World Peace Through Jackie Earle Haley

BRITTNEY: Welcome to World Peace Through Jackie Earle Haley: Home of the Tweet-mance, and also the weekly podcast of JackieEarleHaleyFans.com. My name’s Brittney, and I’m going to be introducing you to six wonderful ladies in tonight’s cast: Lauren, Michelle, Megan, Erin, Theresa and Caro. The topic of conversation tonight is the “Watchmen” director’s cut. So if you haven’t seen it yet, what rock have you been under? And don’t want to be spoiled! I would suggest finding an alternate means of entertainment. Also covered tonight is Jackie himself, “Nightmare on Elm Street”, awards, and “Shutter Island”. Enjoy the podcast: made by the fans, for the fans.

MEGAN: Hi!

Lauren: Hi, everybody.

Megan: Alan Moore’s caveman beard snuk in to join us.

Lauren: Oh God. Everybody flee!

MEGAN: He’ll kill us in our sleep! “How dare you!”

LAUREN: (whisper) “I hear Watchmen fans…”

(laughter)

ERIN: Oh God.

MEGAN: All Watchmen fans can recognize each other’s voices even if they’ve never spoken.

LAUREN: Yeah, our DNA code is all smiley faces.

MEGAN: SWEET!

(laughter)

MEGAN: Ok, who has seen more than “Watchmen” of his stuff, and who got into him because of “Watchmen”? I know I did.

LAUREN: Yeah, me too.

Caro: Yeah.

LAUREN: But I knew him from “Bad News Bears”. I liked him from that when I was a kid.

MEGAN: I’m only 21, so like I saw him and I was like, “He’s…” I was really impressed, and then I was looking up more of his stuff and I watched “The Bad News Bears” and there you go.

LAUREN: Yeah, that pretty much- he was actually the best part of, um, “All The King’s Men”, was that it?

MEGAN: Yeah, I have to agree. I wasn’t fond of that.

LAUREN: Yeah, but he ate sugar cubes, so that was very gratifying.

MEGAN: (laughs) That was pretty funny.

ERIN: Yeah, I only became aware of him from “Watchmen”.

LAUREN: Well, when I heard he…I loved the comic, so when I heard he was gonna be in it I went out and I was “Ok, it’s good, he’s been- you know, he’s the right guy for the role. He can do this without making me ill.

ERIN: Yeah, that’s why…As soon as we got the casting, then I, like, had to check out “Little Children” because there were two cast members in that.

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: So hold, like, your own personal audition, make sure.

LAUREN: Exactly. Well, I was just having nightmares that Jude Law was going to play Rorschach.

ERIN: Oh God.

LAUREN: He wanted to.

MEGAN: Yeah, he did, so did Simon Pegg.

ERIN: How dare you!

MEGAN: I could see Simon Pegg, but-

LAUREN: But he’s not frightening!

MEGAN: Yeah, I know.

LAUREN: I want to just…yeah, that wouldn’t have worked.

ERIN: That’s why I checked it out. Like “Who dares?”

LAUREN: Yeah. There’s nothing he can’t do. He was even good in “Semi Pro”.

CARO: Duukes!

MEGAN/THERESA: Yeah.

MEGAN: That was-

ERIN: Duuukes!

MEGAN: -one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen.

CARO: But he was so great.

LAUREN: Yes, he was. I sat through that whole damn film for him.

THERESA: Yes.

CARO: He can do drama, and he can do comedy, and it’s like…wow.

THERESA: I want to see him do a musical.

ERIN: I so want to see a musical. That’s all I want now.

THERESA: I know, me too.

MEGAN: That’d be really, really…interesting.

LAUREN: Oh yeah.

ERIN: Just do it. After Freddy, do a musical. No one would expect it…

MEGAN: My roommate just came in, and when I said “musical”, she’s like, “Oh God”, and walked away. (laughs)

LAUREN: Well, Patrick Wilson did a musical, so why not?

Theresa: Well, Patrick’s been on Broadway in a lot of -

MEGAN: Patrick Wilson has really nice voice.

LAUREN: Yeah, he does actually. He was the best part of that POS. [Phantom of the Opera]

MEGAN: Yeah. Who was your guys’ favorite character he plays, besides Rorschach?

(laughter)

LAUREN: Rorschach!

MEGAN: Besides Rorschach!

ERIN: Does Rorschach count?

LAUREN: (laughs) Yeah.

MEGAN: I would say, yeah. But, besides…

LAUREN: (laughing) Sort of goes without saying.

MEGAN: Besides Walter or besides Rorschach.

LAUREN: Oh yeah. Damn it.

THERESA: Darn!

MEGAN: (laughs) I’m sorry.

THERESA: You take away all my fun!

Erin: I mean does Rorschach count as a…

CARO: Character-wise, or how he plays it?

MEGAN: Well just, either, in general, or like…

CARO: He’s just awesome as Rorschach. He does everything perfect.

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: Because I think Rorschach is the best character, but that’s a “Watchmen” thing.

LAUREN: Yeah, that’s a fandom issue. But he should have gotten the Oscar for Ronnie, I maintain that.

