Published: Wednesday, 8th October, 2008 12:30
Watching the Watchmen
By NarinBahar
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For a film that's been in development hell for eons, Watchmen suddenly seems to be everywhere.
After getting a chance to see Dave Gibbons at the weekend's Birmingham International Comic Show my appetite was definitely whetted for one of the most long-awaited comic adaptations - and certainly one of the longest coming, with it being over 20 years since the comic's first appearance.
A Guardian review of a showing of 20 minutes of completed footage and a chat with director Zach Synder and Dave Gibbons this week (the man gets around!) is a bit lukewarm but I can't wait to see this seminal comic on the big screen.
I'm curious to see if it lives up to the hype - but from what Dave Gibbons was saying at the weekend the film is very faithful to the source material, right down to the inkblots on Rorschach's face being taken from the original inkblots that Dave himself made when prepping for drawing the comics.
Meanwhile, when asked about Alan Moore's lack of involvement in the film - the notoriously Hollywood unfriendly writer has refused all approaches from the film company involved and asked for his name not to be associated with the film at all - Dave explained how much fun Moore was having at the consternated execs' expense. "He said 'Dave, you can't buy this kind of entertainment! They can't understand that I don't want money, I don't want fame.'"
With the ongoing legal tussle about the rights for the $100 million film (Twentieth Century Fox filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros. seeking to stop Watchmen’s release in March 2009 claiming it still owns the rights to the comic) set to continue, and the internet fanboys getting ready to rant, it could be that Nite Owl, Silk Spectre and the gang could be overshadowed by some real life drama for some time to come.
But if you've not seen the trailer, check it out - don't you think this looks like it's worth waiting for?:
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