Update from Watchmen Extra (not me)

waylayer · Jan 7, 2008

http://www.comicrelated.com/commentary/watchmen_080105.html

This is from the same Cassandra who had information about the Owl-Ship, sets, etc., a few months back.

http://www.comicrelated.com/commentary/watchmen_071128.html

Most important to me, the TRUE Watchmen hero (and our favorite alcoholic) will get some more screen time.

Discuss or care not. I need to cook up a semi-edible turkey burger.

sad lieutenant · Jan 7, 2008

waylayer said: ↑

http://www.comicrelated.com/commentary/watchmen_080105.html

This is from the same Cassandra who had information about the Owl-Ship, sets, etc., a few months back.

http://www.comicrelated.com/commentary/watchmen_071128.html

Discuss or care not. I need to cook up a semi-edible turkey burger.
Click to expand...

Apparently we will see, either in the theatrical release or the DVD, Mothman being hauled away to a mental hospital. The scene is set in the 50s and, from what I gathered, it sounds like a comedic moment.

Awesome! Did any script even mention Mothman?

sad lieutenant · Jan 8, 2008

sad lieutenant said: ↑

Apparently we will see, either in the theatrical release or the DVD, Mothman being hauled away to a mental hospital. The scene is set in the 50s and, from what I gathered, it sounds like a comedic moment.

Awesome! Did any script even mention Mothman?
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I quoth meself!

R we gonna see him drop his drink? Alcoholism is hilarious!

Banana-Hotdog · Jan 8, 2008

Nice find! That was an interesting read (particularly since we haven't had anything to talk about for a while). I can't wait to see how Rorschach's mask looks on screen. I'm curious just how quickly those blotches move and if it will be distracting.

Rust · Jan 8, 2008

A flashing Rum Runner's sign?

Good find and good news.

Carmine Falcone · Jan 8, 2008

Nice stuff.

Antonello Blueberry · Jan 8, 2008

A flashing Rum Runner sign? Could it be the scene where the police captures Rorschach?

sad lieutenant · Jan 8, 2008

Antonello Blueberry said: ↑

A flashing Rum Runner sign? Could it be the scene where the police captures Rorschach?
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Indeed. I don't believe that she would play it so mysterious if the scene were anything but that. Her hyperbolic statements about cinematic a milestone or whatever she said must be Rorschach fawking up the cops and jumping out the window.

I'm really curious how they're going to handle the window thing. I like how the comic does it, but I don't see Rorschach's "GGGGGGRRRRRRRRRRRRR" translating d-i-r-e-c-t-l-y to film. I don't doubt Snyder will make that whole scene really fawking awesome, though.

Rust · Jan 8, 2008

No doubt it's the rorschach vs the cops-scene, but I just wondered why she "hinted" at the flashing sign. It doesn't flash in the comicbook. Does it?

sad lieutenant · Jan 8, 2008

Rust said: ↑

No doubt it's the rorschach vs the cops-scene, but I just wondered why she "hinted" at the flashing sign. It doesn't flash in the comicbook. Does it?
Click to expand...

Re-read the Moloch-related scenes. It's flashing red. And it's definitely flashing when Rorschach gets set up.

Sun_Down · Jan 8, 2008

Sounds cool

Rust · Jan 9, 2008

sad lieutenant said: ↑

Re-read the Moloch-related scenes. It's flashing red. And it's definitely flashing when Rorschach gets set up.
Click to expand...

You're right. Every other frame in that sequence is red-ish. I was looking for the sign itself. Very subtle and very cool.
Damn, I wonder what else I missed...

ChillcutZ · Jan 9, 2008

haha ya i was reading the book again and just got down that chapter the other night...my goodness, this movie is at least sounding like it could be something else but i know for sure ill be keeping my TPB right close no matter how great the film turns out to be

sad lieutenant · Jan 10, 2008

Rust said: ↑

You're right. Every other frame in that sequence is red-ish. I was looking for the sign itself. Very subtle and very cool.
Damn, I wonder what else I missed...
Click to expand...

