Visual Metaphor in Watchmen
I know several in my flist have said they plan to see the film this weekend, as was I, so when I serendipitously ran across this blog from a screenwriter on the visual metaphor on the film, I thought I'd post a link in case anyone else was interested.
He goes into some more technical stuff on writing screenplays, which I enjoyed (I plan on taking up screenwriting again after I finish some WIP I want to complete -- sorry about Superman for Sale taking so long to finish, but I ran into problems I didn't anticipate), but some of this stuff on the comics and the film itself are terrific.
I highly recommend reading this article especially if you're interested in visual storytelling, even if you aren't writing screenplays in addition to your fics. Despite his somewhat annoying habit to have really long-ass paragraphs, I personally ascribe to the "white space is your friend" theory since it makes things generally easier to read, I highly recommend almost every article on this blog.
Here are his thoughts on The Watchmen:
http://mysterymanonfilm.blogspot.com/2009/03/watchmen-visual-irony.html
An especially nice section:
There can be layers of contradictions between what a character says and what a character really thinks. Exploiting a character’s contradictions is also a way to craft inner conflicts. You have two opposing needs in a character that eventually puts that person in a difficult position where he or she has to make a choice.
But there’s a whole other level of contradictions in the way that you tell your story - Visual Ironies. It’s that contrast between two things you see on the screen or it’s a contrast between words and images. And when it comes to the Watchmen visual contrasts is what makes so much of the imagery interesting, all of which begins with the blood-splattered smiley face. The smiley face pin on its own gives off very fun, happy vibes. Add a splotch of blood on the button, and you have a more layered, twisted, perversion of meaning.
If you're a watchmen fan, I highly recommend reading the entire article, there are links to other interesting things regarding the Watchmen, other blogs, essayists and even podcasts...
He goes into some more technical stuff on writing screenplays, which I enjoyed (I plan on taking up screenwriting again after I finish some WIP I want to complete -- sorry about Superman for Sale taking so long to finish, but I ran into problems I didn't anticipate), but some of this stuff on the comics and the film itself are terrific.
I highly recommend reading this article especially if you're interested in visual storytelling, even if you aren't writing screenplays in addition to your fics. Despite his somewhat annoying habit to have really long-ass paragraphs, I personally ascribe to the "white space is your friend" theory since it makes things generally easier to read, I highly recommend almost every article on this blog.
Here are his thoughts on The Watchmen:
http://mysterymanonfilm.blogspot.com/2009/03/watchmen-visual-irony.html
An especially nice section:
There can be layers of contradictions between what a character says and what a character really thinks. Exploiting a character’s contradictions is also a way to craft inner conflicts. You have two opposing needs in a character that eventually puts that person in a difficult position where he or she has to make a choice.
But there’s a whole other level of contradictions in the way that you tell your story - Visual Ironies. It’s that contrast between two things you see on the screen or it’s a contrast between words and images. And when it comes to the Watchmen visual contrasts is what makes so much of the imagery interesting, all of which begins with the blood-splattered smiley face. The smiley face pin on its own gives off very fun, happy vibes. Add a splotch of blood on the button, and you have a more layered, twisted, perversion of meaning.
If you're a watchmen fan, I highly recommend reading the entire article, there are links to other interesting things regarding the Watchmen, other blogs, essayists and even podcasts...