Alan Moore on why he doesn't like comic book movies

[The Overlord]

Here you go, I think this article is pretentious beyond belief, but you can judge for yourselves: http://www.totalfilm.com/features/exclusive-why-alan-moore-hates-comic-book-movies

 

[CFE]

I smell buls**t...Moore makes good points, but to try and convince people that he doesn't care about how his work is portrayed in a different medium is absurd.

Whenever he says he has no intentions of seeing 'Watchmen' I roll my eyes...Alan's a great writer, and he's very brilliant. But he's also human...and an artist to.

He'll see it. He just won't say he did.

That's what I think anyway...

 

[Eggyman]

I'll enjoy it enough for me and for him.

The loon, lol.

 

[Sentinel X]

In a way I agree with him however Alan Moore is like a bitter old man that never stops complaining. If someone told him to wiggle his left foot for a billion dollars he would probably complain.

However I do agree with the bigger budget restricts creativity, I think a lot of time directors refuse to think outside the box because they have a budget where they can do everything the easy way.

*also, did Sean Connery REALLY ask for a bigger explosion in each movie he is in? If that is true thst is pathetic and I really don't think he cares about the story itself. Addin a huge explosion just for the sake of it...wow...thank god he is not a movie director.

 

[cerealkiller182]

I love cinema, but I know of the catch 22's. Work has been screwed up in the passed by penny pinching producers, but at the same time, the success of the industry pretty much lends itself to more product, which I want to see. What people forget is that Moore's cynic nature is directly caused by being "victimized" by the Hollywood machine. Hes seen his work, stuff he has put a lot of time and effort into, being ripped apart and changed in order for studios to have something "more marketable." Frankly, I don't blame him for his views no matter how crazy people think. Nowadays, theres a fine line between integrity and insanity. Its funny there would be a time an artist like Moore would be considered a sell-out for not thinking the way he currently does.

 

[Doctor Jones]

Plus, his work is pretty much anti industry. I mean Watchmen completely goes against what everyone else was for back then. He writes the stuff that works only for him, but apparently it works for everybody but what works for them it doesn't work for him. Interesting. Wonder how he was in school.

 

[david icke]

Wonder how he was in school.

There's a photo of him at school in an Alan Moore book I have. His photo was taken by the local newspaper, he's sitting at his desk with his art teacher standing over him, out of all the pupils they chose him for the paper's photo, probaby cause of his distinctve long hair, he hadn't strted wearing the rings yet.
He was booted out of school for dealing LSD eh?

It's a shame, he has had these bad experiences with the film industry and now when we are finally getting a period in comic book movies that has good directors fighting for faithful adaptions of adult works, he has to stick to his lines or lose face since he made that much of a stand.

He was quite happy thinking that he'd get a 'Blade runner' deal out of 'From Hell', ie get a movie that was not so like the original book but would retain enough, and bring enough, to have it work as it's own piece of good storytelling. He didn't get that but now, it looks like he'll get another of his greatest works translated in a way people never thought could be done, faithfully, jam packed with the details and retaining all it's adult themes.

Film has been notorious for not getting some of the major novels down, Catch-22, Great Gatsby, etc, that it's taken until the 4th try for the right person and set of circumstances to(apparently from the looks of it) get a Moore novel down is not too bad.
He has had to endure such indignities as sitting through that LXG court case and have Joel Silver bs about his endorsement of VFV, but those didn't necesarilly have anything to do with the movie making process itself. He could've just as easily went through that bs even if they had been top class faithful adaptions.
No chance he will ever watch Watchmen, this guy is the type who won't go back on his word, which is admirable, but a shame as it looks like one that he would've most heartily enjoyed and endorsed before he got burned with the first 3(not counting Constantine).

 

[Rac]

We had one particularly dense Hollywood producer say, ‘You don’t even have to do the book, just stick your name on this idea and I’ll make the film and you’ll get a lot of money – it’s… The League Of Extraordinary Animals! It’ll be like Puss In Boots!’ And I just said, 'No, no, no. Never mention this to me again.'

Jesus H. Christ

Fox, was it you? cwink

 

[[A]]

“The main reason why comics can’t work as films is largely because everybody who is ultimately in control of the film industry is an accountant.

These people may be able to add up and balance the books, but in every other area they are stupid and incompetent and don’t have any talent.

And this is why a film is going to be a work that’s done by dozens and dozens and dozens, if not hundreds of people.

They’re going to show it to the backers and then they’re going to say, we want this in it, and this in it... and where’s the monster?”

little quote

 

[Jack O Lantern]

You know when you listen too him, rather than read what he's said, he comes across a lot better

 

[[A]]

I like the guy, no matter what. I've only saw a few interview clips at youtube, though..

