnage of the dead after the transdimensional squid's appearance.

All that and you still gave it a B+?

I suppose I should have emphasized how impressed I was that twelve issues of the mostly densely packed comic I ever read were squeezed into under three hours. It's very easy to find things not to like about this. Unlike, say, Spider-Man, the movie doesn't adapt a premise and take bits and pieces from several stories, this one adapts a novel, and it surprises haw faithful much of it is. But, yeah, they changed and cut stuff, and it's irritating.
 
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