"...you're locked in here with ME."
Long day was long.
Anyway.
Back from seeing Watchmen and done sifting through the last ~280 entries on my f-list, so now I think I'll say a few things about the film. Overall, I really liked it.
+ As an adaptation, it was pretty successful -- definitely took some liberties with the novel at the end, but I actually didn't mind the changes. Some things don't translate well onto screen.
+ It LOOKED amazing. The effects, the cinematography, the set design -- I really felt transported into that universe, and the costumes were great -- they could've turned out so much campier, based on the book.
+ Rorshach: AMAZING. Perfect, really. Well-acted, kick-ass, complicated, scary, sympathetic -- just like in the book. He was definitely less of an anti-hero than an actual hero though, in the film. He IS the good guy, if there even is one, in the story, because he never compromised. And he has the coolest scenes by far. (Not to mention, how cool was the moving inkblot mask thingy?)
+ Comedian: God, I love Jeffery Dean Morgan, and I loved the Comedian. (Okay, so he's not lovable at ALL, but so damn interesting as a character. What I love about Watchmen is that it was one of the first books to really take an unflinching look at superheroes, and show them as humans rather than just symbols of ~American values~ they were before. It also takes some less-than-subtle shots at the genre.)
+ Laurie: I enjoyed her overall, and she was well-acted if a bit younger than I envisioned. And Sally was awesome; I LOVED Carla Gugino in this, both in the scenes with her daughter and in the flashbacks. She stole every scene she was in. :D
+ Dan was pretty perfect, just how I imagined him. Adorably awkward. Though I didn't really feel the sparks between he and Laurie -- and that sex scene was WAY too long. :P I thought it would never end. And the music was awkward (really? 'Hallelujah'? I mean, I get it Dan, saving lives makes you happy in your pants. let's move on.) It was the only song that I felt didn't fit in the film, certainly not in that scene. And I literally snorted out loud when the flames shot out of the ship.
...anyway, I think he had more chemistry with Rorschach.
+ Adrian: He didn't get as much development as the others, and his accent was ... weird.
+ Jon: Really felt for him, and I thought Crudup did a good job portraying how distant Dr. Manhattan is from people without being unfeeling. He turned out glowier than I expected, yet it still didn't look campy. The whole film was well-executed in that way. I don't know how I feel about his relationship with Laurie, though. It felt like she was jumping between him and Dan too quickly, but I don't know if the writers intended it that way because it didn't seem like they were committing to an actual love triangle, either. It didn't serve her character well, either way.
I like that for the most part, the film didn't sacrifice character exploration for action, and I liked that it made me think. The montage at the beginning, too, was awesome; it pulled you right in and set up the verse. It's LONG, though, and I admit I did start to feel its length towards the end. On the whole, I would definitely recommend it, whether you've read the novel or not -- though you should read it, because it's better than the film, obviously. *g*
Semi-relatedly, HOW AWESOME WAS THAT STAR TREK TRAILER??
Anyway.
Back from seeing Watchmen and done sifting through the last ~280 entries on my f-list, so now I think I'll say a few things about the film. Overall, I really liked it.
+ As an adaptation, it was pretty successful -- definitely took some liberties with the novel at the end, but I actually didn't mind the changes. Some things don't translate well onto screen.
+ It LOOKED amazing. The effects, the cinematography, the set design -- I really felt transported into that universe, and the costumes were great -- they could've turned out so much campier, based on the book.
+ Rorshach: AMAZING. Perfect, really. Well-acted, kick-ass, complicated, scary, sympathetic -- just like in the book. He was definitely less of an anti-hero than an actual hero though, in the film. He IS the good guy, if there even is one, in the story, because he never compromised. And he has the coolest scenes by far. (Not to mention, how cool was the moving inkblot mask thingy?)
+ Comedian: God, I love Jeffery Dean Morgan, and I loved the Comedian. (Okay, so he's not lovable at ALL, but so damn interesting as a character. What I love about Watchmen is that it was one of the first books to really take an unflinching look at superheroes, and show them as humans rather than just symbols of ~American values~ they were before. It also takes some less-than-subtle shots at the genre.)
+ Laurie: I enjoyed her overall, and she was well-acted if a bit younger than I envisioned. And Sally was awesome; I LOVED Carla Gugino in this, both in the scenes with her daughter and in the flashbacks. She stole every scene she was in. :D
+ Dan was pretty perfect, just how I imagined him. Adorably awkward. Though I didn't really feel the sparks between he and Laurie -- and that sex scene was WAY too long. :P I thought it would never end. And the music was awkward (really? 'Hallelujah'? I mean, I get it Dan, saving lives makes you happy in your pants. let's move on.) It was the only song that I felt didn't fit in the film, certainly not in that scene. And I literally snorted out loud when the flames shot out of the ship.
...anyway, I think he had more chemistry with Rorschach.
+ Adrian: He didn't get as much development as the others, and his accent was ... weird.
+ Jon: Really felt for him, and I thought Crudup did a good job portraying how distant Dr. Manhattan is from people without being unfeeling. He turned out glowier than I expected, yet it still didn't look campy. The whole film was well-executed in that way. I don't know how I feel about his relationship with Laurie, though. It felt like she was jumping between him and Dan too quickly, but I don't know if the writers intended it that way because it didn't seem like they were committing to an actual love triangle, either. It didn't serve her character well, either way.
I like that for the most part, the film didn't sacrifice character exploration for action, and I liked that it made me think. The montage at the beginning, too, was awesome; it pulled you right in and set up the verse. It's LONG, though, and I admit I did start to feel its length towards the end. On the whole, I would definitely recommend it, whether you've read the novel or not -- though you should read it, because it's better than the film, obviously. *g*
Semi-relatedly, HOW AWESOME WAS THAT STAR TREK TRAILER??