MEGAN: He really should’ve won.

ERIN: Is that even a question? Of course he should have won.

LAUREN: He didn’t win. I’m still angry about that.

ERIN: Yeah.

LAUREN: I just love that in this interview about “Star Trek” when he used the word “nerdgasm”.

MEGAN: Yeah! (laughs) That was great.

ERIN: Where’d you learn that word? Come on.

LAUREN: I was like, “I love you forever now. I don’t care, you could eat a baby and you’re still my favorite person.”

(laughter)

MEGAN: Oh my God! (laughing)

LAUREN: Like “I forgive you, it was a bad baby.” (ALL laugh) He did it for America.

CARO: I think I first felt that when he said “I geek out on all Rorschach’s lines.”

THERESA: Yeah.

LAUREN: Yes!

ERIN: “Geek out.” (laughs)

LAUREN: Did you see that French interview he did? It was a TV interview where people sent in questions and they said they were, like, from “Batman” and he’d be like “OK, Bat-boy.”

THERESA: Yes!

(laughter)

CARO: Yes!

THERESA: Captain Stubing!

ERIN: “Batty-boy.”

LAUREN: I was like, “You’re like the greatest person ever for doing this! Nobody’s this nice.”

MEGAN: I think it’s his interviews that made me really like him, aside, you know, from everything else. That’s what got me interested and I was like, “You are, like, super cool!” And I just kept watching him and I always had a smile on my face when I’d watch him because he’s the sweetest guy.

LAUREN: Yeah. Like how about that thing with the- when the fans went and gave him the book of all the birthday wishes. I mean, that’s so cool.

ERIN: The book was for, like, “Watchmen”.

LAUREN: Yeah, it was thanking him for his Rorschach performance.

ERIN: Right.

LAUREN: And he actually, like, hugged them.

CARO: And then his wife left a comment about how much they loved it.

LAUREN: Yeah, that was just, you know, that he appreciated it.

THERESA: Yeah, he didn’t have to let us know, but he did.

LAUREN: Yeah.

MEGAN: And this year, when we all wished him a happy birthday, he sounded really surprised.

THERESA/LAUREN: Yeah.

MEGAN: Like “They remembered me again?”

(laughter)

LAUREN: Well, he answers people on Twitter, too.

MEGAN: I know. I still have my-

CARO: I think he’s up to like…2,000 followers or something.

LAUREN: He needs more.

MEGAN: He’s got 3,091 people following him.

CARO: Wow.

ERIN: (gaspy noise)

THERESA: Wow, he’s come up.

LAUREN: Get more!

(laughter)

—

MUSIC: PHILLIP GLASS – Pruit Igoe and Prophecies

—

LAUREN: We are talking about “Watchmen”.

ERIN: Director’s Cut. Now in stores.

MEGAN: Director’s Cut and the novel.

LAUREN: I did think The Director’s Cut was a better movie.

THERESA: Yes.

MEGAN: I think so, too.

ERIN: Agree, yeah.

LAUREN: I mean, it was just, it just worked better. All those little moments just made…I don’t know, it just connected in a much smoother way, I thought.

CARO: I do love it and I think it’s much better, but there are small things…like in the scene when he’s shushing the cop. I preferred when he was staring at the Minutemen picture and then it transitioned into…

THERESA: Yeah.

ERIN: Exactly.

MEGAN: Yeah, that…

CARO: That was better.

LAUREN: Yeah, that was nice.

MEGAN: The scene with the cops was weird. I was like, “This is nowhere in the novel.” I mean, obviously things are different from the novel, but that…he just must have come out of nowhere with that.

LAUREN: Yeah. That was a WTF moment.

(laughing)

MEGAN: You know, not that I wanted Rorschach to get shot, but that one cop was awful! He shot at him four times, point blank, didn’t hit him once!

LAUREN: I know!

ERIN: What’s going on there? Is he…is Rorschach a figment of his imagination at that point?

MEGAN: I’m not sure.

LAUREN: I’m OK with that.

MEGAN: (laughs)

MICHELLE: That’s…

LAUREN: Just…yeah, that I didn’t understand. I mean, it was great, I’m happy he, you know, didn’t get shot horribly. There’s enough trauma.

MEGAN: Yeah.

LAUREN: (laughs) But I mean…I didn’t get it.

MEGAN: I know.

CARO: I like how they’re calling it his “Bigfoot moment”. Because he’s there, and then he’s not.

MEGAN: And then he’s not.

LAUREN: (laughs) Yeah.

MEGAN: The file footage.

LAUREN: I love the file footage. I was so excited that they put that in.

MEGAN: I love later on when Daniel was talking about it. He’s like, “He won’t require hospitalization.” Like, you’re a bastard but I love you. (laughs)

(laughter)

MEGAN: I think…I wanna say I think if he took that out they might have been able to do the landlady scene.

LAUREN: Yeah, that’s sort of my…I’m just still obsessed that they didn’t film that.

THERESA: Yeah.

ERIN: I don’t think so, though. How would they…they would have to go back to his apartment and…

LAUREN: Yeah, there wasn’t, I get it, but I just still wish they could have done it as like a special feature. You know, just, it’s such a great scene and I just think he would have played it so beautifully.

