tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post8473893394132066459..comments2024-03-26T15:22:25.095-06:00Comments on The Earliad: I Watched the WatchmenEarl J. Woodshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07963936256606285358noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-84112950512412365362009-03-14T20:19:00.000-06:002009-03-14T20:19:00.000-06:00Well, now having seen the Watchmen movie, I feel t...Well, now having seen the Watchmen movie, I feel that it compares very easily with Akira, and in many important ways is roughly equal:<BR/><BR/>Both come from a dense graphic novel as a source.<BR/><BR/>Both are too long, too talky, and in spots too ultra-violent and gory.<BR/><BR/>Both present alluring alternate-reality societies filled with compelling characters.<BR/><BR/>Both have an arresting and dynamic graphic style.<BR/><BR/>Both have a huge body count, although much of the mayhem is from what I would call "death by pixels": hyperkinetic animated special effects over any sense of realism. <BR/><BR/>Both deal with the issues of creating a man-made god, and with creating consenus and order in society through supra-legal and/or violent means.<BR/><BR/>I now consider Watchmen to be the American Akira. It's more streamlined than Akira, and features an American sensibility in story and setting whereas Akira is unmistakably Japanese. <BR/><BR/>Both films would make a really crazy double-header, I think, if you had the endurance. The Wathcmen was an interesting and compelling film, especially for fans of the book. I think Earl's review more or less echoes my views.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-6685989814267683412009-03-05T14:13:00.000-07:002009-03-05T14:13:00.000-07:00A redux ending eh? I always thought that the plot...A redux ending eh? I always thought that the plot-device ending of the Watchmen comic book was its weakest part. Really, just about any plot and any ending (you killed my family, now I must spend 20 years leaning martial arts and kill you) would serve the story. It's the physchologies of the various characters and the lives they find themselves trapped in that I think is interesting in the book, and not the overt plot. <BR/><BR/>Still, as plot-device endings go, the sort of "The Day The Earth Stood Still"-ishness of the Watchmen book ending always seemed to me rather false, even given all the blood and the 1985 morality. <BR/><BR/>Bad things happen in New York. Incredibly bad things. The city seems to breed bad things and almost invite cataclysm. As 9-11 seems to bear out, many many individuals are affected profoundly, but the world as a whole is intent to move on to other things. <BR/><BR/>Maybe the Watchmen is the "Akira" for the new millenium. Strangely, I feel that Akira is becoming more relevant as time goes on, while the Watchmen are less so. <BR/><BR/>It is said that one man can move the world, if he has a lever big enough. Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons tried, I guess, but even with their super-anti-heroic effort, the world rolls on without them.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-50903307075510922762009-03-05T11:10:00.000-07:002009-03-05T11:10:00.000-07:00My sons will be envious. They are looking forward ...My sons will be envious. They are looking forward to Watchmen like kids looking forward to Christmas. A very violent Christmas.Mauricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01144997545621037246noreply@blogger.com