Unless both he and I are very much mistaken, Warren Ellis has spotted a website that seems to be the start of a viral transreal marketing push for the forthcoming movie based on Alan Moore’s classic graphic novel, Watchmen.

The blurb on the otherwise unpopulated TheVeidtMethod.com frontpage looks almost word-for-word identical to some of the promotional materials featured in the original book.

Much as I did with V For Vendetta, I shall be avoiding this movie when it comes out - simply because it won’t be as good as the book, and I can’t be bothered to pay money for what I know will be a let-down.

Plenty of people will do, though - and will subsequently wail and gnash their teeth over Hollywood’s cheapening of something they loved. Martin McGrath has a message for those people, this part of which I particularly agreed with:

“The fan’s desire to see their favourite novels “faithfully” adapted is either (a) a sign of the failure of their imagination or (b) a sign of their general stupidity. It’s a cliché but, even in this era of WETA and ILM, the mind’s eye is still a more effective special effects generator than anything the cinema will produce – and that’s not just in terms of creating big spaceships and giant explosions – but in terms of creating mood and depth and emotional connection. Nothing is going to deliver the sensation you got from reading the book you love and watching an adaptation can only confuse your impressions of the story with its representation on the screen.”

Wise words. I think I’ll just reread the book.