April 24, 2007 -- AFTER helming the surprise Spartan war smash "300," director Zack Snyder could write his own ticket in Hollywood.
So he did what any comic book fan would. For his next project, he chose "Watchmen."
Written by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons in 1986-87, "Watchmen" is considered a classic - perhaps the best comic book ever made. Sophisticated in its theme, complicated in its telling, Moore described himself as trying to make "a superhero 'Moby-Dick,' something that had that sort of weight, that sort of density."
It is also cursed, at least in Hollywood terms. Development of a "Watchmen" movie has bounced around for two decades, with everyone from Terry Gilliam to Joel Silver to Darren Aronofsky attached.
Snyder may have the clout to get it made. But it seems the curse has struck again in the form of a television show. "Heroes" - the popular series on NBC - not only swiped "Watchmen" 's climax, it may have stolen its thunder.
(This is the part where those who don't want to know what happens in "Watchmen" or last night's "Heroes" should stop reading.)
"Watchmen" centers around a group of vigilantes who fight crime with their fists and gadgets, not unlike Batman. But public sentiment turns against the "masks," and they are all forced into retirement, except one - the only one with actual supernatural powers, the nuclear-altered Dr. Manhattan. The retirees find life more than a little boring, as they become paunchy middle-age once-weres (similar to what "The Incredibles" did to comedic effect).
But the murder of one of the vigilantes, the Comedian, sets off an investigation by the surviving masks, including the mentally unstable Rorschach and the good-hearted but uncertain Nite-Owl.
What they discover is a plot by one of their former teammates, the wealthy Adrian Veidt, who goes by the ancient Egyptian name Ozymandias.
Ozymandias has staged a fake alien invasion of New York, killing half the city's population in the process, in an effort to stop the Cold War and save the Earth from nuclear crisis by uniting the world.
Not only are the masks too late to stop Ozymandias, Veidt's plan actually works. And all the masks are faced with the ethical dilemma of telling the world what they know - and risk destroying the peace. Dr. Manhattan even kills Rorschach rather than have him reveal the secret.
"Heroes" centers around a similar catastrophe - a nuclear explosion that, coincidentally, wipes out half the population of New York at some undetermined future. In last night's episode, the mob boss Linderman (Malcolm McDowell) reveals that he knows the bomb is going to go off and wants it to - because the destruction of New York will unite the world in peace behind a new president he is grooming.
At the end of the episode, that candidate - Nathan Petrelli (Adrian Pasdar) - hinted that he was going along with the plan, even if it means the death of his brother, because of the good it will bring.
Tim Kring, the creator of "Heroes," was out of the country, but has said in interviews in the past that he doesn't know comics that well - similarities are coincidental. And one could argue that the show is a patchwork of popular comic book themes beyond "Watchmen," taking the mutant gene, for instance, directly from "X-Men." Or that the plot is different enough because Ozymandias plans the attack, while Linderman simply does nothing to stop it (as far as we know).
But Snyder and his bosses are probably more than a little ticked off. For a movie that will cost hundreds of millions, and could star Tom Cruise as Ozymandias if the Hollywood rumor mill is right, it can be galling to see such a pivotal plot twist used elsewhere.
Fans have waited two decades to see "Watchmen" put on-screen. The last thing Snyder wants is for people to think they already have.
Trying to make something as dense and involved as Watchmen into a two hour movie is a losing proposition. Best bet would be an HBO one season miniseries, where they did one episode per original comic.
Okay, that's rude to tell me that my question is irrelevant. >:(
Yes but do you guys think Heroes is borrowing a little too heavily from The Watchmen, like?
I don't really care. Yes, I know Heroes isn't that original, but it's GOOD.
Trying to make something as dense and involved as Watchmen into a two hour movie is a losing proposition. Best bet would be an HBO one season miniseries, where they did one episode per original comic.
Not really. It's not the amount of content that has to be put into a theatrical running time, but the kind of content. There's some weird metaphysical stuff that will be hard to be pieced together in a coherent film structure. Hell, there's a lot of stuff that will be difficult to put together in a coherent film structure. Drawing it out over television won't help much either.
From what people are saying they are trying to make Ozymandias the focus (good guy?) which would make Rorschach the (bad?) guy which is why they shouldn't make the movie in the first place.
Nite Owl and Doctor Manhattan will get hosed. Night Owl because his story is the weakest and Dr. Manhattan because he be nekkid all the time. In a 2 hour movie, they can really only focus on a few aspects of the book, and I think Rorschach will be the focus because he is the most immediately interesting character.I dunno Nite Owl plays the everyman character though I do expect his back story to get cut short I expect him to be still in there.
So wait was this as good as V for Vendetta or the Killing Joke?
Alan Moore :-*...but I haven't ever read this.
I have a feeling they're going to tone Rorshach, and some other things in Watchmen down, if it's so big Tom Cruise is starring. That would suck.Tom Cruise is starring? Lowering expectations now...
Yes, it's ripping off Watchmen and it's not coincidencial. Personally, if they go ahead with that plotline that's so very similar to another comic book (and not just any other comic book), then this is where Heroes officially jumps/flies/teleports over the shark.
Tom Cruise is starring? Lowering expectations now...
Just so you know Corny, I bought the show because of this thread :p
Just so you know Corny, I bought the show because of this thread :p
It's actually really, really good. I didn't want it to be, and didn't bother checking it out until this week. But it's quite good, minus some irrationally stupid decisions on the parts of some characters.spoiler (click to show/hide)People have had Sylar at their mercy how many times and haven't just offed him?[close]
Just so you know Corny, I bought the show because of this thread :p
It's actually really, really good. I didn't want it to be, and didn't bother checking it out until this week. But it's quite good, minus some irrationally stupid decisions on the parts of some characters.spoiler (click to show/hide)People have had Sylar at their mercy how many times and haven't just offed him?[close]
Well, I figure if it's comic booky and it's managed to net this much attention and discussion, it's at least worth checking out. My expectations have been set - I am aware that the writing starts off a little too close to comic cheesy for its own good. I can't resist Christopher Eccleston's charms, though.
spoiler (click to show/hide)People have had Sylar at their mercy how many times and haven't just offed him?[close]
spoiler (click to show/hide)People have had Sylar at their mercy how many times and haven't just offed him?[close]spoiler (click to show/hide)how can they off him when he's got all sorts of powers that keep them from fucking with him? the only reason peter's made it this far is b/c he too has all sorts of groovy powers.[close]