Monthly Archive for March, 2009

Touch Not, Lest Ye Be Touched

Ok guys, since I am apparently the biggest dick on this site, I felt the need to review Tales of the Black Freighter before the other softees did.  I don’t know if it was evident from the most recent podcast, but I was not enamored with Watchmen.  It really had nothing to do with what they left out, and what they changed or any of that, it was more a fact that the movie just can’t be made with the source material provided.  Now I’m not about to say I hated the movie completely because I liked nay loved certain parts.  The way they Snyder altered the ending for example…better than the book.  Rorschach was awesome and Jackie Earl Haley was the highlight of the whole move.  In fact I agree with one of the commentors that an all-Rorschach movie would have been sick.  Nonetheless, I left the theater feeling underwhelmed and under-entertained, but in reality I don’t think it could have been better, unless they made a miniseries…and at that, who knows.  Now, onto the supplemental material that was released this week.  As a whole, it was much better than the theatrical release.  The Black Freighter story is very gritty and dark, it is certainly not for the faint at heart.  Snyder and Co. left no stone unturned here and gave me exactly what I wanted…a faithful replication of the story within a story.  Gerard Butler’s voice over was ominous and angered.  As Chuck and I left the movie we both were wanting more of the MinuteMen back story…well you will get that here with the Under The Hood interview by the original Night Owl.  It is done in such a way that it seems like you are watching a 60 Minutes-like show from the 1960s with Seiko commercials included.  As such, a lot of Sally Jupiter’s story shone through here as well as the original masked vigilante Hooded Justice.  When Watchmen come out on BluRay, I will rewatch both in tandem and I feel that this may change my opinion for Watchmen, even possibly raising it’s iScore for me…nah.

The moral of the story is “don’t get a dog”: Episode 23

Episode 23 kicks off with remembrances of winter, Chuck’s trials and tribulations of owning a dog, and multi-function remotes. Chuck and Jason then eagerly launch into their discussion of the Watchmen movie. The podcast concludes with Jason’s reviews of three new games: Street Fighter 4, Little Big Planet, and Resident Evil 5.

 
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Tonight, the K-count is going up, Episode 22

As Episode 22 kicks off with a serious PEBKAC issue and Clive Owen’s penchant for firearms, Jason and Chuck pick up the pieces of their shattered Oscar talk, High Jackman’s performance, and Jay’s shame. On the docket: Slumdog Millionaire, The Dark Knight, Taken, Watchmen, and Coraline.

Links:
http://soleyne.com
http://www.imdb.com/boxoffice/alltimegross?region=world-wide
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm
Smodcast

 
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Who Watches the Watchmen?

Well… um… we do? I mean it’s out now in theaters.

Luckily that question is not the only one I have answers for today as we were able to catch the Watchmen at  a midnight showing last night.

Here’s another question: Was it any good?

Hell yes it was. Brutal, graphic, pretty to look at, well paced, well acted and it hit a very large majority of the books major points right on the head.

Here is where things get tricky. If you did not read the book, you’ll likely be confused as hell at times and you’ll probably be surprised by the overall adult nature of it. You see this is not the Xmen, or Spiderman or any other average comic book. The majority of the ‘heros’ have some heavy pyschological issues, 0 superpowers and are basically masked vigilantes that the majority of society would like to see locked up permanently. The only guy that actually has any real super-type abilities is mostly devoid of emotion and really doesn’t give a shit about the human race.

So if you read the book and loved it and you’re not a detail nazi (ZOMG!!!11!! RORSHACH IS SUPPOSED TO GO HOME FOR HIS SECOND MASK!!! THIS MOVIE IS RUINED!!!) then you’ll love it. They pulled no punches when it came to the graphic nature of the novel, so don’t be surpised to see shredded flesh, attempted rape, a bunch of breasts, compound fractures, blue penises (penii??) and more.

Bottom line is this. It’s not for everyone, but for the fans of the graphic novel it seems like the movie version you could have only hoped for.

BTW: yes the ending has been changed and that entire plotline that goes into the construction of the ’squid’ has been scrapped, but I think it’s for the best. The movie’s ending not only performs the exact same function, it actually feels more legit.