inkdick: march 05 2009 alan moore was right
Ok, I do NOT write movie reviews for a living so my “review” may or may not suck. You’ve been warned.
First: I really, really, REALLY wanted to love this movie. I went in there with an open mind, knowing there was no way they’d get all 12 issues into a 3 hour long movie. I knew things would be cut, be changed, and I was ok with that, as long as it was a good movie. But it wasn’t a good movie.
I love how they’ve been calling Zack Snyder a “visionary.” Funny, since one of his films was a crappy remake of a zombie movie and his other two films were direct adaptations of graphic novels. Or maybe using slow-mo is all it takes to be visionary these days. Seriously, that is not a word you should throw around lightly. Zack Snyder is far from visionary. Now, the day he makes an original movie with no source material and if it ends up being a great movie, ok, maybe then we can talk. But if you are making your career adapting the works of others, you are not a visionary. Sorry.
I know Zack loved the comic, I’m not saying he didn’t. He’s a fan, and that’s really the only good thing I can say about him as a director. He’s a fan, but he doesn’t really get it. Doesn’t quite get the small nuances that make Watchmen so great. The choices he made in terms of the fighting (this isn’t supposed to be the Matrix), the gore (there was gore in the comic, but Moore and Gibbons knew WHEN and HOW to use gore for the sake of the story), fuck, even the music. It wasn’t only the fighting and fucking that made Watchmen the first “grown-up” graphic novel, but in his mind he thinks that that it all it was. Zack Snyder really has no class as a director, and it shows. He wouldn’t know how to be subtle if you showed him how.
As I watched this, this didn’t feel like a movie. It felt like a check list of things that were in the book. There was nothing in this that made the story stand on it’s own as a film. See, I feel that is the only way adaptations of things are acceptable. You need to find a way to make the film stand on it’s own and still be great apart from the source material (while still being respectful to the source material). Sometimes this means you have to change things to better fit the medium you are working in. I would not have minded changes from the book if it made for a better movie. But the changes they did make did not accomplish this, and over all it felt like too much fan-service.
Fan-service. Ugh. Fan-service really got in the way of this being a good film. “But Pranas, don’t you want the movie to be faithful to the book?” Why, yes. Yes I do! But I want it to be faithful to the TONE of the book. Really, why do you need a panel for panel translation from book to film? You already have the book, you don’t need anything else, if that is what you want. I’d rather have a great movie than an ok visual translation of a comic any day. Look at Ghost World. Changes were made, but they worked for the film and were still very respectful to the source material, and as a result we have the great graphic novel and have the great film that can stand on it’s own merits. Now, it may be a little stretch comparing a superhero comic/movie like Watchmen to an indie slice-of-life comic/movie like Ghost World, but I think you can see what I’m trying to say.
Alan Moore said Watchmen was unfilmable. Maybe he was right. But with a competent director, we could have come close. Damn close. It’s not enough that a movie like this take visual cues from the original comic, but it also needs to be smart and relevant like the original comic. This was a frat boy slow-mo Snyder-fest with a fucked up soundtrack and it seemed more like “Watchmen The Lunchbox and Breakfast Cereal” and less like “Watchmen Based Off the Smartest Superhero Graphic Novel of All Time”.
I have so much more I could say, but I’m having trouble organizing my thoughts and feel like I’m not getting my points across as fully as I’d like to, so I’ll end it here.
I know I’m going to be in the minority on my opinion here as everyone leaving the theater and on twitter after the show were whacking off over this film. That’s fine. I’ve been though this before. I was the lone guy who hated Spider-Man 1 and 2 when everyone was in love with those films. And that’s ok. If you loved Watchmen, good for you, you have your own opinion and I respect that, as much as I disagree with it. Me, I thought it was utter crap. I won’t try to change your opinion and you won’t ever change mine. At least we can all agree though that no matter what we thought about the movie, Rorschach was still amazing.
Ugh, now you can see why I’ll never try for a career as a film critic. I think I’ll stick to making comics and selling peanuts.
March 9th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Well, I totally agree with you so I won’t say anything…
Especially about Rorschach! He was definitely one of the only redeeming parts of the movie…. :3.
I just had to say that, can’t even add anything hahaha.
You aren’t alone!
