Bob PeryeaNight Watch
May 27th 2008 01:37
So I finally watched the Russian film Night Watch. I'm yet to decide how much I liked it yet. It's a fair bit different from the book, with magic taking a far less pronounced role in the film. I think I need to give it a second go without considering the book.
The story is based around the same characters, but tells a very different story. Well, it tells the first of three parts of the book. And some things I was hoping to see (eg Zavulon shapeshifting into a demon as he does in the climatic battle in the book) didn't happen. Also the morality issues the book brought up regarding what really seperates light from dark are non issues, bringing me back to a point I made a while ago now, Why do film makers think that movie goers can't deal with moral issues?. In the films defense there are a couple more movies to come out (Day Watch is already out) and the moral questions really didn't arise in this part of the book either, so maybe I'm being a bit hasty.
But the most obvious stand out of the film was the subtitles. I have a feeling that someone on Orble had a post about this but I can't find who it was or what the post was fully about. Anyway, the subtitles in Night Watch were worked into the film in a really cool way. At one stage early in the movie, a young boy is swimming in a pool and gets a blood nose. The dialogue here is a blood red and dissolves away as blood does in water. Words jump all over the screen in different styles depending on what is going on, it works really well.
Back to the film itself, the version I have has both the international screening, which I assume most people have, as well as the Russian original, so I'm interested in watching both. On a side note, this is the first time I've seen a special edition DVD (the 'Definitive Edition') that actually has something worthwhile in it. Not just some rubbish alternate ending, or deleted scenes, but rather a different version of the movie. I assume that it won't have kick arse subtitle, but hey, you win some, you lose some right?
The story is based around the same characters, but tells a very different story. Well, it tells the first of three parts of the book. And some things I was hoping to see (eg Zavulon shapeshifting into a demon as he does in the climatic battle in the book) didn't happen. Also the morality issues the book brought up regarding what really seperates light from dark are non issues, bringing me back to a point I made a while ago now, Why do film makers think that movie goers can't deal with moral issues?. In the films defense there are a couple more movies to come out (Day Watch is already out) and the moral questions really didn't arise in this part of the book either, so maybe I'm being a bit hasty.
But the most obvious stand out of the film was the subtitles. I have a feeling that someone on Orble had a post about this but I can't find who it was or what the post was fully about. Anyway, the subtitles in Night Watch were worked into the film in a really cool way. At one stage early in the movie, a young boy is swimming in a pool and gets a blood nose. The dialogue here is a blood red and dissolves away as blood does in water. Words jump all over the screen in different styles depending on what is going on, it works really well.
Back to the film itself, the version I have has both the international screening, which I assume most people have, as well as the Russian original, so I'm interested in watching both. On a side note, this is the first time I've seen a special edition DVD (the 'Definitive Edition') that actually has something worthwhile in it. Not just some rubbish alternate ending, or deleted scenes, but rather a different version of the movie. I assume that it won't have kick arse subtitle, but hey, you win some, you lose some right?
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Comment by Cibbuano
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Comment by Kim L
Diving About
I had no idea the movies were books.... have to hunt them down...
Thanks!!!