Hence Alan Moore's adamant opposition to a "movie" adaptation of Watchmen. His work invites multiple, leisurely, and enjoyable* readings... -- as opposed to the sort of puritanical, pseudo-intellectual nonsense** that plagues so much of fan-dom.

*That is, if you are the variety of perv that gets-off on the whole void-of-existence-thing.

** Which, apparently, I am quite not-so-less-than-guilty of.

War Party · Jan 11, 2008

Sounds good to me.

Shifty · Jan 18, 2008

Exclusive Watchmen Extra Report
Another background actor comes forward with tales from their Watchmen movie backlot experiences

Comic Relateds Cassandra Faust was the first extra to officially sound off not once, but twice. Now, another extra recounts his experiences in a WCM exclusive editorial.

Now, our extra wishes to remain anonymous, and like Cassandra was very careful in crafting his tale so as not to spoil anything the production wouldnt want to get out.

He told me he could have said a lot more, but has too much respect for what Zack and company are doing to spoil anything for them. The following editorial is his words. Thank you Mr. Ex for sharing
Working With Watchmen

When I heard that a film adaptation of WATCHMEN was in the works, my first thought was: God, I hope they dont ruin it. Later, fresh from multiple trips to the theater to see 300, when I heard that Zack Snyder would helm the film version of the classic graphic novel, I thought, Well, the films got a chance now. I was skeptically optimistic that if anyone could handle the material it was Zack Snyder. It was like Christmas morning when I heard that the film would be made right here in Vancouver! Ive been working as a background performer (film extra) for a few years and couldnt believe my luck. Just to have a chance to work on the film was too exciting for words. When the call finally came I was over the moon!

Some of my fellow extras have described the wonderful New York street set and everything youve read or seen of it is true. Its nothing short of fantastic. From the RUMRUNNER sign to the Gunga Diner, Promethean Cab Company and the Institute For Extraspatial Studies and the newsstand, it has all been flawlessly recreated and knowing that I was going to be a small part of the production was a dream come true.

But it really hit home once I (and my fellow extras) arrived at the Wardrobe Room for a costume fitting. All the wardrobe people were at lunch so we found ourselves walking along the costume racks, looking for someone to sign us in. The room was cavernous and there were thousands of costumes. Clothes from the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, hats and coats, boots. New York City cop uniforms, Vietnam and WWII army uniforms The scope of the production became suddenly apparent. Then I found a rack with costumes labeled Rorschach, The Comedian, Laurie, Nite Owl here were the actual set worn costumes for these timeless characters. And I said to myself, MAN IM GOING TO BE IN WATCHMEN!

Someone finally did show up to sign us in and he explained a little of what the movie was about, offering a copy of the graphic novel on the table for folks to flip through. That was a first. I told him I was a fan and was very familiar with the work and he said that a lot of extras who had passed through since production started also knew the work and were happy to be a part of the film.

The wardrobe woman took my measurements, dug up some retro 80s clothes for me to try on and assigned me a costume number I had to remember. With me in full wardrobe, they took my picture next to a sign with the number on it. They took full body shots so the look could be reproduced on the shooting days. Then all I had to do was wait anxiously until the call to work on the film came.

My first day got pushed back because of a windstorm that battered Vancouver and Burnaby where the set was located. Sure enough, the set did receive some minor damage due to the high winds, which explained the delay.

But luckily the call finally came. Walking past the set this time was a much different experience. Theyd moved the giant green screens that had been partially blocking my view at the fitting and I was able to see the set in its entirety for the first time. It was incredible to see that on one side there were sandbags, cables, steam machines and wooden poles holding up the building facades and on the other was a section of downtown New York City perfectly recreated. I saw a row of brownstone facades and knew who lived in one of them.

I signed in. When they announced the all-clear for Wardrobe, I headed over to the wardrobe trailer. Racks of costumes were lined up in a changing room. We just had to find our costume number and everything wed been fitted for previously was waiting for us. All we had to do was climb into the clothes.

