They've done another video to promote Watchmen, this time made to look like a 16mm film made in 1977:
If you're not familiar with Watchmen, I may need to explain — well, before I finish that, I will encourage you to buy Watchmen right now and go read it. I'm serious. Don't even eat or pee or anything until you're done. It's that good. There's a reason nearly every comic geek in the world swears it's one of the all-time greatest books, you know.
Okay, now that you've finished reading it, go ahead and eat and pee.
Okay, now it's totally normal for you to want to pick the book right back up again and start over, making sure you digest every single available detail in each panel. You won't catch everything, but that's okay; re-reading Watchmen is something certain geeks do, and every time we go behind the mask we find something we've never seen before.
Okay, now that you've eaten and peed, and read the book again, I don't need to tell you what I was going to tell you, because now you see it in the video.
…I know, right?!
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That is EPIC.
Here was a funny redub of the trailer from earlier today, via SlashFilm.
This is going to be the greatest comic book movie ever made.
That was just amazing…I am so looking forward to this movie.
OK this is so cool! I just found out today that the New Frontiersman is on Twitter http://twitter.com/NewFrontiersman Very cool stuff 🙂
I can’t wait to see this movie – I should be able to in IMAX even, woohoo!
I simply *cannot* wait for this film! The comic is amazing…I particularly loved the comic within the comic – made my skin crawl and yet I couldn’t look away. You are spot on about the art … the detail on Rorschach’s mask from frame to frame is stunning.
The marketing for this film has been nothing short of brilliant. They also have a really neat collection of photos and documents related to Watchmen at their official Flickr account named The New Frontiersman.
Watchmen FTW!
Gah! I’m giddy. Yes. Giddy. I want to see this movie so bad… All the promos & teasers that they’re throwing out here for the fans just make me squeal w/ fangirlish delight!
… but I have to wait until March… >.>
… I wonder if you can bribe whoever’s in charge of the space-time continuum…
I am so friggin STOKED for this movie…
Just finished reading Watchmen for the first time.. (Dammit, gimme my geek cred back!) Gonna read it again.. Incredible. Simply.. Wow..
I hope the movie can at least come close to living up to the comic..
There was a period of time in my life when I would read the Watchmen graphic novel at least once a year. I’ve failed to keep up on my annual reading regimen but now seems like as good of a time as ever to go grab it off the shelf and re-read it all over again.
Yes, it really is that good.
Awesome, Wil! Thanks for posting this, I’m glad you’re on the look out for these because I’m so bad about it.
Personally I can’t wait for this movie. Hoping and praying Fox doesn’t rear their ugly heads with all the rights crap. My wife and I are constantly debating this movie and the difference in our tastes in films becomes evident real fast. She prefers the ultra realistic adaptations like Dark Knight while I like stuff that’s as faithful as possible to the source material. Either way I’m dragging her to this 😀
That is awesomeness.
Wow. That was really well done and makes me feel a bit better about the full movie.
I hear ya on the re-reading Watchmen, I re-read it at least once a year. I finally got the Absolute edition of Watchmen and I’m loving the larger panels.
Cool vintage-esque video – but wasn’t 1977 a little early for a national public service announcement that included dialing (lieterally – ‘dialing’) ‘911’?
I recall, all through the ’70’s and into the ’80’s having to keep the local police emergency number at the phone (in an L.A. suburb) because 911 was not rolled-out nationally at the time – only regionally.
I guess I might be a little geeky-nitpicky here.
Wil, I demand you use your super secret Hollywood connections to get WWdN readers an advance copy of this movie. And don’t pretend like you don’t have them; we’re wise to you. I know they’re only supposed to be used in an emergency, but COME ON, MAN! This is WATCHMEN!
I think the 911 in 1977 is part of Watchmen’s conceit. It’s an alternate reality to our own, and in the comic (set in 1985) Nixon is still a hero, among other things.
Actually … I used my powers to get myself some extra ice in my club soda at lunch yesterday, and it turns out that I’ve used my powers all up.
Sorry.
I am so excited for this movie!
And I love that all of the shots of a “random” vigilante are Rorschach. Is it March yet?
Watchmen.
Best. Graphic. Novel. Ever.
I’m kind of embarrassed to admit it, but I was genuinely scared when I saw Rorschach walking.
