Appearing at the Apple store in Santa Monica this past Tuesday night, director Zack Snyder and visual effects supervisor John “DJ” DesJardin came to discuss the creation of the big blue guy himself, Dr. Manhattan. Moderated by a DC rep, the two were visibly drained but excited to show off some of their Dr. Manhattan test footage, as well as some final renderings they managed to secure for the presentation.
The footage, while mostly the same promo stuff that’s been seen in trailers and tv spots, actually had some nice surprises for fans of the comic to recognize. Of course, the event was meant to entice new comers of the Watchmen universe, but the fans came out in droves to check out the proceedings. Naturally, they were also the ones to fuel the most nerdy, detailed, and interesting questions, which Mr. Snyder answered with the most graceful ambiguity. One of the more amusing questions being about Dr. Manhattan’s nudity, and their ultimate decision on his…uumm empire state building (the film’s not NC-17, but it’s not for kids either).
All in all the footage looks fantastic, though whether it can be taken seriously is yet to be seen in the context of the film, as Watchmen’s unusual color platte of purples, greens, and yellows give it a somewhat surreal look that is as visually interesting as it is off putting. I guess we’ll just have to ‘watch’ March 6, and see for ourselves…..hurm.
