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I like the focus on Rorshach in this trailer. He's the POV that's probably easiest to get a quick picture of the story across in a short trailer. I'm a little disheartened to hear characters actually referring to "Watchmen" as if it were the name of a superhero team. (iirc the only use of the word in the graphic novel is the "Who watches the watchmen?" grafetti.) I'm hoping that was dialogue inserted into the trailer that isn't in the actual movie, personally.
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Oh, geez. Every parody of the comic calls the characters the Watchmen. Back when these rumours began - what, 5 years ago? I remember the amused comments "they're gonna call them the Watchmen, instead of the Minutemen."
I really thought those predictions were wrong.
Posts: 1515 | Registered: Feb 2002
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quote:Originally posted by Foust: Oh, geez. Every parody of the comic calls the characters the Watchmen. Back when these rumours began - what, 5 years ago? I remember the amused comments "they're gonna call them the Watchmen, instead of the Minutemen."
I really thought those predictions were wrong.
They never do call the group the "Minutemen" though. That was the earlier group. The later group is never named (at least it's never revealed to the reader), it's just assumed by many that they are the "Watchmen".
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quote:Originally posted by Sterling: I like me some Watchmen, but I must confess I think "The Most Celebrated Graphic Novel of All Time" is a little over-the-top.
It's the only graphic novel to ever win a Hugo award, and it was selected as one of Time Magazine's top 100 English language novels published since 1923. Even if one doesn't think it's the best graphic novel, receiving such honours arguably makes it the most celebrated.
I also expected a deeper more godly voice for Manhattan, but I guess it's kind of neat that he sounds like a regular human. I think that Rorshach's voice is perfect though. Incidentally, I also like and have no problems understanding Bale's Batman voice.
I feel that it's very Hollywood, if you know what I mean, to have the characters refer to themselves as "Watchmen". It's like they think that the audience won't understand the significance of the title otherwise. I thought that they weren't going to dumb down the story aside from what's necessary for length.
Ah well. I still think that it's going to be awesome, and this is an excellent trailer.
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quote:Originally posted by Javert: The later group is never named (at least it's never revealed to the reader), it's just assumed by many that they are the "Watchmen".
Crimebusters. Or does that not count because it never really stuck?
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Are they actually setting this in the 1980s? Because nothing here has the retro-futurism feel of the comics.
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Neo-Dragon is right, the second group did have a name - a lame name to match a lame effort.
Joldo, I'm fairly certain I've seen a re-elect Nixon poster somewhere in the promo materials for this movie, so surely that indicates the 1980s setting. Maybe my memory is making things up, though.
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quote:Originally posted by neo-dragon: Yes, it's set in 1985 just like the comic.
Not totally true. From what I understand, Zack Snyder talked about switching some elements around to 'modernize it'. I gave him 100% benefit of doubt and was thrilled at the first trailer.
The second trailer, I'm down to about 75% faith. The dialogue is stale and sounds like exposition. I'd almost even swear I don't remember MOST of those line from the Graphic Novel. Which I've probably read 4 times a year since it came out.
Meh. Hollywood's hit miss ration is like the only one worse than Congress hit miss ration.
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I don't really get what you mean my "modernizing" it. It's either set in the 80s or it's not. I don't think he's going to make it so that the nuclear tension is with the middle-east rather than the soviets or something like that, or maybe that's not what you meant.
I understand what you mean about the somewhat stale dialogue though, but I think that's just a matter choosing lines that give a general overview of the plot in just 2 minutes. The first trailer was just about setting the mood, this one is about introducing the plot.
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I don't know if it is or isn't set in 1985. I did think he said something about setting it in a more modern setting, which I thought meant, uh....
Posts: 262 | Registered: Oct 2008
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I'm not sure that it matters if it is set in the 80s or not. It merely needs to be in a world where the Cold War is ongoing. Watchmen set in a 2008 in which the Berlin Wall never came down and proxy wars are still fought would be acceptable.
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quote:Originally posted by Unicorn Feelings: I don't know if it is or isn't set in 1985. I did think he said something about setting it in a more modern setting, which I thought meant, uh....
I thought he said the exact opposite; that he didn't want to make it about our time specifically, but keep it in the original setting.
Come to think of it, it has to be set in the 80s because based on pictures the Minutemen era stuff is definitely still in the 40s, so guys like the Comedian and the first Nite Owl would be ancient if the main story was in the 2000s
Either way I guess it doesn't matter. It's an alternate universe anyway.
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quote:Originally posted by neo-dragon: Come to think of it, it has to be set in the 80s because based on pictures the Minutemen era stuff is definitely still in the 40s, so guys like the Comedian and the first Nite Owl would be ancient if the main story was in the 2000s
Good point, neo-dragon.
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
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quote:Originally posted by neo-dragon: It's the only graphic novel to ever win a Hugo award, and it was selected as one of Time Magazine's top 100 English language novels published since 1923. Even if one doesn't think it's the best graphic novel, receiving such honours arguably makes it the most celebrated.
Okay, fair enough.
I could see how one could call it "modernized" and still taking place in the eighties; the color palate and costume design looks a little more like the 00s than the 80s to me, certainly.
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