MEGAN: He would’ve.

THERESA: He would’ve. Those eyes.

LAUREN: I know.

MEGAN: I…one thing I…

CARO: And it’s so very meaningful.

THERESA: I know.

CARO: It’s like…I think he’s changing by then.

LAUREN: Yeah. It’s his rehumanization.

CARO: I noticed that he’s wearing the same coat he was wearing when he killed Grice.

LAUREN/MEGAN/THERESA: Yeah.

CARO: And when he kills him, he snaps. But when he forgives the landlady, it’s kind of like he’s coming back.

LAUREN: Yeah, it’s like full circle.

MEGAN: Yeah.

LAUREN: I did like the arm-folding scene in the therapist’s office, though.

MICHELLE: Yes.

MEGAN: (laughs) Yeah, that was good.

LAUREN: The glare. The glare was great.

MEGAN: Rorschach-

ERIN: (Rorschach voice) “Where’s my face?!”

LAUREN: Yes!

MEGAN: “What do you see?!”

LAUREN: Oh! I see love.

(laughter)

MEGAN: -”what?”

MICHELLE: I see a clown with, uh, a pope hat.

MEGAN: (laughs)

LAUREN: Some nice flowers. When they did the “possible homosexual” line in the theater…

MEGAN: THAT, I-

LAUREN: People cheered.

MEGAN: That was great.

MICHELLE: Yes.

THERESA: I laughed so hard.

LAUREN: Like everybody started howling, and I was like, “This is like, my people! Yes!”

MEGAN: (laughs)

ERIN: I think the biggest problem with the Director’s Cut…well, I don’t like that we lost that Minutemen photo transition either, but…

LAUREN: Oh, that was great.

ERIN: That new scene with the Knot Tops!

LAUREN: (laughs) Yeah.

ERIN: What, what is that?

MEGAN: Hollis’, Hollis’ death scene…

ERIN: (Knot Top) “Did you hear about that guy, Night Ow-wull?”

MEGAN: Oh, that was lame!

ERIN: “Night Ow-Wull? He lives…down the street…”

MEGAN: (Knot Top) “Right ovah theah!”

ERIN: “…right ovah theah!”

LAUREN: I did love how they shot, um, Hollis’ big fight at the end, though.

MEGAN/THERESA/ERIN: That was…

MEGAN: That was good.

LAUREN: It was so- it was gor- it was just, it was, it- I actually liked it better than the comic, because it was such, like, a ‘tribute to this great hero’ moment.

CARO: When Moloch shows up in the end, it’s just…

LAUREN: Ah, it was great.

MEGAN: Yes. That was great.

LAUREN: It was really, like…it was really affectionate. I don’t know, I still lo- my favorite scene, I’ve said it before, is still the one where he, uh, gets caught in Moloch’s house.

MEGAN: I love that scene. When he’s like fighting the cops. It’s really good.

LAUREN: It just, I lo- it just, it translated perfectly when he’s saying “No no no, stupid, stupid.” He’s so pissed off at himself.

MEGAN: Yeah.

LAUREN: I love that.

MEGAN: I love when the cop says, “Hope you’re ready, hero.” “When YOU are.” YES! You know something awesome’s gonna happen.

LAUREN: (laughing) He’s just so irritated with everybody at that moment. Like, “Goddammit, Moloch’s dead! My whole scene is ruined. My little speech was wasted on this dead person!”

ERIN/THERESA: (laughing)

MEGAN: I know, it’s like “I didn’t get a chance to do it!”

ERIN: (laughing) That’s great.

LAUREN: (laughs) And you know he probably prepared that speech. He thought about it, it was all set up.

MEGAN: He practiced it in front of his mirror.

ERIN: He practiced, yeah. (laughs)

MEGAN: (Rorschach voive) “You talkin’ to me?”

(laughter)

LAUREN: Did you see the interview where Jackie Earle Haley did that?

MEGAN: Yes! That’s what made me draw that one picture. Where Rorschach’s like pointing at himself: “Are you talkin’ to me?”

LAUREN: You know he did that. And he giggled.

MEGAN: I would have paid to see that. (laughs)

LAUREN: (laughing) That would have been life-changing.

MEGAN: Oh gosh.

ERIN: I’m glad that Haley went like, more emotional with his Watch…with his Rorschach. Instead of, like, you could play it really monotone, and probably a lot of people would have liked him to be more monotone…

MEGAN: Really.

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: But if he did, then we didn’t get- we wouldn’t get any of that.

LAUREN: Yeah, I mean I think the mask covers enough that it’s, you know, you still get that coldness.

ERIN: Yeah. And we lose stuff like the landlady scene, and then, you know…it’ll come off as Rorschach: totally emotionless.

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: And that’s not who he is.

LAUREN: Yeah, I mean, I think you see his full acting in the last scene with Manhattan.

ERIN: That’s amazing!

MEGAN: It was a great scene.

LAUREN: I mean, it was…I was so worried about it.

ERIN: Oh, I cried. I cried.

