Is Watchmen important?

[MLai]

Tijuana Bibles

Oh wow, I learned a new term. And that USA comics predated a Japanese trend by about 90 years.

Which is another way of describing exactly why Rorschach was a horrible, horrible human being: because while he stuck to his code, his code explicitly denied certain people justice for no other reason than because they offended his deeply warped sensibilities.

My, this comic book is prophetic.

[Lurkmoar]

My, this comic book is prophetic.

No blue men though.

...

except the Blue Men Group.

[Man on Fire]

Which is another way of describing exactly why Rorschach was a horrible, horrible human being: because while he stuck to his code, his code explicitly denied certain people justice for no other reason than because they offended his deeply warped sensibilities.

This explains so much about all these fedora-wearing, gamergate supporting Rosarch fans it's incredible.

[Dienekes]

This explains so much about all these fedora-wearing, gamergate supporting Rosarch fans it's incredible.

Can we not? Bringing this toxic debate is not relevant or necessary, and as long as each side portrays the other as cartoonish stereotypes nothing will ever be solved by it anyway.

[BeerMug Paladin]

Another thing, Rorschach commits casual theft and breaking and entering. He does this to people he knows without apology and helps himself to their food. He apparently does that often enough that the people he knows aren't surprised to see him doing that.

And he considers pretty much the large bulk of humanity uncivil barbarians who people like him barely keep restrained in order for civilization to be possible.

[JetThomasBoat]

I'm definitely in camp Giant Alien Squid as well, largely for the above reasons.

But I can understand why they didn't go with it in the movie. The reason the alien worked so well for me is that you see it being worked on throughout the comic. There's hints about what Ozzie is doing scattered throughout - you just do not predict what he's going to do with it. For the movie, they just don't have enough time to show all that stuff, so they went with the next best thing.

This. Exactly this. When thinking about the movie, one has to keep in mind it's still a movie. Which are at least partially intended to make money and they do that by being accessible to more than just fans of the comic. Which in turn means a lot of people knew to the franchise who, even if they did build up the creation of the giant squid earlier in the movie would still be like "What the everloving ****?"

[MLai]

This. Exactly this. When thinking about the movie, one has to keep in mind it's still a movie. Which are at least partially intended to make money and they do that by being accessible to more than just fans of the comic. Which in turn means a lot of people knew to the franchise who, even if they did build up the creation of the giant squid earlier in the movie would still be like "What the everloving ****?"

Yes, it seems quite a few comics fan can't hear themselves and comprehend what a ridiculous idea a manufactured fake-alien space giant squid is. Normal cinema-goers can stomach a movie with superheroes, since they enter the building with that acceptance. But throwing something else even more unbelievable into the story without warning is something only fanfics and Bollywood movies do.

[McStabbington]

This. Exactly this. When thinking about the movie, one has to keep in mind it's still a movie. Which are at least partially intended to make money and they do that by being accessible to more than just fans of the comic. Which in turn means a lot of people knew to the franchise who, even if they did build up the creation of the giant squid earlier in the movie would still be like "What the everloving ****?"

That was my reaction the when I read the comic. I mean, I went back a second time, and so I could see the pieces he was putting together, and I know more now about the Silver-Age goofiness that Moore was deconstructing than I did then, so I can at least intellectually appreciate it, but I kept coming back to that exact visceral reaction. So the movie was a huge step up for me precisely because it kept the tonal whiplash the squid induced to a minimum. It really was a wonderfully deft and surgical alteration. I think it's not appreciated more largely because Moore fans are so used to seeing his works butchered in screenplays that they just go nuts out of habit rather than thinking things through.

I will say in retrospect that, as much as they tried for a faithful adaptation, I really don't think Zach Snyder is a humanistic enough director to really bring the characters to life, which is I think why so many people complain about how flat the movie is as an adaptation. By this, I mean that there are humanistic directors (think Steven Spielberg) who are all about infusing the work with little touches that make characters feel lived and breathing in their work. I mean, Chrissy from Jaws was on screen for all of two minutes, but her death feels so gut-wrenchingly horrible precisely because in those two minutes, Spielberg went out of his way to give her characteristics like enthusiasm ("Swimming!") and delight, and then showed her in horrible, horrible pain and anguish.

Then there are directors who are largely indifferent to their characters (think Stanley Kubrick). Now there's nothing wrong with either one, as it's a valid artistic choice. I don't think Spielberg could have made something like A Clockwork Orange any more than Kubrick could have made Jurassic Park. But that's the thing: you really need a humanistic director, I think, to really bring out the tragedy of characters like Rorschach and Doctor Manhattan. However, Snyder, whether by artistic choice or just because he's not good at working with or filming actors, is far more on the Kubrick side of the Speilberg-Kubrick Humanity Scale. The actors are really doing a fine job, and they make you care, but I just get the feeling from seeing enough of Snyder's work that empathy just isn't his forte. I think it's one of the reasons why MoS was so jarring for so many people.