 

[cerealkiller182]

You know when you listen too him, rather than read what he's said, he comes across a lot better

I agree, he sounds less arrogant. The interviews I have seen he usually has a casual, conversational tone

 

[gwynplaine]

I like the guy, no matter what. I've only saw a few interview clips at youtube, though..

.

 

[Deaths Head II]

I smell buls**t...Moore makes good points, but to try and convince people that he doesn't care about how his work is portrayed in a different medium is absurd.

Whenever he says he has no intentions of seeing 'Watchmen' I roll my eyes...Alan's a great writer, and he's very brilliant. But he's also human...and an artist to.

He'll see it. He just won't say he did.

That's what I think anyway...

Not everyone is the same. I remember Ken Kesey never saw the film adaptation of Cuckoo's Nest. J.D Salinger won't allow any film adaptations at all. Usually people like this are jaded by the studios disappointing or irritating them too much, and usually they're pretty far from the norm when it comes to their writings and attitudes in the first place. I doubt Alan Moore will see this film. He's seems like one of those guys. Not allowing them to stick his name on his adaptations anymore is a sign of that.

And we might all see Watchmen and enoy it, but we can't always expect the creators to enoy the adaptations of their works. They have their own vision when they write their stuff and often that clashes when it comes to adaptations.

 

[gwynplaine]

Not everyone is the same. I remember Ken Kesey never saw the film adaptation of Cuckoo's Nest. J.D Salinger won't allow any film adaptations at all. Usually people like this are jaded by the studios disappointing or irritating them too much, and usually they're pretty far from the norm when it comes to their writings and attitudes in the first place. I doubt Alan Moore will see this film. He's seems like one of those guys. Not allowing them to stick his name on his adaptations anymore is a sign of that.

And we might all see Watchmen and enoy it, but we can't always expect the creators to enoy the adaptations of their works. They have their own vision when they write their stuff and often that clashes when it comes to adaptations.

Yeah, also kind of like King with Kubrick's adaptation of the shining, both a great book and a great movie imo.

 

[Deaths Head II]

Yeah, also kind of like King with Kubrick's adaptation of the shining, both a great book and a great movie imo.

Yeah, Kubrick basically made the film with his own unique vision instead of following the source too closely and that made King distance himself from it. I think the fact that it's usually referred to as Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is appropriate.

 

[gwynplaine]

Yeah, Kubrick basically made the film with his own unique vision instead of following the source too closely and that made King distance himself from it. I think the fact that it's usually referred to as Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is appropriate.

Well said. I remember hearing that Kubrick asked Burgess to do some promotion for Clockwork and that Burgess, being in the frontline for such a controversial film,was attacked at most of the shows he went to. It's almost as if K knew it and he had to "kill the father" in order to make the book his own completely. Which is fine with me as long as it produces masterpieces like Kubrick's films. And there is always the book to go back to and enjoy as well.

 

[Raiden]

I think Alan Moore became bitter toward the comic book movies after the debacle of his League of Extraordinary Gentlemen turned into a laughingstock of a movie. He probably stopped trusting Hollywood after that experience.

 

[TheVileOne]

I agree with most of what Moore says honestly. I know the Overlord has a vendetta against him.

Alan Moore is the reason we are getting this movie people are so excited about at all. He wrote Watchmen. He can say whatever he wants.

 

[The Overlord]

I agree with most of what Moore says honestly. I know the Overlord has a vendetta against him.

I don't have a vendetta against him, I just think he is pretentious and I don't worship him, like some people do.. I think he is a good writer, but I don't think highly of him as a film critic. Seriously I trust Ebert's opinions on films more then Moore's, Ebert doesn't act like a first year arts student.

Alan Moore is the reason we are getting this movie people are so excited about at all. He wrote Watchmen. He can say whatever he wants.

That doesn't make him an expert on everything. How does his criticism apply to to the good comic book movies: like Dark Knight, Iron Man and Spider-man 2?

 

[Deaths Head II]

Ugh, if there is any word I wish would be banned from usage for the rest of time, it's pretentious.

And there are obviously exceptions to Moore's critcisms, but you don't have to look farther then Moore's previous film adaptations or even the predecessors of one of your listed movies (The Dark Knight) to see a lot of his claims are rather valid for more comic films then they're not. Not that it doesn't mean its true for all of them, but I can where Moore is coming from.

And I really don't see that many people worshiping Moore. Most of the reason people that like him only like him because he's a good writer, not because they think he's an expert on everything. I agree that he can say whatever he wants, and anyone who wants to listen can listen. He wrote Watchmen after all, and either way I'm going to see the film. I know Moore won't, I accept that, and I can somewhat see where he's coming from. I just don't agree.

 

[.Rorschach.]

I love you Alan Moore