March 9th, 2009 at 4:46 pm
I haven’t read the book like I should have years ago (I never got into many superhero books, even the dark gritty intelligent ones) but I saw the movie last night and I’m still trying to process whether I liked it or not. I think it was meant for an unrealistic comicbook audience but made for the majority of superhero comicbook readers.
March 9th, 2009 at 5:01 pm
I think we can ALL agree that it was indeed….a movie….
March 9th, 2009 at 5:06 pm
Haven’t seen it yet, and I’m kind of afraid to because I know it won’t be as good. I’m going into it with low expectations, so maybe it’ll surprise me and I’ll come out okay. I dunno.
I do have to say I agree with you on the part with adaptations. People seem to think that adaptations mean that everything has to be exactly the same. But then what is the point? I mean, I guess it’s cool to have it in a new format, but what’s the significance to the adaptation then?
Everyone who shouts because Gimli’s beard was two shades darker in the book or whatever seems so trivial to me. What’s important is that the themes and concepts carry through. That the characters capture the same essence as the source, and that the tones and moods and styles are expressed. If an adaptation has a handle on the true “meat and potatoes” of the source, that’s when it’s genius. If you just get all the minute details without truly understanding the big picture, though, then it’s all just fanboy wank.
That’s my two cents, anyway, but I feel entitled to give them, since film is my game. So nyan.
March 9th, 2009 at 5:40 pm
I just finished reading your entire archive. Great comic though I think you’re a little heavy on the republican hate. Not all republicans are gun toting,racist,sexist people who believe gay people shouldn’t get married.
March 9th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
I’m not going to spend money to see this silly film, but so far I see every reason to expect that I’d agree with you. I’ll let you know what I think as soon as the bootleg makes its way online and I’m feeling bored!
March 9th, 2009 at 7:07 pm
I don’t agree with you completely (some things you’re dead-on about, though), but you definitely expressed yourself pretty well and succinctly. I think this was always doomed to be a flawed film no matter who took it on, be it Greengrass or Aronofsky or Gilliam. I certainly knew a few people who thought Lord of the Rings movies were worthless compared to the books… the problem is we all made our own movie of Watchmen in our minds when we read it. The movie in your mind was probably better than the movie Zack made, but perhaps years from now, as the dust settles, you might see it on TV one day and say, “hey, this is actually kind of interesting how he put this all together…” Or perhaps not. All I know is I’ve seen a lot of movies in my day, and I’ve never seen one like this. The one thing the critics and fanboys never realize is they complain all the time that every movie is the same shit over and over, but when one comes along that’s different, they always pounce on it for not being what they saw before. I’ll never understand that.
March 9th, 2009 at 9:24 pm
U say: “…I think I’ll stick to making comics and selling peanuts.”
.
I thought u were NOT going to make a career in RETAIL!?…:P
.
btw: on the day before the prmiere showing, I got the DVD @ Wal-Mart for $19.99.
Now, judging by the reviews,
I don’t know if I should RETURN the DVD to get my money back,
send it to u,
or send it to Juozas?
.
What should I do, since I’m not opening it or viewing it myself?
March 9th, 2009 at 9:55 pm
Actually, the first time I read it Max there was no movie in my mind. There was only the comic. That was one thing I loved about it, to me it was a comic that read purely as a comic. It did so many things that only the art-form of comics could do that just would not work in other mediums. Now…the SECOND time I read it, yeah, I thought about what the movie version would be like. Heh. I think it could have been possible to match that version in my head or at least get it to a place where I’d at least accept it. Also, being something different is only a good thing if that different thing is actually good and done well. In my opinion, it wasn’t done well.
March 9th, 2009 at 9:58 pm
Tetis, did you buy the ‘motion comic’? If so, return that piece of shit and spend that twenty bucks on the actual graphic novel. All the motion comic is is they took images from the comic and turned it into a shitty “animation”. It’s basically for people who are too stupid/lazy to read words. Buy the actual book and read that. It’s a dense read, but it’s a good one.
March 9th, 2009 at 10:18 pm
Thank you for reading my comic, DJ. Your comment here is a little out of place since this post was about the Watchmen movie, but I’ll address it anyways.
