My wife and I just saw "The Watchmen" this weekend.
I can't stop thinking about the movie...very true to the graphic novel and an excellent adaptation. If any of you have seen it I would love to hear your opinions on the moral dilemma, examination of the Byronic heros, story line etc...
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
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Re: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Cant stop thinking about the blue dong, huh?ru_exp wrote:My wife and I just saw "The Watchmen" this weekend.
I can't stop thinking about the movie...very true to the graphic novel and an excellent adaptation. If any of you have seen it I would love to hear your opinions on the moral dilemma, examination of the Byronic heros, story line etc...
Re: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
McShagger...I swear this: I absolutely knew that some idiot would reference prominant blue phalic appendage. 
I was actually just thinking about the movie over all. The message, the graphic violence, the means to an end...
It would have been much more poignant if it was shown during the late 80's ~ early 90's. Although with the political and military moves that Russia has been making the underlying themes will be back in vogue in no time.
Most interesting observation: at the behavioral core of every vigilante is a psychopath who believes their behavior is justified.
I was actually just thinking about the movie over all. The message, the graphic violence, the means to an end...
It would have been much more poignant if it was shown during the late 80's ~ early 90's. Although with the political and military moves that Russia has been making the underlying themes will be back in vogue in no time.
Most interesting observation: at the behavioral core of every vigilante is a psychopath who believes their behavior is justified.
Re: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Actually, I liked the movie. My wife hated it. The beginning seemed a bit stretched out and I didnt really care for the change in history. If its a comic book world, why do they have to use such literal figures and references in history.
They did a great job with all the characters. I do think they dwelled a bit much on the Commedian. Its the weakest character, but somehow the most realistic. As far as the violence goes, Im not sure it was needed. Most of the action was sub-par anyway. This comic book movie should have been made PG13 and it would have done a lot better. I guess theres a first for everything though.
Overall, I quite liked the story and all the other stuff going on. It just all made for a more interesting movie. Not so linear, cut and dry, good-guy/bad-guy, etc... quite different. I hear the ending was quite different than the comic book novel. And that the ending was actually made better in the movie. If thats true, Im glad they did it that way. The earth was saved, but who was the hero and is he a hero?
They did a great job with all the characters. I do think they dwelled a bit much on the Commedian. Its the weakest character, but somehow the most realistic. As far as the violence goes, Im not sure it was needed. Most of the action was sub-par anyway. This comic book movie should have been made PG13 and it would have done a lot better. I guess theres a first for everything though.
Overall, I quite liked the story and all the other stuff going on. It just all made for a more interesting movie. Not so linear, cut and dry, good-guy/bad-guy, etc... quite different. I hear the ending was quite different than the comic book novel. And that the ending was actually made better in the movie. If thats true, Im glad they did it that way. The earth was saved, but who was the hero and is he a hero?
Re: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
I didn't read the comic beforehand and enjoyed it. Certainly flawed, I like the original ending better but a decent waste of time.
Re: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
McShagger: The creator of the graphic novel used historic figures in order to draw you into an alternate reality. Imagine a dimension where these characters, including Dr. Manhattan come into existence and they help Nixon win the Vietnam War. He is an instant hero and maintains uber power status because he has a sentient being that is essentially a mobile fission reaction. Also, remember that it is the Nixon administration that keeps this guy on sanctioned to operate for the government...so most likely Nixon would be in office for perpetuity.
As for The Comedian...he is the most important and pivotal character in the entire story. Not just because his death set in motion what would be the apex of the story, but more so because the complexity of his character. The mask of nihilism he wears actually covers the depth of his character. By the end, everyone realizes that it was The Comedian that actually understood the punch line in life. No matter how much "free will" you think you have, you are nothing more than a pawn in the game and most likely, you don't even know who is playing you. And what's worse, by the time you find out it is too late to do anything about it...that's the cruelest joke of all.
The ending what an interesting change from the graphic novel and I thought it fit perfectly. So people objected to making Dr. Manhattan out to be the bad guy but it made a lot of sense to me. His powers were off the scale. He was far more godlike than human. His detachment from the human condition necessitated his extraction from human contact. And in the end, it was irrelevant to him whether he was viewed as a villain or not...there was nothing they could do about it. Objective accomplished.
There are no heroes, there is only marketing. As for superheroes, you have people that given the power to destroy or to save human lives. All of them have inherent flaws in their character. Those flaws are magnified and generally corrupted by power. So eventually, the superheroes inadvertently destroy the people they were trying to save...that's the punchline.
Good movie...good comic...great conversation.
As for The Comedian...he is the most important and pivotal character in the entire story. Not just because his death set in motion what would be the apex of the story, but more so because the complexity of his character. The mask of nihilism he wears actually covers the depth of his character. By the end, everyone realizes that it was The Comedian that actually understood the punch line in life. No matter how much "free will" you think you have, you are nothing more than a pawn in the game and most likely, you don't even know who is playing you. And what's worse, by the time you find out it is too late to do anything about it...that's the cruelest joke of all.
The ending what an interesting change from the graphic novel and I thought it fit perfectly. So people objected to making Dr. Manhattan out to be the bad guy but it made a lot of sense to me. His powers were off the scale. He was far more godlike than human. His detachment from the human condition necessitated his extraction from human contact. And in the end, it was irrelevant to him whether he was viewed as a villain or not...there was nothing they could do about it. Objective accomplished.
There are no heroes, there is only marketing. As for superheroes, you have people that given the power to destroy or to save human lives. All of them have inherent flaws in their character. Those flaws are magnified and generally corrupted by power. So eventually, the superheroes inadvertently destroy the people they were trying to save...that's the punchline.
Good movie...good comic...great conversation.
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emc.johnnie
- Killing Spree
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- Joined: Thu May 29, 2008 1:04 pm
- Location: bronx,nyc
Re: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
i heard it sucks! i'll wait for dvd.... dont care to see a movie thats mostly talk and big blue junk!
Re: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Too many words make emc.johnnie's head hurt.emc.johnnie wrote:i heard it sucks! i'll wait for dvd.... dont care to see a movie thats mostly talk and big blue junk!
Re: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
ru_exp wrote:Too many words make emc.johnnie's head hurt.emc.johnnie wrote:i heard it sucks! i'll wait for dvd.... dont care to see a movie thats mostly talk and big blue junk!
loving this clan run by morans!