The image of that awesome set was foremost in my mind and I wanted to get there ASAP. Finally everyone was ready. And it was time to go to set!

Walking onto that set was a thrill this WATCHMEN fan wont soon forget! The set designers truly went out of their way to recreate the world of the comic. The level of detail was really something. Official photos have been released and they dont do the set justice. Amongst the posters and placards all over the walls of the fake businesses up and down the street were splattered, soiled posters advertising the Veidt Method from the back of the Black Freighter comic Bernard is reading. At one point, they filmed the guy putting up the Fallout Shelter sign. The newsstand was full of magazines from 1985 and there were dummy copies of Nova Express and a Newsweek with Veidt and Dr. Manhattan shaking hands on the cover. There was the Rumrunner, Molochs hovel, the movie theater showing The Day The Earth Stood Still, the pink neon elephants of the Gunga Diner Incredible!

I wont spoil what was filmed during my days working on the movie. Anyone who has read the novel should be able to guess from what little I can convey. They filmed the newsstand extensively everything that has to do with the newsstand. I heard that a certain disagreement between the Comedian and a spray-painting youth was also put on celluloid. I watched in awe as Rorschach made his historic leap away from the S.W.A.T team. By the way, the early report that splashed across the Net got it right. It truly was an amazing scene that moviegoers are going to love!

A large group of Asian extras were brought in for the Vietnam sequences that were filmed on the New York backlot with celebratory firecrackers and cheering. These scenes also included the Comedian and Dr. Manhattan in the bar, which was an interior of one of the New York facades. It was fun to see the Asian extras slowly being transformed into Vietnamese peasants and Buddhist monks while talking on cell phones and pounding laptops. Part of the exterior Saigon stuff was shot directly across the street from Dreibergs brownstone! With carts full of straw, and stalls selling US Army gear, rattan baskets and such. Only in Hollywood!

The Comedians funeral was on the call sheet one day though no extras were needed for that. One day I caught a glimpse of a Veidt street sweeper. Dreiberg and Laurie got herded into an alley by a group of knot tops

Every day was exciting. Just watching the crew put this incredible story together scene by scene was the thrill of a lifetime.

Zack Snyder would jog the length of the set a couple of times a day just make sure everything looked right. This is a testament to how focused he is on this project. Everything has to be right. And he went about directing in a very open way. You didnt doubt for a second that he is in charge, but he would laugh and joke and was always open to listen to any suggestions made by the actors. Hed let the people do their work behind the cameras, watch/comment on the rehearsals, then hed call out from the tent, Film it! This meant he was satisfied with the shot and no more futzing was necessary.

From what I saw and what I heard from my fellow extras, it seems to me that everything is being done to keep this film as close to the novel as possible. From the looks of the characters to the dialogue I heard, the film follows the novel. Simple as that. There are some slight variations. Anyone who expects to walk into a theater in March 2009 and see a word for word, shot for shot version of the graphic novel will be disappointed. BUT, from what I witnessed and took part in, in the rare instances when a scene did vary from the source material it did so very slightly and the intent of the original scene was captured perfectly.

This movie version of WATCHMEN should satisfy most fans of the novel. Seeing the characters, the sets, the props, hearing the words firsthand they needed no explanation. So much work has gone into every detail that everything I saw was self-explanatory because it looked like it had been ripped right from the pages of the novel. Its this fans opinion that the movie will be as close an adaptation of the novel as it is possible to do. The scenes I got to be part of looked fantastic without the post-production movie magic. I cant imagine how great theyll look up on the movie screen. And I cant wait to find out.

1.17.2008
Source: WatchmenComicMovie.com
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Really liked the detail in this report.

Antonello Blueberry · Feb 5, 2008

A new report from "Casandra Faust"
http://www.comicrelated.com/commentary/watchmen_080204.html

MANHATTAN TRANSFER

by
Cassandra Faust

Getting a return invitation to work on WATCHMEN just before the holiday break was an early Christmas gift for this extra. And it came with a change of scenery. After working several days on that incredible New York set, I was surprised and curious to learn that this new shoot would be on location.

