It’s a double dose of Watchmen news today. Earlier, we told you about how the graphic novel’s “Tales Of The Black Freighter” segments were going to be animated and released on DVD just a few days after the movie hits theater screens next March. Now, courtesy of AintItCoolNews, we’ve got a new picture from the production, featuring The Minutemen, the first generation of costumed heroes in the world of Watchmen.
The Minutemen formed in 1939 and fought crooks, supervillains and Nazis for ten years before they disbanded. A generation later, two of the Minutemen, Nite Owl and Silk Spectre, will serve as the inspirations for new heroes of the same name. Another, The Comedian, would work for the government doing dirty, ultra top secret black ops missions until he is killed in 1985. His murder is the opening of the Watchmen graphic novel, and presumably the movie.
From left to right in the photo are Silhouette, Mothman, Dollar Bill, Nite Owl, Captain Metropolis, Silk Spectre, Hooded Justice and kneeling, The Comedian. Click to make bigger.
As I said before, the attention to detail that director Zack Snyder is lavishing on the film is impressive. But while looking at this picture, I was struck with a certain realization. Much like the Watchmen graphic novel deconstructed the superhero genre in comic book form, it looks as if Snyder is deconstructing the superhero movie. The costumes pictured here, while great translations of their four-color counterparts, recall the chintz, low budget look of superhero serials like Captain America and Spy Smasher from that era. The modern day Watchmen uniforms look more like the sculpted and padded outfits seen in more recent superhero movies. It should be interesting to see if Snyder has more thematic things like this up his sleeve.
