io9.com reports on the Watchmen screening.

[thebitterguy]

The news can be considered "not good".

I don't think we had any illusions it would be a great movie. But I think we were all assuming it would be a fairly accurate one. Faithful, as it were, to the source.

This... appears not to be the case.

Comments

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

We'll see. I suspected the ending was going to be changed, I'm more concerned about the spirit of the work.

[athelind.livejournal.com]

Hm. Someone I know got to see a sneak preview of the current cut, and came back with Very Good Reviews.

On the other claw, I stopped reading io9 some months ago because of general annoyance and, by and large, disagreement with them on many of their reviews. So if they don't like it -- that's a GOOD sign.

To hell with the squid.

[waiwode.livejournal.com]

Here's the thing, from my point of view.

The movie probably isn't going to have the embedded pirate comic. No pirate comic means no familiarity with the artist's grisly work. No familiarity means that "we captured some folks and came up with this stuff" is even more far-fetched than "Ozymandias manipulated us and used Dr Manhattan's thingee against us." (We can hopefully still presume that the Ozy somehow blocks Manhattan's precognitive "exists simulataneously throughout time" abilities).

On the other hand, the squid raises the spectre of alien or extra-dimensional invasion, bringing people together. "Stuff explodes" seems to indicate that the usual enemy is up to no good, and considering the importance of the Cold War (and it's impending development into a Hot and final War) I'm left wondering how this version will do anything but convince everyone to fire their missiles.

I think the best object lesson for movie adaptations is David Lynch and Dune. It isn't the job of a director to "accurately re-create source material." It's their job to make a movie. We all (mostly) accept that the words "Based on a True Story" imply that the story is mostly fictional. Yet we can't seem to accept that for a movie based on a fictional source.

(Add to that a more viperous den of villains than fans of Science Fiction, Comics, and RPGs does not exist. It's a wonder we enjoy anything).

Doug.

[perich.livejournal.com]

You have no idea how exceedingly happy I am that there's no squid.

[absinthe-dot-ca.livejournal.com]

Well, it looks very "pretty" based on the trailer...

Re: To hell with the squid.

[madmanofprague.livejournal.com]

I wasn't going to watch the movie before, but now I will probably be as adamant that I not see it as I am with V for Vendetta.

No pirates was bad enough.

[deven-science.livejournal.com]

I had already heard that the ending was changed, and I think Snyder was the one who said it. Oh well. I thought the squid was probably the silliest part of the comic.

[granolademonic.livejournal.com]

Even if it is loyal, fuck that movie.

[jirris-midvale.livejournal.com]

I saw it. I was in the audience at the same showing.

I love that comic; I often refer to it as "(superhero comic here) is to Watchmen as (popular kids book) is to Moby Dick".

The movie was a work of f'ing love.

yes, they changed the ending. Did it end up being better for it? Fuck yes it did. They couldn't pull off giant space squid with the time they had. There were a lot of subplots they couldn't do based on the time they were given or the medium (film does some things that comics can't and vice versa).

You know that iconic scene with Manhattan fifty feet tall and working on the big machine? Spoiler: That is how you slap and audience with shock.

They did a great job on it. The movie is one of the most faithful (both in plot and spirit) adaptions I've seen. It's mean and gritty and uncompromising on being the comic. Those guys complaining about it, they are just looking to fuss and tromp around in their nerd sandbox.