WonderCon 2009: Who's Watching the Watchmen? I Am

It was a typical San Francisco Saturday with pleasant weather at the Moscone Center on February 28, 2009. The only two minor abnormalities that day were the number of costumed superheroes wandering the convention center and the larger number of people coiled around the convention center like a boa constrictor wrapped around its prey. But for the attendees of the annual WonderCon--a Bay Area convention dedicated to comic books, science fiction, and potential blockbuster films targeted to fans of the two--they are used to such sights and are usually the people contributing to such sights. Today, they stood in line outside braving the 60 degree heat and the mild breeze to attend the panel dedicated to the "Watchmen" film scheduled for release March 6, 2009.

After a couple hours of waiting in line, I entered the Esplanade Ballroom of the Moscone Center. Within minutes every one of the 5,000 seats was packed. Fans killed time by chatting about their expectations about the movie. Some wandered to photograph the attendees dressed as the titular Watchmen costumed heroes like Rorschach and Silk Spectre. Some even bragged about being one of the few who won the raffle to see a sneak IMAX preview of the "Watchmen" film on the previous night.

Then the "Watchmen" panel began. Director Zack Snyder appeared on the stage amid the hoots and cheers of the audience. Following him were most of the principal cast of the film: Jeffrey Dean Morgan (The Comedian), Billy Crudup (Dr. Manhattan), Malin Akerman (Silk Spectre II), Jackie Earle Haley (Rorschach), and Patrick Wilson (Nite Owl II). The illustrator of the "Watchmen" graphic novel Dave Gibbons also joined the Hollywood talent. After talking about how excited they were to be at WonderCon to talk about "Watchmen," the audience watched the first 20 minutes of the "Watchmen" film.

For those who have not read the "Watchmen" graphic novel, stop reading, head to a comic book store or a major bookstore chain, buy "Watchmen," read it, and continue reading this article. I will wait.

Done? Good. The frames in the novel's pages are beautifully recreated on film and the action between the frames is full of movement and action. The opening situation is now a spectacular hand-to-hand brawl with collateral damage throughout the apartment's living room and kitchen complete with slow-motion effects that worked so well for Snyder's previous work on "300." I have to say that "Watchmen" has one of the best opening sequences that I have seen. It shows how this is not the 1985 of big hair and new wave pop music we grew to love. To Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin," the opening shows off the costumed heroes of the Minutemen of the 40s and what happened to them as times changed and made way for the heroes of the Watchmen. Historical changes such as Nixon's third term, the Soviet threat, and the Keene Act outlawing costumed vigilantes are displayed well. The movie then jumps us into the mind of Rorschach as he investigates the murder that sets the movie in motion. The 20-minute clip ends as he departs the hideout of Nite Owl II. Each scene in between plays just like the comic. Those who have read the comic will appreciate the effort in the recreation and those who have not will appreciate the engrossing plot and visuals. A bonus scene involving a fight in a prison cafeteria was also part of the clip. Two images of the graphic novel are extended into graphic violence that shows off the brutality and ingenuity of one of the involved characters. The cheering from the audience was deafening.

Zack Snyder then made additional comments about the evolution of the film. The first script was a PG13 lighter toned film where (CENSORED SPOILER) resolved the film by (CENSORED SPOILER) to (CENSORED SPOILER), creating a typical Hollywood happy ending. But he fought to stay true to the original source material, which original source material providers Dave Gibbons and Alan Moore appreciated. The movie is set to run at 2 hours and 40 minutes. If it does well, a 3 hour and 10 minute director's cut with more comic book scenes rendered on film and blue nudity will have a limited release later in July. Studios did talk about casting Tom Cruise in "Watchmen," but shooting schedules killed that idea. The child who played the child Rorschach was Snyder's son, who also played the child Leonidas in "300." Zack Snyder has six children and joked about breeding a "Watchmen Babies" cast. "The Tales of the Black Freighter," the story within the "Watchmen" story, will be an animated segment that coincides with the movie and will have its own DVD feature on March 24th in addition to the faux documentary "Under the Hood" by Nite Owl I. The main cuts that the studio asked of Zack were to tone down the violence and the blue nudity. Jackie Earle Haley secured his Rorschach role by sending Zack a short film of himself reenacting a few "Watchmen" scenes with a "slightly dodgy Rorschach mask." Zack commented, "It's the coolest thing ever. How could I cast anyone else?"

Questions from the plethora of fans followed.

Billy Crudup managed to maintain the distracted and aloof nature of Dr. Manhattan simply by "thinking about other things like walking on the surface of the sun and things like that." When asked that question, his first response was a distracted, "Huh?"

Usually a comic actress, Malin Akerman seemed an odd choice for the gritty action of "Watchmen" as a fan stated. Malin agreed and said she was scared, but she used those fears and other emotions experienced daily to add to her part as the insecure Silk Spectre II. When asked about the difficult part of filming, she responded that she didn't "usually wear latex or extremely high heels" to fight.

With "Grey's Anatomy" fans loving him, Jeffrey Dean Morgan continued to appeal to the WonderCon attendees by making the nihilistic hero who kills, rapes, and pillages around the world a sympathetic character the audience can love. When asked, he responded that he really "loved doing the rape scene" in a truly deadpan manner--such is the talent of a great comedian.

Zack responded to a fan's question regarding the redesign of Ozymandias' costume to have a more Batman feel complete with latex nipples. He responded that using Dave Gibbons' original gold and purple leotard for Ozymandias was too tricky to pull off as a masculine costume. A slight redesign helped make it easier while retaining most of the original feel.

With all of the effort placed into "Watchmen," it makes for a film experience that lives up to the hype and is expected to be snubbed at the Oscars outside of the technical achievements. Whether you are a fan of the graphic novel, someone who never read the graphic novel but enjoy film noir settings, or simply enjoy a whiz bang visual spectacle of a film, "Watchmen" is the film to see this year.