ALL SCI-FI

[Bogmeister]

NOW THIS ... IS A MOVIE TRAILER: WATCHMEN Trailer

Apparently this is an officially sanctioned trailer on the upcoming Watchmen film on YouTube, a film scheduled to open in March of 2009.

Watch for the YouTube member appearing at the end of the trailer. I guess he usually speaks about the film trailer in question at the start and end of his posted trailers. This time, he's just flabbergasted and almost speechless.

The trailer is also on the just-released DVD of The Dark Knight (2008).




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3orQKBxiEg&noredirect=1

[Bogmeister]

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Here's a little "world expansion" for those unfamiliar with the concept. The character you see above (walking in the alley) is Rorschach, a favorite among fans of the graphic novel.

He and several other costumed heroes are the main characters on an Earth much like ours, but it's a place where such costumed vigilantes have actually existed since the early forties. This was published 20 years ago, before hardly anyone thought of such a concept. But Alan Moore did, along with artist Dave Gibbons.

(WATCHMEN Book new edition review at Aint it Cool)



Other characters are the gadget-guy Nite Owl, the super-smart Ozymandias, the slinky Silk Spectre and the brutal Comedian.

Oh, wait, there's one more! How could I forget? The one truly super-powered character, Dr. Manhattan. This one is quite enigmatic, and a bit on the chilling side. He came into existence during an experiment involving the removal of particles from an atomic pattern. His human body was taken apart, but his consciousness continued on a subatomic level, and he soon recreated himself.

Sound godlike? Maybe that's why I called him/it a bit chilling. Oh, and he's named after the Manhattan Project, not the island.

All these characters are/were based on the old Charlton comic book heroes: The Question, Blue Beetle, Thunderbolt, the Peacemaker, Nightshade, and Captain Atom — all from the sixties.

Of course, these new versions, The Watchmen, are a subversion of the old-styled super-heroes. The Comedian is a ruthless killer, Manhattan is detached from humanity, Ozy is too smart for his own good.

The story takes place in 1985 and begins with a mystery — a murder. It gradually escalates into a plot of worldwide proportions. The so-called heroes (mostly retired) each figure into the plot in their own distinctive manner. Rorschach, a 'no-compromise' crazy vigilante, may be an x-factor in all this, but when we speak of x-factors, what about this Manhattan guy — doesn't everyone just exist at his whim? (godlike, remember?).

Moore & Gibbons presented an early adult approach to this whole super-hero business and it still holds up very well today.

[Bud Brewster]

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I have yet to see this one, but Bog's comments inspired me to download it from Watchfree.to and rectify that situation.

I'm sure I'll have a few things to say about it in a day or so. With pictures, of course. Always with pictures.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

It's on my list of favorites.
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...or not...

WayneO
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[Bud Brewster]

I downloaded the versions from both Promptfile and theVideo.me and then discovered that one is 2 hours 42 minutes, while the other is 3 hours 6 minutes.

What's up with that, eh?
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

I have a DVD box set with two versions. The "Ultimate Cut" disc is 3 hours 35 minutes long, and the "Theatrical Release" disc is 3 hours 6 minutes. But I also have a Blu-ray showing a run time of 3 hours 6 minutes, which is labeled "Director's Cut".

IMDb lists the following run times:

162 min (standard) (2 h 42 m)
186 min Director's Cut (3 h 6 m)
215 min Ultimate Cut (3 h 35 m)
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...or not...

WayneO
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[Bud Brewster]

Bulldogtrekker and I plan to watch it while chatting on Facebook this weekend, but he told me his DVD was the short version — 2 hours 42 minutes. I told him I had both the long(er) version and the short one. I asked him if he was interested in downloading the 3+ hour one so we'd both have it.

He declined.

Based on your comment above, I gather you'd recommend the longer version I downloaded, instead of the "severely cut" version (by 24 whole minutes). Perhaps BDT will reconsider.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Custer]

Darn... my UK dvd of Watchmen says it's only 155 minutes long. It looks as if I ought to upgrade, at least to the Director's Cut. The "Ultimate Cut" incorporating "Tales of the Black Freighter" might be a step too long... and the only copies that Amazon.co.uk has on offer are a bit expensive anyway!