LAUREN: Every time. Every time I can’t…so embarrassing. It’s sad!

MEGAN: I know! He, in the…he, he dies alone in the snow! All the- I was thinking, someone mentioned it…

ERIN: Not anymore!

MEGAN: Yeah, but he’s…

LAUREN: Still alone.

MEGAN: I think the only way, um…I don’t know if you guys read what I posted on Watchdom the other day, how…because people keep referring to Rorschach as a sociopath and a psychopath, and he’s not either one of those things.

LAUREN: No.

ERIN: He’s definitely not a sociopath.

MEGAN: No.

ERIN: Like, really obviously. It’s just one of those things that that’s what people call you when you’re crazy.

MEGAN: Yeah.

LAUREN: Well, they do say it twice in the movie.

MEGAN: Yeah, like- well, Ozymandias calls him that, which…I mean, it’s him.

LAUREN: Yeah, he’s a douche.

ERIN: Yeah. Who else calls Rorschach a sociopath?

MEGAN: Zack Snyder referred to him as a psychopath.

ERIN: That’s…that sorta OK. (laugh)

CARO: I had heard him say Rorschach was psychopathic in what he does…

MEGAN: Yeah.

CARO: But I don’t think Zack thinks he’s a psychopath.

MEGAN: And I mean, they both…sociopaths and psychopaths have antisocial behaviour, and he obviously is antisocial, but not to the point where he’s…like, if he was a true antisocial, he wouldn’t even have Dan.

LAUREN: Yeah.

MEGAN: He would have absolutely no one.

LAUREN: And it would be easy for him not to [have Dan]. He has to make the effort.

MEGAN: Exactly.

LAUREN: Yeah, so I always disagree with that analysis.

MEGAN: I’m looking at my Livejournal right now, because…sociopaths, they lack a sense of moral responsibility or social conscience. Not him.

LAUREN: That’s all he has.

MEGAN: I know.

ERIN: He’s very obviously not a sociopath. It’s like…yeah, I guess I disagree with that too.

LAUREN: I mean, he has a detachment problem. I think we can agree on that.

MEGAN: Yeah.

ERIN: Well, it’s not like he has some sort of disorder that he was born with or anything. He’s just damaged.

LAUREN: Seriously damaged.

CARO: But he is attached to people, in a way. Because he’s always trying to save someone…and punish evil.

MEGAN: Punish the evil, yeah.

LAUREN: Yeah, that’s why he- I always think he’s the most romantic character. You know? Because he genuinely believes that by doing this stuff he’s making a difference. He’s like the polar opposite of Ozy.

THERESA: Yeah, if anything he may be a little bit too attached. He’s…focuses on saving the innocent to his own detriment, to where he can’t even cope with the thought of his own fellow masks killing so many people in the name of good.

LAUREN: Yeah. It’s sa- it’s interesting. I mean, that’s why I think Dan gets off so easily, because he really is so weak-willed.

MEGAN: I’d have to agree with that.

LAUREN: I mean, I like Dan. You know.

MEGAN: I love Dan, but he did…like Rorschach said, “You quit.” And he could have said he retired and then gone on crimefighting like Rorschach did, who was just like, “Nope, I can’t give it up” because he felt like he was making a difference. In the grand scheme of things, he might have been making a little bit. When did the Blair Roche thing happen?

LAUREN: ‘75.

MEGAN/THERESA: ‘75, OK.

LAUREN: I love that scene in the movie. I mean, I hate that they changed the whole killing thing, but I did love his, like, anxiety attack breathing.

MEGAN: Yeah.

THERESA: Yes. I noticed that again today.

ERIN: Possibly crying?

LAUREN: Yeah.

MEGAN: Probably. Probably is. When I was watching it, I almost wish he didn’t wear the mask, because…when he’s looking out the window and he sees the dogs, and then he just leans forward, you could see…if the mask wasn’t there, you could see the sheer horror and rage in his face.

THERESA/LAUREN: Yeah.

MEGAN: And I would have loved to have seen it. I mean, obviously we can’t, but…

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: That’s such a difficult performance, to have that on your face the whole time.

MEGAN: I know.

LAUREN: But it’s amazing he conveyed so much.

MEGAN: I know.

ERIN: Yeah, there was a lot of body language in that.

LAUREN: Yeah.

THERESA: Exactly. So many people try to say, “Oh, he was just doing a voiceover performance. He had it easy.”

ERIN: Ridiculous!

MEGAN: (laughs)

LAUREN: Ugh. He had the hardest role.

MEGAN: I know.

THERESA: You can feel every emotion that goes through him. Through his body language…

CARO: And it wasn’t over-the-top at all.

LAUREN: Exactly.

MEGAN: Although it could have been.

ERIN: Yeah, it could have.

LAUREN: It was so hard. I mean, especially…I know everyone geeks over it, but the handshake scene, physically, was amazing.

THERESA: Yes.

MEGAN: I love that.

LAUREN: Ugh, it’s…and his voice was great in that, because you can…it’s like the first time he sounds human.

MEGAN/THERESA: Yeah.

MEGAN: Yeah, when he’s saying “I know it can be difficult with me sometimes.”

