Tales of the Geeky Vixen

What can I say about this movie that hasn't already been said? Not much. I remember reading Kevin Smith's first impressions, and let's face it, to me anything that mofo says is gold. Except when he talks about hockey for two hours, but that's the fun of SModcast. :)

First, let me say, that though I pride myself on being a well-read geeky vixen, I have not read the graphic novel. (You know, the one that Alan Moore wrote and said was "unfilmable".) I read the issue 1 reprint DC put out a month or so ago. It was enough to pique my interest, and I decided I'd go no further until I saw the movie. (Mostly b/c I got burned when I tried to read V for Vendetta after I saw the movie. Alan Moore is good, but he's very verbose. And crazy paranoid, but that's OK.)

Second, lemme give you background on my relationship with Zack Snyder. I. love. him. He puts everything he's got into his films, and I respect that totally. My first crush came about with his 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead. I'm a girl who loves her zombies, like really loves her zombies, and from the opening strains of Johnny Cash's "The Man Comes Around" (b/c I'm a girl who loves her Johnny too), I was hooked. Snyder took a movie that was already good, and made it his own. Then came 300. Never in my life have I wanted more to jump over my movie seat and start bustin' heads. It was beautiful and dirty and violent, and it made me look at the ol' Phantom of the Opera in a whole new light.

Enter Watchmen. Because I'm a good geek and I read Wizard, I heard about this movie like, what, 2 years ago? Everything I read talked about how Snyder was pouring his heart and soul into this film, and Alan Moore, in his infinite craziness, was asking to be detached from the project. It unified the fanboys for a time; they were all saying it was destined to be the best. comic. movie. ever. Having never read the graphic novel, I was going to have to take their word for it. I read a few things about it here and there, always being careful not to spoil it for myself (though if it's an adaptation of an already published work, it's kinda hard).

So to this past Saturday. The gang and I opted for a noon showing, just to make sure we got in. Plus, you are more likely not to have a-holes in the theater at that time of the day. After starting the excursion in the game/comic/toy store next door, I was all geeked up. Of the trailers, the highlight was the Logan trailer. And then, it started.

From the first yellow screen, I knew we were in for something incredible. Going in, we knew the movie pushed three hours, but at no point in the film did I think, "Wow, this is really long." And here's where I tell you what you already know, if you've seen the film. Rorschach is amazing. He's scary and vulnerable at the same time, and he's close to (dare I say it?) Heath Ledger's Joker in my book as best comic book character on film.

Most surprising to me were the performances of Billy Crudup and Malin Ackerman. Billy Crudup will always be Russell Hammond (due to my bordering on obsession love of Almost Famous), but he pulls off Dr. Manhattan beautifully (blue genitalia and all). His emotion (or lack thereof) is riveting, and I really wanted to see more. Malin Ackerman, before her role as Silk Spectre, is probably best known as Ben Stiller's crazy new bride in The Heartbreak Kid or as the spoiled sister in 27 Dresses. It's a pretty big leap to become an ass-kicking, latex-wearing femme fatale, but she handles it like a champ.

To answer the critics, yes, this is a very violent movie, but it's by no means the most violent movie I've ever seen (see Lady Snowblood, either of the Kill Bill flicks, Death Proof, Sin City or most zombie/slasher flicks and tell me that's the most violent movie you've seen). It's a story of a dystopian society that both needs and villifies its heroes, and shows us the dirty side of being a hero. In this world, heroes sell out. They do things that even some villains won't do. They get old. They get scared. And ultimately, they kinda win. (I don't consider that a spoiler, b/c you kinda figure that since it's a superhero comic. Go watch the movie.)

I loved this movie. It looked like a comic on the screen, the way we wanted. Yes, they changed the ending (again, not a spoiler if you're a good geek), which has split the fanboys. As much as I've heard people complain about the ending of the book, I've heard some of these same guys gripe about the movie ending. There's just no pleasing some people, especially us comic book geeks. :)

I've heard that there's going to be a director's cut released with like 30 more minutes added. I think I'm going to hold off on seeing the film again until I see whether that's true in my hometown.

Well, that's it for this one. Tomorrow's comic book day, so I'm going to try to have something new for you guys for that.

Excelsi--oh, wait. That's been taken already. ;)

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