Watchmen

[MovieWes]

Holy God!!! Color me excited now! This looks absolutely breathtaking! Best trailer of the year! Stylistically speaking, it looks like Tim Burton's Batman films by way of Blade Runner.

Zack Snyder looks like he's pulled off the impossible! If the movie is even half as good as the trailer, this will be the comic book adaptation of the decade.

http://pdl.warnerbros.com/wbmovies/watchmen/trailer2/watchmen2_720.mov

I especially like the choice of Philip Glass's "Koyaanisqatsi: Pruit Igoe" as the trailer music, although I have to imagine that they wouldn't have chosen it if it hadn't also used to great effect in the first trailer for the video game "Grand Theft Auto IV."



Edited By MovieWes on 1227027922

[Zahveed]

That second trailer gives me more hope and the Smashing Pumpkins song continues to work.

[rolotomasi99]

Watchmen
Action/Adventure
WB
3/6/09
R rating
for strong graphic violence, sexuality, nudity and language

according to boxofficemojo WATCHMEN has received a rating from the mpaa. first good sign is that the movie is rated r, meaning warner brothers will not be trimming the movie to make it more family friendly. second, though, is if the film was submitted for a rating, they must have settled on a final cut, right? you can only submit for a rating once you are done editing, so this means they have settled on its length and content already. i sure hope snyder was given leeway to make the best cut possible.

[rolotomasi99]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5EXW2-Fj9Q

some new clips from the film. half of the footage was seen in the first teaser, but there is definitely some interesting new stuff.

[Zahveed]

*SPOILER*


So there was a secret screening a few days ago (mostly those who haven't read the graphic novel were in attendance) and they say the film is amazing. They do point out after questioning that there is no squid, but a machine that Ozy and Dr. Manhattan created to mimick Manhattan's godlike powers in the guise of "free energy" and was used as an atomic bomb that is set off in major cities worldwide. If this truely is the case, and not a coverup to throw off casual moviegoers, then this would eliminate the sub-plot about the missing persons. That bit is fine with me since I thought the giant squid would have looked pretty ridiculous on the big screen. What I'm worried about though is there's word that the ending of the graphic novel, Dan and Laurie's ending and then the bit with the journal, was said to not be in the film at all. This might be because a good bit of major cities were destroyed and thus no New York or to eliminate the possibility for a bastard sequel. I don't know.

[MovieWes]

'Watchmen' Secrets Revealed

by Matt McDaniel | October 3, 2008

It's one of the most widely read and critically acclaimed graphic novels in history. And now after two decades of wrangling, Watchmen is coming to the big screen from director Zack Snyder, who adapted Frank Miller's bloody 300 into a box-office smash. But for fans of the book who have read the dark and complex book over and over -- and I include myself in that category -- the job of condensing the sprawling epic into a two-hour movie seemed to be impossible.

I was invited on Wednesday to a screening of over twenty minutes of footage from "Watchmen," and I have to say that it looks like Snyder has done the impossible. The scenes had some unfinished visual effects and temporary music, but already I was able to get a sense of the energy and uncompromising dedication to the original text that Snyder is bringing to the film.

We were first shown the opening twelve minutes of the movie, which begins with the attack on the Comedian (Jeffery Dean Morgan). In the comics, this scene is only ever presented in flashbacks, but here it is a brutal fistfight that leads up to a breathtaking shot following the Comedian as he's tossed out the window of his high-rise. The action here is reminiscent of the slow-to-fast motion of the fight scenes in "300," but the setting feels more tangible, since it was shot on sets and not entirely in front of green screens.

This leads into the opening credits sequence that retells the history of the book's alternate universe from the '30s through the '70s, set to Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin'." Avid fans will spot countless references to images and events from the book, but newcomers will quickly get a sense of the world where superheroes not only exist but directly impact major historical events.

We saw two more scenes from later in the film. First they showed the origin of Dr. Manhattan (Billy Crudup), a physicist transformed in an accident into a blue-skinned superman who manipulates matter with a wave of his hand. Then we saw the prison break scene where costumed heroes Nite Owl (Patrick Wilson) and Silk Spectre (Malin Ackerman) bust out their comrade Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley). It's obvious from the footage we saw that the filmmakers are delivering an R-rated, adult movie that is not going to soften the novel's violent, sexual, or political content.

I asked Snyder after the screening what reactions he has received from people who haven't read the book. He said he has shown the film to people who don't know the novel and they have been able to follow the story and get a feel for the movie's twisted reality. He also said that for the first time as a filmmaker he wishes he could forget his whole history with the project and watch the movie with fresh eyes.

Snyder said that currently the film's running time is at two hours and forty-five minutes, but a later DVD edition will expand it with the addition of an animated story-within-the-story. We'll have to wait until March 6th to see the full film, but you can get a sense of its dark tone and stunning visuals in the trailer below.

[Zahveed]

The case is reportedly about Batman. Since Fox produced the television series and Warner owns the rights to DC characters, suspending Watchmen this close to release until Fox is allowed to distribute the show on DVD/Blu-ray to make a chunk of cash (especially after having a bad year) will give them a little bit of leverage.