LAUREN: And it’s just like, yeah, this acknowledgment that he knows he’s not…that he’s aware of what he’s doing, and you know, he knows and he appreciates the effort Dan puts into it.

MEGAN: Yeah. I think it would be hard to be Rorschach’s friend, because I mean…he steals his food, that’s…that can be dealt with. He always…it looks like he’s always breaking down the door.

LAUREN: Hyeah.

MEGAN: I don’t know if he just did that in the graphic novel in the time frame, but it appears that he’s always doing it.

LAUREN: Yeah. I mean, he does, you know…He is pretty abusive to everybody around him. And I think it’s gotta be, on another level, hard for Dan to see Rorschach still doing this, you know? As, like, a reminder of what he gave up.

MEGAN: Yeah.

LAUREN: You know, that’s gotta be a constant reminder, and that’s gotta be…you know, and being so… rough about it has gotta be really taxing. Plus he’s really mean to Laurie.

MEGAN: Yeah.

CARO: But Laurie’s mean to him, too.

THERESA/LAUREN: Yeah.

MEGAN: Yeah, obviously…yeah, yeah.

ERIN: He was more respectful in the graphic novel.

MEGAN: -in the novel.

LAUREN: Yeah. He calls her by her last name. I love that.

MEGAN: And her real last name, too.

LAUREN/THERESA: Yeah.

MEGAN: Yeah, I…I don’t think he hates women. I do not think he’s a misogynist.

LAUREN: I don’t, either.

CARO: I don’t think so, but I think in the movie, it came out that way.

MEGAN: Yeah, it did come out that way.

LAUREN: I could see it in the movie.

THERESA: Yeah…

ERIN: In the movie, he was a lot more jealous, because they were playing up…they were emphasizing his relationship with Dan.

CARO: Right.

LAUREN: Yeah. And I get that.

ERIN: And I’m glad that they did.

LAUREN: Yeah, I was too. It’s sort of nice to see that that was acknowledged.

MEGAN: Did you guys notice- I noticed it, I think the second time, but when Dan is running at Ozymandias, you can hear Rorschach’s theme in the background.

LAUREN: I didn’t hear that!

MEGAN: It’s really noticeable! I was like, “Holy crap!” And I thought it was a nice touch.

LAUREN: Yeah, I know a lot of people had problems with him beating the crap out of Adrian, but I- I thought it was very…an authentic moment.

MEGAN: It was. Because he…

MICHELLE: I liked that.

LAUREN: He’s furious.

MEGAN: He’s lost one of his…his, quote unquote, “friends”, I would say.

LAUREN: Yeah, but he also lost this symbol, you know?

THERESA: Yeah. And it works even better in the Director’s Cut, because you have the new scene where he learns about Hollis’ death and beats the shit out of the [Knot Top].

ERIN: Exactly, yeah.

MEGAN: It works better. Because he’s already on edge.

THERESA: Exactly.

ERIN: Was gonna say that…

THERESA: And it just goes back to that scene, except now Rorschach’s not there to pull him off.

MEGAN: I didn’t need to see that guy’s teeth, that was awful. (laughs)

LAUREN: (laughing) Oh my gosh! Yeah, I was like, “I get it, you’re really angry, please don’t do that anymore.”

MEGAN: I love how Rorschach was like, “Dan, not in front of the civilians.” It’s like parents fighting. Like, “Don’t- let’s not fight in front of the kids.”

(laughter)

THERESA: Yeah.

LAUREN: That was so- it’s such a weird, like, little moment of his psyche. Like, “You’re embarrassing me!”

MEGAN: Yeah, probably. I like how he-

CARO: He looks away for most of the time.

MEGAN: Yeah, he does. He just stands around like…

LAUREN: (laughing) Yeah.

MEGAN: …before he’s like, “OK-”

ERIN: Well, he saw the teeth and then…

LAUREN: (laughing) Yeah. When you’ve freaked out Rorschach, you know you’ve done good.

MEGAN: Exactly. And the arm scene…that entire arm cutting scene gets worse every time I watch it. Like, half the time I like shut my eyes…”Jesus!”

LAUREN: So gross.

MEGAN: So awful! Although the eye twitching makes up for it.

LAUREN: Oh my god, I love his eye twitch.

ERIN: There were these two guys next to me in the theater when I saw it in IMAX, that…at that part where you see him hanging from the ceiling, there’s, like, two frat guys. And they’re like, “THAT’S UNNECESSARY.”

(laughter)

CARO: It’s not unnecessary. You’re supposed to be disgusted. He is disgusted by what he’s doing.

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: Exactly. I agree.

CARO: You shouldn’t…

ERIN: They’re like, “I wanna see some dudes blow up! …oh God, it really looks like dudes blown up.”

(laughing)

ERIN: “Hey wait, that’s too much blood in the blood.”

MEGAN: I want, like, “Yo dawg, we heard you like blood so we put blood in your blood!”

(laughing)

—-

MUSIC: Simon and Garfunkel – Sound of Silence

—

CARO: There’s something I really liked…how they used the song “The Sound of Silence” for The Comedian’s funeral.

