Under the Hood (2009) Reviews

• Fun supplementary mockumentary

  StarskyandChinaHutch2009-09-18

  Heh, let me first stress how much I love these kind of viral marketing/kayfabe things. It adds an extra dimension to any film, and should be used more often. Now then... "Under the Hood" is a mockumentary companion to the film Watchmen. Based on the novel-within-a-comic featured in the graphic novel, this 40-minute documentary, very realistically made, deals with the history of masked vigilantism in the alternate universe of Watchmen. All the key points brought up in the book excerpts in the novel are used, as well as some other background information from the novel. Staged as an episode of the faux TV show "The Culpepper Minute", this enjoyable little companion piece features interviews with former members of the Minutemen, a masked vigilante organization from the 1940s; chiefly Hollis Mason AKA Nite Owl, writer of the book "Under the Hood", and Sally Jupiter AKA Silk Spectre. Stephen McHattie as Hollis Mason does a great job of being the nostalgic old-timer, and indeed, the only former Minuteman who seemed somehow sympathetic. Aside from this, there are also interviews with Moloch, a retired arch-villain; Bernard, the ever-insightful news vendor; and Wally Weaver, friend of Dr. Manhattan, who does a good job of debating the morality of the superhero. "Archive footage" of characters from the film are mixed with real events such as the Un-American Activities hearings from the 50's, to great effect. This really does have the appearance of an old documentary. While the short may not be as interesting for everyone, it's still worth a good watch for Watchmen fans.

• nifty but not very memorable extra/short-doc on Hollis Mason's "Under the Hood"

  Quinoa19842009-03-27

  Like with the DVD release of the Dark Knight, though this time much earlier to coincide with the theatrical release, DC put together this short documentary as a companion piece cum extra to the "source" of the film, which itself is a take-off on the in-between chapters of the Watchmen book. Hollis Mason, the original Nite Owl in Watchmen, writes an autobiography chronicling the history of the costumed heroes that are a big deal in the 40s, then becoming less of a "fad" in the 1950s and then being outlawed, all with the prose of who was originally a NYC police officer. It's a series of interviews doen in faux 1970 style TV (even includes a few "vintage" commercials, one of the three actually quite funny), with an interviewer who gets the actors playing the characters to improvise (or maybe it's all written, I can see that very well being the case as well) on the subjects posed and raised. It's fun to watch and a little clever, but is mostly a cookie- it's got not much else really substantial out of it unless you have read the book. Certain characters pop up that are not in Snyder's theatrical cut of Watchmen (i.e. Captain Metropolis), and it doesn't run too long to over-stay its welcome. This said, the other little 'goodies' presented by Snyder and company - the other fake news segments on the likes of Dr. Manhattan that appeared online - were better.

• Under the Hood: Never stood a chance with me sadly

  Platypuschow2018-01-09

  I'm not a fan of the Watchmen, in fact I'd go as far as to say I really don't like it. I've never understood the appeal, I understand what they were going for but I just don't enjoy it. Going into this little side piece from the 2009 movie, a 40 minute faux documentary piece I knew it never really stood a chance. It's created in the form of a news show, a host interviewing the former heroes and looking back at their storied careers. The fact they got some of the original cast involved is impressive, especially the excellent Carla Gugino and Matt Frewer. The presentation is great, but this is aimed at fans and only fans. The Good: Great cast The Bad: I don't see the appeal More than slightly boring Things I Learnt From This Short: Sani Flush cleans inside the bowl!

• Better on its own than incorporated into the movie

  MBunge2011-04-12

  When they finally turned the classic comic book series Watchmen into a movie, they had to leave a lot of stuff out. You may find that surprising if you've only seen the film, given how long, detailed and dense it was already. But as one of the most complex stories every written in comic book history, there was a lot they had to skip. Instead of simply forgetting about that stuff, they've taken most of it and turned it into two short films. They're both must-sees if you were a fan of the movie or the comic. Taken on their own merits, however, one of them is must better than the other. Tales of the Black Freighter was a comic-within-the-comic that told the story of the sole survivor of a ship destroyed by the infamous Black Freighter and the horrible, mad lengths he goes to in order to save himself and protect his family. They've turned the comic story into roughly a half-hour long cartoon with some decent animation and good voice work by Gerard Butler as the sole survivor. In making it into a cartoon, unfortunately, the writers and directors leave out most of the powerful and creepy narration that make the original work so striking. The comic-within-the-comic was also thematically connected extensively and intimately with the main story of Watchmen and severing that union robs Tales of the Black Freighter of a lot of its purpose and force. Under the Hood is based on text pieces that ran in the original comic concerning the autobiography of Nite Owl I, Hollis Mason (Stephen McHattie). That was the old guy talking with Dan Dreiberg at the start of the movie. He was one of the original masked adventurers of the 1940s who eventually hung up his mask and tights and wrote a book about what he did and why he did it. In the comic, excerpts from the book were used to flesh out and reinforce many of the themes Alan Moore was driving at in the series. It's been adapted for the screen as an episode of a TV news show about Hollis Mason and his book. Host Larry Culpepper (Ted Friend) talks with Mason, the former Silk Spectre, Sally Jupiter (Carla Gugino), former super-villain Moloch (Matt Frewer) and others about the book and the nature of super-heroes in the real world. Under the Hood is much better than Tales of the Black Freighter. It deals more directly and explicitly with much of Alan Moore's deconstructive take on super-heroes and heroism in general, and is therefore hampered less by being detached from the main story. There are also some very good performances by Stephen McHattie, Carla Gugino, Matt Frewer and Rob LaBelle as Doctor Manhattan's former sidekick. They show the twin sides of the super-hero as presented in Watchmen; the human dimension concerned with celebrity and personal drive and desire, and the sociological perspective of how the existence of such entities would interact with and change the larger world. I imagine the idea is that both these films will eventually be re-integrated into the main Watchmen movie in a special edition DVD. Hollywood loves to sell people the same thing over and over again. I'm not sure it'll be worth getting that DVD because adding this stuff into the movie would make it 4 hours long or more. These works, especially Tales of the Black Freighter, would also not fit alongside some of the changes made in adapting the comic to the screen. If you liked Watchmen, the comic or the movie, I suggest you give this thing a rent and enjoy this stuff on its own.

• "I dressed up. As an owl. And fought crime."

  Al_The_Strange2013-09-01

  This short mockumentary is produced as a side-feature to the Watchmen film. It basically offers a wealth of interviews intended to offer more depth and insight to the characters and the world they live in. The biggest value in watching this feature would be in better understanding the history of the Watchmen's characters; history that's perhaps referenced in the main film, but rarely elaborated on. However, it's not like the film never gave too little information; everything in Under the Hood is extra credit, to satisfy those fans who might be curious to know more. It's pretty interesting, but in the end, it doesn't resonate as strongly as the main film, or the Tales of the Black Freighter, which actually told a relevant story. The best that Under the Hood can do is lend the film a greater sense of authenticity, and translate even more of the Watchmen comic for viewers. Otherwise, I was left feeling that this was a little pointless. For what it's worth though, the film is consistent in keeping up with the look, style, and era of the main film. It uses simple, interview-style camera-work and editing, and it even has a few old-fashioned commercials thrown in. Acting and writing is not bad. Most sets, props, and costumes appear authentic. Best recommended to Watchmen fans. 3/5 (Entertainment: Average | Story: Average | Film: Average)