We weren’t told much about what the scene was to be, but for any fan of the novel, a little information goes a long way.

Allow me to illustrate:
We were told that the scene was to be set in a TV studio and we extras were to be the studio audience.
Need I say more? I didn’t think so.
So I trundled myself off to the Burnaby campus of BCIT and into costume for my first face-to-face meeting with Dr. Manhattan. Oh, his mug was plastered all over the walls and storefronts of the New York set on posters precisely recreating the cover of Nova Express from the novel – and the magazine itself sat on the newsstand. However this was the first time seeing him in the flesh.
So to speak.
Also, to be part of so pivotal a scene in the story only added to my anticipation. I can’t say strongly enough how refreshing it was to see the enthusiasm of my fellow extras. Copies of the novel abounded in the holding tent and were well thumbed by those familiar with the story and others who just had to know what all the excitement was about. Groups of extras would return to the tent after being called to set for a quick shot and would rush over to someone with the novel to see what scene they had just done. In fact, one extra was not even an extra. He was a fan who pressured the casting department to let him work on the film, finally agreeing to do it for free just to be part of it. And this guy had to drive 3 hours up from Washington State! Sadly he got into a minor traffic accident on the way back the next morning and missed the second day of shooting. Folks like this only added to the feeling amongst us that we were part of something special, not just your run of the mill movie production and fueled the excitement even more. When the call came to go to set, I was more than ready to answer it.
As usual the set designers had done a superlative job of bringing to life what is on the comic page. Long familiar with the novel, I felt as though I was, literally, stepping into it. The rows of seats, the vintage cameras and monitors aimed at the spartan (no pun intended, Mr. Snyder) set with its two chairs in front of a large sign that read: FACE TO FACE WITH DR. MANHATTAN – it was perfect! And when the actors playing the reporters took their places amongst us, they were right in the spots they occupy in the novel. The scene was coming to life almost exactly as it had been drawn.
With a couple of tweaks however.
The first being that there are three reporters, not two and the questions they ask are different as well though in keeping with the scene. The extra reporter is from the New York Times. The female reporter gets the first question as she does in the novel but she does not ask about Afghanistan. The reporter from the Times is next, then it’s time for you know who.
Or course Doug Roth is there, just as he appears in the novel although he is now brunette, not blonde. And as far as his questions go, well, if you’ve read the novel, you already know.
Did I mention Ted Koppel?
That’s right – Dr. Manhattan is on Koppel’s show. The actor playing Koppel sounds just like the journalist and is wearing enough prosthetics to be the man’s twin. Also, for the record, Manhattan and Koppel have switched seats. Manhattan sits on the audience’s right, Koppel on the left.
But what about the good doctor, how did he appear?
Good question.
The answer: I can’t tell you. Because I don’t know. Well, I do and I don’t…. sheesh! Nothing is ever cut and dried where Dr. Manhattan is concerned.
Actor Billy Cruddup was present for the two-day shoot. He was dressed in Manhattan’s impeccable black suit, but he wore a tight-fitting skullcap and what looked like soccer goalie gloves…
Now before you WATCHMEN purists cry foul and start boycotting theaters that will be showing the movie, let me explain further. The skullcap and white gloves were dotted with tiny, blue fiber-optic lights. When switched on they cast a warm, rich blue glow. Cruddup’s face, not blue, was dotted with reference points and lines around the mouth so that special effects added to the lights and dots will transform Mr. Cruddup into the good doctor we all know and love. And they’ve included the darker shade of blue scene as well.
There, now put down those ‘End Is Nigh’ signs.
Cruddup gives a reserved yet captivating performance in the scene. He invests Manhattan with a voice possessed with a Hal 9000 dreaminess as the doctor tries his best to answer the early questions. Also, his physicality is very restrained. He sits in the chair as sedately as a ‘God’ should and yet conveys just the right amount of concern and unease when Roth starts into him.
Having now seen Rorschach/Kovacs, Dreiberg and Laurie, the two Bernards, Dr. Malcolm Long, and Hollis Mason in person as well as pictures of the Comedian, Nite Owl (cover of the New Frontiersman) and Dr. Manhattan (Nova Express), I can safely say that this is one fan who is completely satisfied as to the look of these timeless characters. You don’t have to look twice at the actors in full costume and make up to know who they are playing. The filmmakers have the look of these characters down.
Readers of the novel know how the scene played out. There is an alteration – more a combining of plot points handled separately in the novel – that I won’t go into out of respect for the filmmakers. I will say that we may NOT get Osterman’s flashback to his watchmaker father as he tells that story to the TV audience. That is just speculation on my part as getting this information twice in the film might be redundant. I hope I’m wrong as it’s a powerful scene in the novel, one that should be shown, not described. I suppose one has to expect a certain amount of compression from comic to screen.
It was a lot of fun being in the group pouring out of the stands to press Dr. Manhattan when all hell breaks loose. There were more than 100 of us of varying ages, athletic ability and mobility and yet we surged forward with convincing gusto in every take. We may just be background performers but we sell the chaos at the end of this scene. It’ll look like a mad house on screen, but let me state for the record that no extras were injured during the filming of this scene.
It was a great couple of days – like I said, a wonderful Christmas present.
And I for one am looking forward to disappearing as Dr. Manhattan whisks us out to the parking lot in postproduction. It’ll be great to be part of the Manhattan transfer.
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Carmine Falcone · Feb 5, 2008