MEGAN: I liked that.

LAUREN: That was great.

CARO: I was reading up on it, and that song was written as a reaction to Kennedy’s death.

MEGAN: Oh!

ERIN: Yes.

CARO: And in the movie, we very clearly see The Comedian killing him. [President Kennedy]

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: That’s why I love that song in that scene.

LAUREN: Yeah, it’s such a great moment. I thought the Kennedy scene was great. It’s intense, and it’s perfect. But I just think that the op…I mean, even people I know who didn’t like the movie loved the opening credits.

MEGAN: It’s one of the best opening credits I’ve ever seen.

LAUREN: He always does good opening credits, if you think about it.

CARO: Yeah.

LAUREN: “Dawn of the Dead”?

CARO: I love the one in “Dawn of the Dead”. I think it was…

LAUREN: I’m obsessed with that. And it’s Johnny Cash!

CARO: With zombies. That’s just…

LAUREN: Y’know.

CARO: You know.

LAUREN: Yeah.

CARO: (laughs)

LAUREN: Johnny Cash plus zombies is always gonna be good, forever.

MEGAN: I was reading trivia about Watchmen. One of the earlier scripts, like…for the earlier casting choices I was looking at, it was like…Robin Williams for Rorschach, and I was like “NOOO-”

(Everyone laughing)

LAUREN: I would have killed people. I’d be in jail right now. We’d be Skyping from jail.

MICHELLE: Yeah.

CARO: I heard they were trying to update it and make it on the War on Terror.

LAUREN: Yeah, Darren Aronofsky was gonna direct it and he wanted to do a modernized version, and they were like, “No.”

MEGAN: I’m so glad he didn’t.

MICHELLE: Yeah, really!

THERESA: I know.

MEGAN: He had scheduling conflicts with “The Fountain”, which wasn’t that good anyway.

LAUREN: I know! What’s with him?

MEGAN: Apparently, um, Rorschach’s mother has the same name as Alan Moore’s mother.

(Everyone reacts viscerally)

LAUREN: Oh, God!

THERESA/ERIN: Ohh…

(laughing)

MEGAN: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I know.

THERESA: That’s a new level…

MEGAN: That’s interesting!

LAUREN: Uh oh…

CARO: “Hey, Mom! Look what I wrote!”

(laughing)

MEGAN: “Hey, Mom! Look, I named a character after you!”

(laughing)

Theresa: “Yeah, she’s just a prostitute, what’s wrong with that, huh?”

LAUREN: And her pimp kills her with Drano!

ERIN: He kills her!

MEGAN: And Rorschach’s like, “Good.”

LAUREN: “Good!” Does that mean that…that Rorschach is him?

MEGAN: ohh, God…

ERIN: The pimp?

LAUREN: Is- No, is Moore.

MEGAN: ohh, God…

THERESA: No-

LAUREN: That…ohh.

ERIN: No!

THERESA: Or the beard of doom-

(laughing)

THERESA: I think we’re safe.

LAUREN: Y- He was so mean to Zack Snyder during the filming! When Zach was like, “Well, I hope he thinks it’s not terrible!” and Alan Moore was like, “I’m going to piss on you”, basically.

(laughing)

CARO: Yeah!

ERIN: “I’m going to spew venom all over this movie!”

LAUREN: Yeah, like he can’t even say “Good luck”? I mean, you know, just…

CARO: The sad thing is that I think Zack is really a fan.

LAUREN: He’s a big fan!

CARO: He is. And he says the nicest things when he’s talking about, like…I just saw this interview when he says…um, here it is. “Watchmen is like the music you feel is written just for you. ‘That’s my song, no one else gets that but me.’” Like…

LAUREN: Yeah.

CARO: He really likes it. And I think he did a great job.

LAUREN: Yeah, I do too. But it’s like your hero just took a big dump on your head!

MEGAN/CARO: (laughing)

—

MUSIC: Tyler Bates – I Love You, Mom

—

CARO: I wanted to ask you guys something…

LAUREN: Yes?

CARO: About the ending. You know the ketchup stain on Seymour’s shirt?

ALL: Mm hm, yeah.

CARO: Do you think that means that the doomsday clock is going to be set back to five to midnight? Because, I don’t know, he’s going to publish Rorschach’s journal?

LAUREN: Not if he didn’t believe it.

THERESA: Yeah, that makes…

LAUREN: But I don’t know if we’re supposed to know. It’s supposed to be, you know…

ERIN: It’s supposed to be whatever you make it, right?

LAUREN: Yeah, it’s open-ended.

ERIN: Because that’s also the whole meaning to, you know, him saying “I leave it entirely in your hands.” Like, that’s the last line of the book. Whatever you believe would happen. I think…lies don’t last that long.

LAUREN: Yeah. I mean, it would eventually collapse.

THERESA: Right, and the threat of Dr. Manhattan really isn’t that big a threat in the great scheme of things.

LAUREN: Yeah. I mean, is Veidt going to have to do this, like, repeatedly? Like every couple of years blow the crap out of a city?

CARO: (laughing a little) Maybe.