[MovieWes]

Alan Moore Unsupportive of Snyder's Watchmen

Source:Los Angeles Times September 18, 2008

With the 20th Century Fox lawsuit against Warner Bros. over Zack Snyder's Watchmen still unresolved, the Los Angeles Times' "Hero Complex" blog recently interviewed comic creator and author Alan Moore and got his opinion on the movie that many have felt might finally get one of Moore's stories right. Moore apparently hasn't had his opinion about Hollywood swayed or changed, because he isn't just against the adaption of his graphic novel finally coming to the big screen, but seemingly against movies in general.

In the interview, Moore says that he finds "film in its modern form to be quite bullying," and as far as the much-publicized lawsuit, Moore seems to be thrilled about the legal problems surrounding the film which is due out on March 6, 2009, two months after the trial date that's been set for the case. "Will the film even be coming out? There are these legal problems now, which I find wonderfully ironic. Perhaps it's been cursed from afar, from England, and I can tell you that I will also be spitting venom all over it for months to come."

Then again, Moore has never watched any of the film adaptations of his books, and Zack Snyder probably shouldn't feel too bad that Moore isn't positive or supportive of the hard work he's been putting into making Watchmen faithful to Moore's original work.

[Zahveed]

Court sets date for 'Watchmen' battle
Judge says issues too complex for preliminary injunction
By Leslie Simmons
Sept 2, 2008, 10:20 PM ET
THR.com


The battle between Fox and Warner Bros. over the rights to "Watchmen" took a big step toward resolution Tuesday when the federal judge presiding over the dispute set a Jan. 6 trial date for the case.

With a March release date looming, U.S. District Court Judge Gary Allen Feess said Fox should forgo any attempt to get a preliminary injunction against Warners to stop the release of the film because the issues were far too complex to be resolved on an interim basis, sources said.

Instead, Feess told both sides to start building a factual record and start expedited discovery and depositions immediately.

Fox still could ask Feess to permanently enjoin Warners from releasing the film following the discovery phase.

Warners is set to release Zack Snyder's big-screen adaptation of the Alan Moore/Dave Gibbons comic series March 6.

At issue is whether Fox still holds the rights to "Watchmen." The studio sued Warners in February for copyright infringement and interference with its contract rights under a 1991 agreement between Fox and Largo Entertainment producer Larry Gordon.

Under that deal, Fox "quitclaimed" its right to "Watchmen" to Largo, with the understanding that if the production company proceeded with making a big-screen version, then the movie would be distributed by Fox. It later negotiated a "turnaround notice" with Gordon that established a buyout formula for the studio if Gordon wanted to buy out Fox's rights. But, according to Fox, Gordon failed to follow that deal.

Gordon negotiated a quitclaim contract with Warners in 2006, which it claims gave them the rights to "Watchmen." But Fox contends it retains the rights because of Gordon's failure to buy out the studio's rights. Warners said Fox gave up its rights in 1991.

[OscarGuy]

I think what should give them leverage to stop Fox from blocking release will be the fact that Watchmen has been in production for some time with a director and they only waited until it was in the can to mark their protest. I doubt Fox will be able to stop the release.

[Zahveed]

Studio War Involving ‘Watchmen’ Heats Up
Clay Enos/Warner Brothers Pictures
“Watchmen,” Warner Brothers’ adaptation of a graphic novel, stars Patrick Wilson, center, and Malin Akerman, right.




By MICHAEL CIEPLY
Published: August 29, 2008
LOS ANGELES — The legal brawl over “Watchmen” is about to get rougher.


Fox Is Allowed to Press Warner Over Rights to ‘Watchmen’ (August 19, 2008) Lawyers for Warner Brothers, which has already shot a movie of this graphic novel about the seamier side of superhero life, and lawyers for 20th Century Fox, which claims it owns the rights to the material, laid plans for a frenzied fight in a joint report submitted to the federal court here on Friday.

Fox has said it will seek an injunction blocking Warner’s planned release of the film next March. Warner has argued that Fox should not be allowed to stop the movie, after standing by while Warner and its partners on the film, Paramount Pictures and Legendary Pictures, spent more than $100 million on the production, directed by Zack Snyder (“300”).

In a summary of its position in Friday’s report, Warner said Fox “sat silently” as one of the producers of “Watchmen,” Lawrence Gordon, took the project “to studio after studio with Fox’s express knowledge.”

Fox, which filed a lawsuit in February, has claimed in its own filings that Mr. Gordon did not keep the studio apprised of his plans, as required by a 1994 agreement. That deal granted Mr. Gordon rights to “Watchmen” in “turnaround” — an industry term for arrangements under which producers can move a project from one studio to another under certain conditions.

In Warner’s version of events, Mr. Gordon, who is not named as a defendant in the Fox suit, actually offered the project to Fox in 2005, shortly before bringing it to Warner after years of trying to make the movie with Paramount. “Fox simply rejected it,” Warner said in the Friday filing.

On Friday Warner said Fox had gone so far as to grant it rights to the title “Watchmen,” which Fox had earlier registered with the Motion Picture Association of America.