These reports are awesome.

WalterKovacs · Feb 5, 2008

Yeah, but now my hopes might be up too much

The Guard · Feb 5, 2008

God forbid she give a description of those costumes she saw hanging.

Seriously though, it all sounds pretty cool.

WalterKovacs · Feb 5, 2008

The Guard said: ↑

God forbid she give a description of those costumes she saw hanging.

Seriously though, it all sounds pretty cool.
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SRSLY

Antonello Blueberry · Feb 8, 2008

Another one:
http://www.watchmencomicmovie.com/020608-watchmen-movie-fan-extra.php

Gotham · Feb 9, 2008

Watchmen Comic Movie is seriously the best site out there for anything Watchmen. God, I love that site. Can't until the 11th. (Which is when Zack Snyder answers over fifty questions regarding Watchmen on the site.)

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Update from Watchmen Extra (not me)

waylayer Civilian

sad lieutenant Civilian

sad lieutenant Civilian

Banana-Hotdog Poster of Things

Rust First Son Of Yesterday

Carmine Falcone So it goes.

Antonello Blueberry Inglorious bastard

sad lieutenant Civilian

Rust First Son Of Yesterday

sad lieutenant Civilian

Sun_Down Groovy

Rust First Son Of Yesterday

ChillcutZ Civilian

sad lieutenant Civilian

War Party Ve vant ze money,Lebowski

Shifty Chief of Surgery

Antonello Blueberry Inglorious bastard

Carmine Falcone So it goes.

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Update from Watchmen Extra (not me)

waylayer Civilian

sad lieutenant Civilian

sad lieutenant Civilian

Banana-Hotdog Poster of Things

Rust First Son Of Yesterday

Carmine Falcone So it goes.

Antonello Blueberry Inglorious bastard

sad lieutenant Civilian

Rust First Son Of Yesterday

sad lieutenant Civilian

Sun_Down Groovy

Rust First Son Of Yesterday

ChillcutZ Civilian

sad lieutenant Civilian

War Party Ve vant ze money,Lebowski

Shifty Chief of Surgery

Antonello Blueberry Inglorious bastard

Carmine Falcone So it goes.

WalterKovacs Sidekick

The Guard Avenger

WalterKovacs Sidekick

Antonello Blueberry Inglorious bastard

Gotham Superhero

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