(laughing)

ERIN: Just to keep ‘em da- it’s like calling your prom date just to keep them dangling. Just keeping people well behaved with a threat, especially a fake threat, I don’t think it’s gonna…it’s not going to sustain for every long. Like after 9/11, everyone was really…

LAUREN: …nice.

ERIN: …terrified, and very nice, yeah. And um, people have really forgotten about that altogether.

LAUREN: Yeah, I mean, it-

ERIN: Just that feeling that was around, where everybody was scared, and everybody was thinking about it, and everyone was aware about how…delicate everyone’s situation was. But after a few years, you just sort of forget and you go back to whatever it is you were doing.

CARO: Yeah.

LAUREN: Exactly. It just, it won’t work, and…but that’s sort of amazing, that he doesn’t have that ability of foresight. I mean, even his hero didn’t keep his empire that long.

CARO: Well, he is the smartest man on Earth, but he’s still human so he’s going to make mistakes. And they all did throughout the story.

LAUREN: Yeah, but his mistake is pretty big. It’s pretty epic fail.

CARO: Well, but…he has a huge ego, so he’s going to fail bigtime when he does.

ERIN: Right. It’s his ego. He’s very arrogant and presumptuous.

LAUREN: But he thinks he knows what’s best.

MEGAN: I honestly…I prefer the movie ending, because the squid thing…that didn’t even make sense!

LAUREN: I never got the squid.

MEGAN: Because Ozy…

ERIN: I love the squid, though.

LAUREN: I liked it, but I didn’t get it.

ERIN: Because it’s just so outlandish. It’s like it has to be this outlandish for people to believe it.

CARO: It does make sense in the comic book, because it’s so outrageous.

ERIN: Yeah, exactly.

LAUREN: Yeah, in the comic, but stuff- you know, as much as you hate it, sometimes you have to change stuff.

CARO: Oh, right.

ERIN: Of course.

CARO: It would have not worked at all in the movie.

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: It would have taken too much of the movie to explain and set that up, anyway.

MEGAN: They would also have to put the side story of the missing journalist or whatever, and his whole thing with the…

ERIN: Yeah, exactly.

MEGAN: …Scientists on the island, then making the squid, and also…someone pointed out that since Manhattan’s the only one with superpowers, and the squid…because he was using the brain of a young psychic…it’s like, more powers are in the comic.

ERIN: That was a little weird. (laughs a little)

CARO: The Ultimate with The Black Freighter in…I don’t know how that’s going to work.

LAUREN: I still want it. I want it.

ERIN: I heard it’s gonna have more Bernies, right?

CARO: Yeah. I’m going to buy it, probably, and I’m going to watch it, but I don’t know how it’s going to work. (laughs)

MEGAN: When I saw the cartoon I wasn’t that fond of it. I thought it was kind of boring, and…when it’s in the comic, I mean, you kind of need to read it. I tried to skip forward and found I can’t, because it’s…it becomes really pivotal after a while.

LAUREN: I liked it a lot more when I read that it was actually an allegory, um…for Rorschach and Ozy. Yeah, then I liked it.

CARO: Yeah, it is. It’s really great, because it’s like the comic inside the comic, and…

MEGAN: Yeah.

LAUREN: Mixing comics with your comics.

CARO: (laughs) Right.

ERIN/MEGAN: (laughs)

ERIN: …because I heard you like comics.

CARO: But that’s why…I don’t know how it’s going to work, because in the comic it’s the same medium. It’s…you’re reading a comic book inside a comic book, and it’s very cool. But in the movie, well, you’re watching live action and then you’re watching animation. So…

ERIN: That could be cool.

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: I mean, it could work, but you can’t really…I think at that point you can’t really look at it…as a movie. (laughs) You have to start looking at it like…as…

ERIN: Yes.

LAUREN: Yeah.

CARO: (laughs) A life-altering experience that’s like 5 hours long.

LAUREN: Yeah, it’s like an event.

ERIN: But I don’t even know if I think of it [as it is] as a movie.

CARO: They said it couldn’t be done, that it was unfilmable, and it was done and it was great.

LAUREN: Yeah, I think it was very successful. I think it set out to do what it…it was the best we’re going to ever get.

CARO: Yeah.

MEGAN: Exactly. It’s the closest adaptation to any comic book I’ve ever seen. Like the X-Men movies, let’s not even talk about how much they were messed up.

ERIN: I love it. I love the soundtrack, I love the score.

MEGAN: I love the score so much.

LAUREN: I think it’s beautiful.

MEGAN: It’s so gorgeous.

—

MUSIC

—

CARO: “Watchmen” is out already on DVD, and we have it, and we’ve seen it already 10 times, I think. At least. But we have a lot to look forward to.

LAUREN: “Nightmare on Elm Street”’s gonna be big, right?

MEGAN/THERESA: Yeah!

MEGAN: I’m pretty excited to see that. Yeah, I really am too. Although, I did see the original, and he can only improve it.

THERESA: Yeah.

LAUREN: But that’s what people forget. The first one wasn’t that…I mean, it was revolutionary, but as a movie it kind of isn’t great.

