When my friend Simon told me he had managed to secure tickets to the pre-release screening of the Watchmen I was excited, the event was run by “the secret cinema”. The poster for the event humbly stated that it had “film, music, performance and design fusing to create an immersive experience” in the SE1 club underneath London Bridge. I wasn’t really interested in that, I was just happy to see the film two days before general release.

The tunnel created by the bridge gave the illusion of entering through a time portal where you encountered a sleazy XXX strip bars (with real strippers), ripped nostalgic posters and even Mason’s Garage, complete with 1970’s American muscle cars and yellow cabs on your way to the entrance.

As the queue grew longer actors came out, as Newstand workers handing out newspaper like programes, rioters came out in protest against the masked vigilanties, NY police officers came out to try and keep the peace, a news anchor came out to get the scoop. As I began taking shaky shots on my phone I realised I should of brought a camera with me, because this event was clearly shaping up to be a lot more than I had expected.

All of the actors interacted with the us and each other, staying in character the whole night through; slowly drawing you into the world of the Watchmen until you forgot about London and what year it was. As the time ticked closer to the doors opening, the comic came to life right in front of our eyes; teens on top of a smashed up car standing alongside prostitutes marveling as Dr. Manhattan walked by, followed by scientists, as Ozymandias rode on top of a car and finally The Comedian smugly rolled up on top of a tank. The queue for the screening had become an interactive play right before our eyes.

The amount of detail inside was like something out of a Universal Studious show, the whole club had been transformed, into sets from the Comic. As we walked through we saw, amongst other things,  Ozymandias was there watching his multiple television sets all at once. There was the Gungan Diner, with the Minutemen all celebrating, a live band playing, waittresses on hand serving hotdogs, drinks and popcorn.

When everyone had a chance to soak up the atmosphere, grab their snacks and complimentary drinks, everyone was seated in the theatre room where illustrator Gibbons came out to present the movie.

After the movie the party continued, as the live bands played, the staff who were all actors remained in character flawlessly irrespective to what you asked of them. Though this format may not be suitable for every kind of film, it certainly gave that fourth dimension that no CGI could ever accomplish and certainly gave a more tangible  incentive to empathise with the protagonists of the movie. This maybe as biggest a step to the film-going experience since colour film – watch this space.

via Mubarak Elmubarak, 11 March 2009 3:45pm | 1 |