I really admire the hell out of Alan Moore, and I’m really torn as far as my thoughts about the movie, in light of reading his thoughts on it so many times. Part of me wants to respect the man’s feelings on the matter, but then the other part of me sees him not grant movies the same respect that he demands for comics (that is, that each medium can do things no other can), and I get disappointed and sad.
I’m way excited for the movie though, and I’m certain I’ll get in on the first showing offered.
You have super secret powers?
/closes and locks all doors and windows
//dials 911
Alan Moore is definitely a genius, but I’ve never liked his dismissal of the adaptations of his work. Dismissing the movie he hasn’t even seen as a piece of shit that’s not worth his time, is just as bad (in my opinion) as the people who dismiss his graphic novels without reading them, because “comics are stupid and childish”.
If you watch something, sure, you can criticise the hell out of it. (Especially if it WAS a bad adaptation.) But this pre-emptive dismissal of all movies? Stupid and childish.
Like comics. (j/k)
Well to be fair to Moore there have been the awful film versions of ‘League of Extraordinary Gentlemen’ and ‘From Hell’ which caused him to disavow any further connection with films of his works. This is a pity as ‘V for Vendetta’ was actually a pretty good adaptation and the ‘Watchmen’ movie looks to be exceedingly reverential of the original comic
fuckin awesome.
i remember reading it issue by issue and obsessing over it on rec.arts.comics as each issue came out.
my one gripe with the excellent trade paperback version is that it makes the layout of the ‘fearful symmetry’ issue less OMG shocking. (that’s the issue that’s completely mirrored in both page layout and content (either matching or contrasting) all the way through until the center where there’s a splash page of action involving $SPOILER-CHARACTER)
i’ve heard about some of the changes they’ve made for the movie, but i think i’m mostly okay with them so far.
I wondered about that too. It turns out the 9-1-1 was rolled out as a national emergency service number in 1968 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9-1-1); however, as you point out, individual communities were slow to adopt it. Even to the point that, in 2008, there were still small pockets of the country that don’t have it.
So, it’s not entirely unreasonable that it would have shown up in a PSA from that time, just unlikely that it would have been adopted by most communities yet.
Moore is correct in some ways. The comic book medium CAN do things that film can’t. But the reverse is also true. That doesn’t make one ‘better’ automatically…
He should judge each adaptation on it’s own merits.
Now, I understand his feeling this way, after being burned a few times. If it were the same director/producer/writer each time, he’d have more of a case.
Everything I’ve seen about this movie looks awesome, I’m just worried that it CAN’T live up to my expectations at this point.
Nice appearance in Diesel Sweeties today. 🙂 http://www.dieselsweeties.com/
Do you have a link to the first video? I do not seem to be able to find it.
Wait, okay, I reread Watchmen a couple months ago, but I’m not sure what you’re referring to in the film. Richard Nixon on Mount Rushmore? Rorschach’s mask? Tell meeeee!
I hope you’re not offended, but I’m not going to run out and buy it…
…because the library just called and the copy I reserved 3 days ago is finally in! I’ve been putting off reading this for far too long, and the rush is on to get it read before the movie comes out.
That better have been the best damn ice ever, mister.
Go to the video’s page on Youtube and check out the comments. For once they are actually good – almost all are in-universe!
Examples: Comments both for and against the Keene act. Comments condemning and defending certain heroes. Comments mentioning the NYC events of 23 years ago. They’re having a blast playing at living in the Watchmen reality.
It was so cold, and you could totally crunch it between your front teeth.
In 30+ years of reading comics I have never read Watchmen. So, I hit the bookstore at lunch and tonight will see what I have missed.
@Brent: Fox has already settled the lawsuit, and is receiving an “undisclosed sum.” No fear, this will be released on schedule.
Ah, this totally makes me giddy and everything! Even though I have to wait a little longer to watch it, as I’m….in a small village in Egypt* at the time it’s going to be released. I think the next cinema is in Cairo or something, and I doubt they’d show THAT movie.
Well, I have the original Ozymandias to keep me company-at least the one that Shelley wrote about.
I might go and chew a few sugar cubes to pay homage to someone else though. I used to do this as a kid all the time.
*this geek girl here is a linguist and Egyptologist-no diving in the Red Sea kind of holiday, but scrambling around old ruins and such
If the quality of the “Teasers” are any indication, this movie is going to rock. Watchmen is the only book (Because it truely is literature even if it does have pictures.) I’ve read cover to cover in one sitting. I started at noon and read and read until 6am the next morning. I could not put it down! Now I think justice can be done to the material with current film technology.