tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1752841194995687278.post892869737357556906..comments2024-03-27T05:22:27.604-05:00Comments on Eddie Campbell: Eddie Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02492020671613766729noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1752841194995687278.post-24826393607480693212009-03-24T10:28:00.000-05:002009-03-24T10:28:00.000-05:00As a bookseller in a big London bookshop there's o...As a bookseller in a big London bookshop there's one thing I can say about the film, it drove sales of the book through the roof. We've been selling tens of copies a week since the middle of last year. It has always sold consistently as John C says, but it's the movie hype, first on the web and then in all the other traditional media, that has given it such a push. It'll be interesting to see what sales do now the film's been out for a while.<BR/><BR/>If nothing else therefore, the movie has seen more people get to enjoy the real thing.<BR/><BR/>Personally I agree with Hayley about the film, it was impossible for me to separate the scenes on screen from those in the book, so that I was feeding in information that wasn't there in the movie and re-contextualising everything as it went along. It was hard to judge it on it's own merits, but I think one of the (ultimately many) reasons that it didn't work was because the world that supported the story just wasn't developed enough (as it had in the comic), so all that posturing comes off as silly rather than serious. And too much superhuman violence. Not that I wanted more human violence, but everyone could drop-kick goons like they were footballs.<BR/><BR/>One thing I noted missing from the high-minded discussion of big blue penis, was just how much bigger they made it. It was some kind of schlong. No circumcision that I saw either.<BR/><BR/>Speaking drawing big willies, I give you the youth of today:<BR/><BR/>http://news.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/hi/newsbeat/newsid_7961000/7961224.stm <BR/><BR/>Ben SmithAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1752841194995687278.post-10373454725042966342009-03-24T00:50:00.000-05:002009-03-24T00:50:00.000-05:00Um, Dan...the Watchmen book hasn't done well by wh...Um, Dan...the Watchmen book hasn't done well by what standards? Alan said <A HREF="http://www.johncoulthart.com/feuilleton/2006/02/20/alan-moore-interview-1988/" REL="nofollow">in 1988</A>:<BR/><BR/>‘We got eight per cent between us for Watchmen.'<BR/><BR/>Any of the publishers I work for would be more than pleased to have a book which has been selling consistently for 22 years and for which they only have to pay the creators (who I don't believe own the rights either) eight percent of any profits.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1752841194995687278.post-7484155719073213702009-03-23T22:23:00.000-05:002009-03-23T22:23:00.000-05:00The viral trollers here notwithstanding, I think t...The viral trollers here notwithstanding, I think the movie is a generally good-looking piece of two-plus hours. The politics exampled take place in an alternate universe America that bears no similarity to the America of then, now or ever, and more context with the England of Moore's lore. Still, for what it is, I liked the movie, except for its political and social difficulties which are, as I have reminded, in an alternate universe with which we are not familiar. The movie, as the book, has not done well, or as well as strangely expected by some, and hasn't since it's publishing, but the Time-Warner investment may pay it all off soon enough with the coming DVD release.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1752841194995687278.post-65875269226674974652009-03-23T20:44:00.000-05:002009-03-23T20:44:00.000-05:00Eddie, just on behalf of my own opinions, I had to...Eddie, just on behalf of my own opinions, I had to say that I saw watchmen twice, and am slightly obsessed with how good it is. Of course it misses subtleties. But I'm more interested in how it produced essentially the same twisted and savage story, dressed up in American and hollywood imagery, and then like a virus seeded it on a wider range through the collective mind.Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13799577982303530405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1752841194995687278.post-36316088868405779932009-03-23T20:33:00.000-05:002009-03-23T20:33:00.000-05:00I can imagine the 'Where the wild things are' movi...I can imagine the 'Where the wild things are' movie being a completely joyful tribute to the book (they have made plays (how succesful I don't know) using set designs by maurice sendak, which would suggest they could make a movie), but I can also imagine them making a completely turgid 2 hour long add for toys etc. I hope the first is true.<BR/><BR/>I would disagree somewhat with Alan's view that if something works well in one medium(?), it can't work well in any other, and the only reason to try to translate something from one medium to another is so you could make more money from it. I do think one can attempt something like this out of love for the original work. Unfortunately Alan's right in that most of the time it is only done for the money.Matthew Adamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06954050440829792514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1752841194995687278.post-59607087080452530142009-03-23T20:32:00.000-05:002009-03-23T20:32:00.000-05:00As a perpetually disappointed bitter left winger, ...As a perpetually disappointed bitter left winger, thanks for the great quote. <BR/><BR/>I got booted out/disillusioned of the comics biz long ago. I never quite fit into the house style or politics of any company. Watchmen for all it's experimentation was still drawn in a wonderful very traditional style. Visual experimentation was always wacked really hard. <BR/><BR/>But what's great about the "biz" now is the "adult" comics create the space where things can slip by. I'm doing a grant funded graphic novel/web comic and it's just accepted you can do "graphic novels that are appropriate for people to read and not be totally juvenile. The target audience being something hip teens can hand to their parents to explain and explore social networks online. <BR/><BR/>I couldn't buy the time of day from the comic book biz but I can still make a living, so I'm happy with that space.<BR/><BR/>And as a lefty, 20 years ago, El Salvadoran priests were getting slaughtered because they were commies. I spent a lot of time trying to help those commies in my sordid youth, and became an old bitter lefty from the futility of it and many other causes. Now the commies just won the election in El Salvador. And then there is this black guy running my country, some days he may indeed be a whisp of some fading dream, some days he seems to be real.<BR/><BR/>It's hard to give up the bitterness but that line about the "arc of justice" may actually be true. It's almost enough to make one optimistic about comics, today.<BR/><BR/>I go back to my Jack Kirby comics now.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com