Yeah, I’m tough on Republicans, but that’s because I’m a far left liberal. Like, really far left. So far left I wouldn’t mind some, not a lot, just some socialism applied to our country (I’d love me some universal health care). And in the past eight years the GOP as a whole have been doing things that have pissed me off and been doing things that I feel are very bad for the country, and since this is my journal comic, yeah, I talk about that anger I sometimes have and how pissed I get at the other side. And today’s GOP platform IS that of gun toting, anti-gay marriage, against a woman’s right to choose, big oil, anti-environmentalism, pro-big business, and many other things I am very personally opposed to. Yeah, I know there are many okay republicans out there, some of my good friends and family hold ideals on the other side of the fence. And that is ok. We all have our own opinions. But that doesn’t change the fact that I despise many of the high ranking Republicans in power and doesn’t change the fact that I disagree with almost everything the GOP stands for.
But the bottom line ultimately is this: This is my comic, and as I said I’m an anti-war NPR listening far left liberal hippie and damn proud of it, so I won’t be letting up on the right wingers anytime soon. And trust me, when I make a political comic, it will always lean to the left. If this continues to offend you, there are other comics out there on the web. But if you can deal with the occasional “OMG republicans r teh sux!” comic, then please continue to enjoy the comic. Thanks.
Now, we return back to our discussion about the Watchmen movie…
March 9th, 2009 at 10:23 pm
I got to fill out one of those “survey” things after the movie, and I really had no choice but to check “would not see again”.
pathetic.
March 9th, 2009 at 11:16 pm
Haven’t seen movie yet. Probably will. Going in not expecting much.
People at local theater dressed better for the movie than at NY ComicCon. Wonder if the Watchmen marketing dept issues out costumes to theater employees? Doubt it. But it’d be worth working there if they did.
Would like to see some sort of inkdick version of what the movie was.
March 10th, 2009 at 3:51 am
Being for universal healthcare is not far left at all in the world standard… American view of left is pretty mild. Extreme of both sides end up pretty similar, interestingly. Really shows the sadness in both parties sticking to stereotypes.
I like how many comics break that simplified dualism that limit the actual ideology of general individuals. Art that take too seriously either party often ends up following the same path as proletarian literature, the crappiest thing on earth.
If anyone wants a good healthcare system, please do move to Scandinavia. Japan or France is okay too. I’m actually planning to change country to better suit my social needs. I love comics but I prefer to live the adventure for real.
And I thought Spiderman was a pop-hit, disliked by critics. I’m surprised Pranas was in the minority. I also didn’t like it, although I was thankful it made money for Sony, and Japan, and hopefully helped finance a more ingenious indie film.
March 11th, 2009 at 5:37 pm
My husband an I are hardcore Watchmen fans. Therefore, we refused to see the movie. Sad, sad times this world is in. It annoys me to no end on how the phrase “Who Watches the Watchmen” is plastered EVERYWHERE when in the comic you never once see the complete phrase.
March 14th, 2009 at 11:18 pm
Hey, I just got into your webcomic and read the entire thing in like 2 days (had to leave to go to work and other nuances of having a life) and was pretty damn greatful to see that you weren’t crazy for the watchmen movie either
I was really excited to see the movie when i heard it was coming out back in the summer and reread the graphic novel several times before the movie came out.
when i went to see the movie i was so excited because some of my closest friends had seen it and really liked it, however i felt pretty disapointed. maybe it’s just because i became so devout to the book, i dunno, but I really felt that it could’ve been done better. I knew and accepted the fact that they would have to change a few things around in the movie to make it play better on screen, however i was still disapointed. the soundtrack really ruined it for me…it didn’t really fit the movie at all…except for the bob dylan track during the montage, that was decent….but seriously, if i’m going to have a sex scene that graphic with a pair of actors that freakin’ hot, there’s no way i’d chose to have leonard cohen playing in the background. i love leonard cohen, that old bastard is awesome, but I’m sorry, that song was not fit for that sex scene (or any other that i can think of lately, to be honest) and really ruined the mood of it…*sigh* i expected better…i’m wondering whether or not i would’ve enjoyed the movie better if i hadn’t read the graphic novel…i’m going to take a friend who hasn’t seen the book to see the movie and see what she thinks
oh, and i really enjoy your webcomic. good work :D