Watchmen: Reviews, Interviews and more

It seems to be that things that were meant satirically or critically in Watchmen now seem to be simply accepted as kind of what they appear to be on the surface. So yeah, I'm pretty jaundiced about the entire "caped crusader" concept at the moment.—Alan Moore.

Interviews

• Wired magazine has posted long inteviews with Dave Gibbons and Alan Moore in the run-up to the release of the Watchmen movie.
• "Filming the Unfilmable: Behind the Scenes of the Watchmen movie" by Adam Rogers (Wired, 23 February)
• "Behind the Mask" (Daily Telegraph, 23 February) interviews Zack Snyder.
• "Artist Dave Gibbons relishes seeing 'Watchmen' come to life" (New York Times Syndicate, 23 February)
• "Watchmen Video Review" by Brendan Connelly (Slashfilm, 24 February)—video review plus footage from the yellow carpet (10:09). Dave Gibbons appears briefly at 1:20 and 4:45.
• "Blockbuster Buzz: Dave Gibbons on Watchmen" by Michael Moran (Times Online, 24 February)—interview with Dave Gibbons.
• "Watching the Watchmen: Look Out Again" by Mark Medley (Vancouver Sun, 25 February; reposted from the National Post, 6 November 2008)—interview with Dave Gibbons.
• "Why Alan Moore Hates Comic-Book Movies" by Sam Ashurst (Total Film, 2 February)—interview with Alan Moore.
• "Dave Gibbons, Zack Snyder Interview" by Sheila Roberts (Movie Online, 25 February)—interviews.

Reviews

• "Watchmen: First UK review" by Michael Moran (Times Online, 23 February)—"If you’re looking for a spoiler-free appraisal of how good this film is here goes: It’s terrific. It’s the first superhero movie aimed directed unambiguously at adults, with better effects than Iron Man and fewer plot holes than Dark Knight. As long as you’re old enough, see it. You won’t be sorry."
• "Watchmen transforms from comic into film" by Kevin Maher (The Times, 24 February)—"As the first attempt to make a truly post-adolescent comic book movie, Watchmen is, literally, peerless."
• "Clint Watches the Watchmen" by Clint Morris (Moviehole, 23 February)—"Part detective story, Part Superhero adventure, and Part Portrait of the Imperfect Human, Watchmen is a must-see movie."
• "Watchment AU Review" by Patrick Kolan (ign.com movies, 23 February)—"Turns out, it wasn't impossible to do Watchmen justice on-screen—it just took a long time, many different points of view, scripts drafted and deals done and dusted. Moore's 338 pages have been condensed into 150-odd minutes of the finest super-hero movie ever made, hands down."
• "Who Watches the Watchmen? If You're Smart, not you" by Robbie Collin (News of the World, 24 February)—"It’s hard to tell who'll be most disappointed by this mess." First really negative review I've found.
• "Who's Watching the Watchmen?" by Mike Ragongna (Huffington Post, 20 February)—"On every level, it will demand your attention and intelligence as it entertains; it's sophisticated and sensationally sophomoric; and for those just watching Watchmen for the Watchmen without any expectations or knowledge of the comic's storyline or historical importance, this really will be a blast."
• "10 Reasons You've Got to Watch Watchmen" by Steve Anglesey (Daily Mirror, 24 February)—"As a whole, Watchmen was never likely to exceed the huge weight of expectation, but ... it’s closer than you'd think."
• "My Own Private Watchmen" by Matt Selman (Time, 16 February)—"Is Watchmen even a good or bad movie? I have no idea. I stand powerless before the Gods I once worshiped in my attic bedroom, now moving and talking and fighting and loving on a giant screen. And I find myself unable to judge them."
• "Watchmen Review" by Michael Leader (Den of Geek, 24 February)—"What we have been given is presented almost entirely faithfully, with enough tricks and style of its own to warrant a viewing. It is hard to imagine a better screen representation of this 'unfilmable' graphic novel."
• Jonathan Ross on Twitter (via RWD, 24 February)—"It was probably the most faithful adaptation of a comic to the big screen. Ending changed very much for the better. Great sets, costumes, special effects—Rorshach especially good. Downside—too long, too reverential, lacks pace and feels a little dull at times. In short—I love it and at same time am unimpressed!"
• "Watchmen Gets Sentimental on Screen" by Charlotte O'Sullivan (Evening Standard, 24 February)—"There are plenty of good reasons to watch Watchmen. Ultimately, though, it’s a movie about cynicism that is full of cynical moves; nastier than the book, yet more sentimental, too."
• "Watchmen" by Ian Nathan (Empire, 24 February)—"Okay, it isn’t the graphic novel, but Zack Snyder clearly gives a toss, creating a smart, stylish, decent adaptation, if low on accessibility for the non-convert."
• "Review: Watchmen" by Devin Faraci (CHUD, 24 February)—"A huge budgeted superhero movie that delivers intellectually? That takes serious, ballsy chances with the form? That isn't giving audience what they expect, and is possibly not giving them what they want? Why, that sounds like a piece of art. A glorious, epic, exciting, mind blowing piece of art."
• "Watchmen Film Review" by Rohan Williams (Comic Book Resources, 25 February)—"For over 20 years, a successful adaptation of ‘Watchmen’ has been Hollywood’s Gordian Knot. I can only admire Synder and co. for doing their best to cut it, but ultimately, they leave it slightly frayed at best."
• "Watchmen" by JoBlo (JoBlo.com, 25 February)—"I didn't hate it. In fact, I'm pretty sure I liked it. I was just disappointed."
• "Watchmen - Film Review" by Todd Gilchrist (h monthly, 25 February)—"It defines the difference between a movie and a film: not merely entertainment, but the articulation of real concepts and ideas, which are effective in their exploration, even if in some cases it’s to the exclusion of more immediate gratification."

Watchmen: The Complete Motion Comic

Motion Comic Reviews

• "Watchmen: The Complete Motion Comic" by R. J. Carter (The Trades, 23 February)
• "Watchmen: The Complete Motion Comic" by Bill Gibron (Filmcritic.com, 24 February)
• "Watchmen: The Complete Motion Comic" by John J. Puccio (DVD Town, 25 Febraury)
  

Movie Premiere Photos

• Pop Culture Zoo (23 February)
• Hollywood Chicago (23 February)
• BBC News (24 February)
• Rich Johnson (23 February)

Miscellaneous

• "'Watchmen' film cert reduced to 16" by Michael Dwyer (Irish Times, 25 February)—"IRISH CINEMAGOERS aged 16 and over may see the violent new US action film Watchmen following a decision by the Film Appeals Board. John Kelleher, director of the Irish Film Classification Office (Ifco), had given the film an 18 certificate—in tandem with a similar classification in the UK."
• While the theatrical version of Watchmen clocks in at 163 minutes, a 190-minute 'Director's Cut' is already set to debut in June which will be available on DVD in July. The longer version is "considerably more violent" than the theatrical version; this may also be the version that will intercut the 'Black Freighter' material that director Zack Snyder has mentioned in interviews.
• "The Watchmen Merchandise Cometh" by Sacha Howells (film.com, 25 February)--"What happens when you leave decisions up to the merchandisers? The Rorschach desk blotter." Or, indeed, the Rorschach lunchbox...
  

Warner/Fox Litigation Fallout:

• "Alan Moore Not the Only Guy Hoping Watchmen Movie Tanks" by Lane Brown (New York Entertainment, 25 February).

I'm expecting a lot more Watchmen interviews and reviews to pop up in the wake of the Odeon Leicester Square premiere so I'll update as regularly as I can until Wednesday night... after that I'll switch back to covering stories in the Rolling News column.