Fox, moreover, was paid $320,000 by one of Mr. Gordon’s companies for rights to “Watchmen” as early as 1991, Warner lawyers said in the report. Fox has said that agreement was superseded by a later deal, under which Mr. Gordon was supposed to deliver a much larger buyout price that has never been paid.

The report also outlined conflicting requests for a trial date: as early as next June, if Fox has its way, or April, if Warner prevails.

Friday’s filing makes it clear that not only Mr. Gordon, but also Paramount, Legendary and even Universal Pictures can expect to be drawn into the fray. Universal had tried to make a version of the film in 2001, before Paramount took over. And though Paramount dropped its plans for the movie, it became involved as a partner when Warner teamed up with the director Mr. Snyder in the wake of the box office success of “300.”

[OscarGuy]

By saying it's on par with 300 tells me that I'm not going to like it.

[Zahveed]

Kevin Smith says 'Watchmen' is astounding
Aug 21, 2008, 08:06 AM | by Hollywood Insider

--Written by Jeff Jensen



While comic book aficionados wonder if Warner Bros. will release its controversial superhero flick Watchmen as scheduled next March, one famous fan of the groundbreaking graphic novel says he’s seen Zack Snyder’s $100 million opus, and judging from his reaction, it appears all the fuss the film has stirred up is worth it.

Clerks helmer Kevin Smith (pictured) — who apparently was invited to see the film at Snyder’s invitation shortly after Comic-Con last month — has posted an unabashed rave for Watchmen over at MySpace: “I saw Watchmen. It’s f---ing astounding. The Non-Disclosure Agreement I signed prevents me from saying much, but I can spout the following with complete joygasmic enthusiasm: Snyder and Co. have pulled it off. Remember that feeling of watching Sin City on the big screen and being blown away by what a faithful translation of the source material it was, in terms of both content and visuals? Triple that, and you’ll come close to watching Watchmen.”

Of course, depending on how you felt about Sin City, Smith’s assessment may or may not strike you as impressive. So EW.com asked Smith — currently prepping his R-rated lewd laugher Zack and Miri Make A Porno for a Halloween premiere — to expand just a smidge: “My God, the flick is amazing.” Okay. And? “Anything more and I start getting phone calls.” Fair enough.

Smith’s gush might be encouraging for those who’ve long doubted that even a good film could be distilled out of Watchmen’s dense, complex story, let alone one that’s “f---ing astounding.” But there is still reason to worry: as EW reported in July, Snyder is currently endeavoring to trim a nearly three-hour version of Watchmen (which is believed to be the iteration Smith saw) down to two hours and 25 minutes, the studio’s desired running time, even though Snyder’s preference is that the movie be released as long as possible.


In the wake of Twentieth Century Fox’s lawsuit against Warner Bros. over Watchmen’s distribution rights — a complaint that seems to be valid, based on available court documents — some fans fret that Snyder might be asked to cut even more to improve its chances at being profitable. The angsty logic, expressed on a different geek hub message boards, goes like this: if Warner Bros. has to settle with Fox, or is forced to share revenue with Fox, the $100 million movie becomes even more expensive for Warner Bros. Sure, Watchmen might be great at 145 minutes, but if it’s good enough at a shorter length, which could generate an extra showing per screen, per day, that’s more money for the studio. (We tried to run that bit of thinking past Snyder himself, but he declined to comment.)

As Watchmengate — perhaps the priciest whoopsie! in Hollywood history — continues to obsess fans and bloggers, there’s been much speculation about how much money might be at stake here. The Hot Blog’s David Poland at moviecitynews.com theorizes that Warner Bros. might have to fork over $25 million to settle with Fox. Then again, Fox might get even more if it becomes a profit participant in the film, provided the movie does blockbuster business, and especially if Fox gets dealt in on after-theatrical revenues like DVDs. Indeed, Warner sources indicated to EW last month that the property’s above-average potential as an ancillary media cash cow was a big reason why Warner Bros. greenlit the picture. Already, the studio could milk Watchmen for at least three different DVDs: the already-announced The Black Freighter companion disc, an animated film based on the graphic novel’s comic-within-a-comic; the theatrical version of the film; and possibly a separate director’s cut that restores Snyder’s three-hour vision and integrates the Black Freighter story into Snyder’s narrative, a kind of “absolute edition” of Watchmen: the movie the director is very keen on making available to fans.

Regardless, even Kevin Smith believes that no matter how the Warner Bros./Fox flap resolves itself, fans will be able to see Watchmen on March 6, 2009. “Nah,” Smith tells EW.com. “There's no way that situation doesn't get ironed out.”

[Zahveed]

Now that we see what they've done and think it could be a success, we want to thwart WB.

Followed by maniacal laughter and lightning striking in the background.

[OscarGuy]

And that could be the case. They want their take.

But the reason they waited could very well be how long the project has been in the works. They may have thought that perhaps it wouldn't get completed again. It's been floating around for 20 years, it seems.

But, it may have been more along the lines of: Now that we see what they've done and think it could be a success, we want to thwart WB.