Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Watchmen update


From cinemablend, A few days ago we reported on Watchmen creator Alan Moore’s reaction to a movie being made about his masterpiece. Predictably, he doesn’t like it. Not because he’s seen something about it that he doesn’t like, but because he hates anything that’s derived from his work, on site. He also thinks he’s some sort of wizard. No really. Why are geniuses always so crazy?

Make no mistake, Alan Moore is genius. Also genius though is Dave Gibbons, the guy who collaborated with Moore on the original “Watchmen” comics. Dave, unlike Moore, wanted to actually see what was up with the Watchmen movie before hating it, and so he took a visit to the movie’s set and blogged about it on the film’s official site.

So what did he think? He may be in love. He says, “I'm overwhelmed by the commitment, the passion, the palpable desire to do this right. I'm starting to feel a glow that eclipses even Dr. Manhattan's...” Sounds pretty damn encouraging right? His entire report from the set is like that, a massive orgasm over what Zack Snyder is doing with what is arguably, probably the most important piece of work he ever had a hand in creating.

I know Alan Moore hates it, but he hasn’t seen it and won’t. I’m more inclined to listen to Gibbons, who is, well, more normal. If he’s happy about what’s happening on the Watchmen set, then so am I.

10 comments:

AC said...

as a watchmen fanatic, i am cautiously optimistic about casting and level of detail-orientation demonstrated to date. this is a movie for which a good dose of perfectionism seems crucial.

husband and i just bought the graphic novel for a friend who is a shakespeare professor. can't wait for his take on it.

any watchmen virgins on the blog?

JPX said...

JSP!

Octopunk said...

That's just crazy.

I agree that Moore's take on all this is a bit fruity, but that doesn't mean I trust Gibbons's assessment. Just because he drew the thing doesn't mean he gets it.

Johnny Sweatpants said...

What the hell is a watchman? It's about a security guard sitting on a stool reading a newspaper, right?

AC said...

jsp, are you trying to goad us into yet another feud?

watchmen is a dark, complex, psychological, philosophical, sexual, violent, and funny masterpiece. it's also a meta-commentary on comics and graphic novels in general. if that doesn't sound good to you, fair enough!

Johnny Sweatpants said...

Yes, that was precisely what I was trying to do. That's some fine and thorough praise AC, it sounds great. Dammit, yet another thing I have to buy. When will it end?

JPX has been praising the Watchman for years.

Jordan said...

I like to go through the book and find new instances of the "bloody smiley face" image. They're everywhere. A crater on Mars; Dan Drieberg's fingerprint in the kitchen window fog, against the sunrise; etc.

AC said...

good tip. next read i will check it out.

JPX said...

AC had a homemade Watchmen mug in graduate school.

I immediately knew she was cool.

AC said...

wow jpx, great memory! i had totally forgotten that. :)

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