MEGAN: Yeah. I mean, it’s an interesting premise. Because, I mean, you can’t go without sleep. You have to sleep. But I…I really was just rooting for him to kill those kids, because they were so annoying.

LAUREN: They were! They were, and now in this one…someone’s gonna have a podcast, actually, which I find ironic.

MEGAN: (laughs) They’re copying, yeah.

CARO: Did you hear that the release date was, apparently, pushed back to April 30th?

THERESA: Yeah.

MEGAN: Really?

LAUREN: Why?

ERIN: It’s not like a Harry Potter kind of move.

LAUREN: Ah…

CARO: It’s so far away that…and, I don’t know, fifteen days doesn’t make a difference, but it makes you wonder.

MEGAN: Why’d they push it back?

LAUREN: Maybe to get it in the Oscar race.

CARO: Oh, that would be…that would make him, like, so awesome, if he could win an Oscar for playing Freddy Krueger.

LAUREN: It’s about damn time.

ERIN: (laughs) That would be amazing.

MEGAN: That would be like…it would be deserved, it would be deserved but it’s like my thought of Johnny Depp winning an Oscar for playing Jack Sparrow. I mean…

ERIN: Nah…

LAUREN: He should’ve won for “Ed Wood”.

MEGAN: He should’ve won for “Ed wood”, among many other movies, and it’s like, “Oh, Freddy Krueger, great.”

LAUREN/THERESA: Yeah.

CARO: They like to give awards after the actual great performance.

LAUREN: Yeah.

ERIN: Yeah. I’m assuming that’s how Alan Arkin got his for “Little Miss Sunshine”.

LAUREN: Yeah, I can’t even get into that.

CARO: He has to win, because he had to win for “Little Children”.

LAUREN: Yeah. I mean, that scene where- after he reads the note from his mother, and he loses it, is like just…

THERESA: Yeah.

LAUREN: …oh, it’s unbelievable. It’s…that alone.

CARO: When he’s unpacking the suitcase…

THERESA: It’s a great scene.

LAUREN: And he brought her chocolates!

ERIN: Oh, I saw that! Yeah.

LAUREN: And he had his little pink suitcase. I said, “That’s the saddest suitcase ever.”

MEGAN: Yeah.

(laughs)

ERIN: The chocolates killed me.

THERESA: That was…

LAUREN: Yeah. I mean he loved her.

MEGAN: Yeah.

LAUREN: And he portrayed that, and he was a reprehensible human being, but you still got that. Which is hard.

THERESA: Yeah. Yeah, the scene where his mom’s helping him write the personal ad…

LAUREN: Oh…

MEGAN: Oh, yeah. He’s just like, “What else?” “You have a nice smile.” “What else?”

ERIN: He’s heart-breaking in that, but he’s terrifying in that movie, too.

LAUREN: Yeah. I mean, he’s a scary guy.

ERIN: I think I appreciate- I appreciate it more, just how terrifying he could be, when like we see him in an interview or something, and…he’s not that at all. (laughs)

MEGAN/THERESA: Yeah.

LAUREN: Yeah, he’s like this nice, funny guy.

MEGAN: Yeah, he’s so different from the person he plays, which is really a testament to how good of an actor he is.

LAUREN: If he wins for “Watchmen”, I will never stop smiling.

ERIN: They’re not gonna give an Oscar to “Watchmen”.

CARO: They’re not.

MEGAN: I could see him winning for “Shutter Island”, possibly.

CARO: How big is his role? I don’t think…

ERIN: Doesn’t he have a really small role?

MEGAN: He has a small role. There’s, um…it’s like a chapter but it’s really…it’s one of the pivotal scenes in the story.

THERESA: Yeah.

MEGAN: His presence in the story is really important, which I found out towards the end of the book. I was…I don’t want to spoil it for anyone, but it’s really…

LAUREN: Yeah, I gotta go get that.

MEGAN: There’s…the ending is…it’s kinda…you could almost say you might see it coming, but I didn’t.

THERESA: I didn’t, either.

MEGAN: But when I saw it, I was like, “Wha-what? what?” I was pretty confused. I was like, “Whe- I don’t understand this.”

THERESA: Yes, that was my response too. (laughs)

CARO: That’s another movie that I’m really looking forward to. Besides Jackie. It looks like it’s going to be pretty good.

MEGAN: It looks like it’s going to be really good.

THERESA: Yeah, and I’m really curious about “Bolden”.

CARO/LAUREN: Yeah.

MEGAN: Yeah, and “Louis”. He’s playing the same person.

ERIN: Isn’t that a silent film?

CARO: I think it’s “Louis”.

MEGAN: Uh, “Louis”…I’m looking at it now. “Louis” is the silent film.

THERESA/LAUREN: Yeah.

THERESA: “Bolden” is the talkie.

ERIN: I think talkin’ pictures are gonna ruin Hollywood.

(laughing)

CARO: And on this note, we close the podcast called “World Peace Through Jackie Earle Haley”.

MEGAN: OK.

LAUREN: It can be done!

MEGAN: Yeah, that’s true. You can never forget it.

CARO: We’ll see you next time.