[orzel-w]

[Custer]

I agree. And the Director's Cut seems relatively cheap now, the way most blu-rays are after a year or two.

And a good excuse for digging this picture out of my photo bucket:

[Randy]

The only problem with the DVD version of "The Director's Cut" of The Watchmen, is the fact that the movie is so long that the resolution has been severely reduced to allow it to fit on an 8.5 Gb. DVD. The Blu-ray version is nearly 50 Gb., so it looks much much better on flat screen televisions of 50 inches and above. If anyone wants a Blu-ray copy of The Director's Cut, send me a P.M.

[Zackuth]

I saw this when it came out on DVD and I'm really sorry I didn't see it in the theatre. It's a great movie. I am sorry they didn't get too deep into most of the characters, I would like to have seen Night Owl's story. I watch this every chance I get when on TV and I do have the Director's Cut on DVD.

[orzel-w]

I watched my Blu-ray again today and enjoyed it all over again. My appreciation of the movie seems to grow with each viewing.

The production has the appearance that no expense was spared in any department. The acting it great; the SFX are top notch; the script is terrific; art direction flawless. (Did I mention I like this movie?)
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...or not...

WayneO
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[The Spike]

http://resizing.flixster.com/TyWF9YNXozGD25F8Cg8ZDchbxrw=/800x1200/dkpu1ddg7pbsk.cloudfront.net/movie/11/16/67/11166735_ori.jpg

The comic book geek blockbuster for adults only.

Watchmen is directed by Zack Snyder and adapted to screenplay by David Hayter and Alex Tse from the Alan Moore/David Gibbons graphic novel. It stars Patrick Wilson, Malin Ackerman, Billy Crudup, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Carla Gugino and Matt Frewer. Music is by Tyler Bates and cinematography by Larry Fong.

1985 and someone is killing all our superheroes. Time for the remaining super heroes to band together - but what they find as they fight the good fight is potential annihilation for everyone.

It was quite a battle getting Watchmen onto the screen, over twenty years of legal wrangling and controversies, it got to the point where fans of the source material doubted it would ever happen - and even if it did it was sure to be a monstrous failure. How pleasing to find that not only did it make it to the screen, but it is also a genre bending winner - well to some of us of course...

One has to take into context just how potent and original the graphic novel was back in 1986/7, we are dealing with very mature themes, superheroes with serious psychological baggage. Alan Moore lit the touch paper in the comic book kingdom that the rest have since followed to keep the torch burning well into the new millennium. Snyder has achieved top line results in getting both the feel and look of the source, even if some of Moore's cunning cynicism has been lost in translation.

Story is set right in the middle of nuclear paranoia and the fear of the Soviets in 85, the America we view is dank and depressing, noirish in vibe (aided by Rorschach's clobber and detective inclinations), it's a world on the road to nowhere. We are also at a time in the alternate world where superheroes are banned from operating, forcing The Watchmen to become vigilantes - that is if they can get along and shunt their psycho discord to one side. The back stories of the main protagonists are fully formed, and these are not jolly characters, so much so you worry the fate of mankind is doomed if these are who we rely on to save us.

There was in no way that Snyder would be able to produce a comic book filmic adaptation that would be as worshipped in that sphere, to rival that of the worship the novel has in its own. However, coming at it as someone who only sought out the source material after seeing the film, it shines bright for newcomers who are ironically seeking darker tints in superhero tales. Oh it has the requisite nifty twists (a clinical mystery to be unearthed), booming visuals, excellent effects work and smartly constructed action set-pieces, but narratively it's moody and calls for the utmost attention on dialogue passages (I have found it gets better on repeat viewings).

Snyder clearly cared about the project and that love is evident in the movie. It was never going to appease all and sundry, but at worst to hardcore Moore fans it's at least an honourable failure, to many others it's a smart and stylishly refreshing genre booster. 8/10
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The quality of mercy is not strnen.

[Bud Brewster]

I finally got around to watching this movie. I wasn't sure if I liked it or not — until I got to the dynamic climax.

Great movie. Grim and complex, sometimes unpleasant, often a bit hard to follow, but a very intelligent film.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)