Watchmen (Zack Snyder)
I thought I'd post this here just in case anyone was interested. It's just a rough rambling and it's probably not with the fanboy majority and their hatred of it (I'm not sure if this is the case, I've only read a couple reviews) but I hope you like it.
Set in an alternate 1985 where Nixon is still president, costumed vigilantes have been outlawed and the world is on the brink of nuclear war, The Comedian (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is killed. Believing that former costumed heroes are being eliminated, the masked Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) sets out to solve the case.
Alan Moore is considered the king of graphic novels and Watchmen, illustrated by Dave Gibbons, is his magnum opus. Filled to the brim with excellent characterisation, several narratives and more questions than most novels, it's more than just a comic book. In fact, it's the only graphic novel on Time's 100 must read books. It was always going to be difficult to adapt such a monster of a story, especially with the hype and the fanboys (scary folks). But I think Zack Snyder deserves a well done for his work here. A self confessed fan of the comic, he clearly loves his source material and takes the time to draw attention to even the smallest detail. As a fan of the novel, I had a whale of a time spotting the miniscule details that probably went over the heads of the uninitiated, such as The Comedian's change in costumes over the years, and the numerous historical figures that pop up (David Bowie is in the best opening credits I've seen in a long time.) I took my friend to see it and she'd never read the comic so I did spend a little time running over a few plot points as the film went on. Snyder's clearly not pandering to the uneducated masses and as a fan I can only be happy for this. I worry that many people will go to see the film based on the action packed trailers, believing it's a huge superhero bust up block-buster. Despite it's excellent moments of action, it's not your typical story.
Moore's strengths lies in his characters. Watchmen's heroes are more human and complicated than the better known heroes, like Batman and Spiderman. Each has their problems and see their pasts as crimefighters as both gifts and curses. Nite Owl (the excellent Patrick Wilson) a.k.a. Dan Dreiberg, is a bored, middle aged, chubby man who finds himself weak and impotent (in more ways than one) without his former alias. Laurie Jupiter (Malin Ackerman, the weak link in the line up) yearns for normality she'll never have and Adrien Veidt (Matthew Goode, surprisingly good) has made a fortune from franchising his former alias, Ozymandias, yet fears for the state of the world. Overall the casting is good, with rhe stand out being Haley. Rorschach is a popular character with the fans. His unique form of do-gooding brings out gasps of shock and respect in equal numbers. Spending most of his time wearing an ink blot mask which changes with his mood, Haley still manages to bring out the complexities of his character, making him somewhat admirable but never shying away from his wrong doings, no matter what his intention. He sees himself as a man surrounded by filth which he needs to fix. Between this and his Oscar nominated role in Little Children, he's fast becoming onr of my favourite actors. The most normal of the bunch, if they can be called that, is Dan and Wilson nails the everyday monotomy of his thoughts and his awkwardness. I couldn't quite decide what accent Goode was using for Adrien but he played the role better than I thought he would. He's still too youthful looking but he gives you reason to understand and trust Veidt. I had a real problem with Ackerman as Laurie. Silk Sceptre II isn't a chatacter I particularly like. I found her to be whiny, self centred and a little slutty. But at least she had some sort of a personality. Here, Ackerman plays her like an orchid - beautiful but not up to much. The costume change works if you think about it (the fetishising of the super-hero) but other than a great pair of legs and a nice wig, she just doesn't have the necessary skills. Stand out supporting characters include Carla Gugino as the original Silk Spectre.
But the biggest challenge for Snyder was always going to be Doctor Manhattan. Formerly a nuclear scientist called Jon Osterman, Manhattan (Billy Crudup) gained super powers after a freak accident that left him with the ability to experience all of tie at once and be used as a weapon by the US military. He's almost completely devoid of emotion, detached from reality and he's a naked, glowing blue man with his cock out. Kudos to Crudup for giving Manhattan enough humanity yet keeping his cold exterior. The effects work better in close ups than they do in long shots (the overtly muscular physique is accurate to the comic but looks off on screen. And the penis is distracting.) I'm glad the film was made in a time where effects have come so far. The America of Moore's world is dirty, gloomy and occasionally grotesque. It's a world that could end at any moment and brief flashes to newspaper headlines and the cabinet meetings with Nixon (really bad make-up, he looks like a circus clown) heighten the fear.
While Snyder isn't completely successful in his adaptation (unavoidably, some bits are missed out and scenes are cut) but 80% of his work is excellent. He doesn't shy away from the darker aspects of the story which is both good (the unflinching violence is pitch perfect, especially when tied to Rorschach) and bad (The single funniest sex scene you'll see all year.) The fight scenes are perfectly choreographed and even though he lays on the slow motion a little too much, it looks pretty damn cool (a shallow thing to say but it's true, except for that sex scene.) Equipped with an excellent soundtrack it's good for the ears as well as the eyes. The biggest fanboy quibble is with the ending which has been changed from the comic, the only major change that has been made. I may be a little controversial here but I prefer the movie ending. It works better, doesn't lose any of the power of the finale and it allows Snyder to take out some of the plot lines that would have bogged down the story.
It's not an easy story, it's very long and if you go in expecting a big latex covered punch-up then you'll be underwhelmed by Watchmen. It's a film by a fan for the fans and Snyder has proven himself worthy with such a difficult project. It's obvious throughout the entire movie that he cares about this story and will do anything to protect it. It's not as good as The Dark Knight but between the two movies, the superhero is finally being taken seriously. Read the graphic novel, then see the film.
Set in an alternate 1985 where Nixon is still president, costumed vigilantes have been outlawed and the world is on the brink of nuclear war, The Comedian (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is killed. Believing that former costumed heroes are being eliminated, the masked Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) sets out to solve the case.
Alan Moore is considered the king of graphic novels and Watchmen, illustrated by Dave Gibbons, is his magnum opus. Filled to the brim with excellent characterisation, several narratives and more questions than most novels, it's more than just a comic book. In fact, it's the only graphic novel on Time's 100 must read books. It was always going to be difficult to adapt such a monster of a story, especially with the hype and the fanboys (scary folks). But I think Zack Snyder deserves a well done for his work here. A self confessed fan of the comic, he clearly loves his source material and takes the time to draw attention to even the smallest detail. As a fan of the novel, I had a whale of a time spotting the miniscule details that probably went over the heads of the uninitiated, such as The Comedian's change in costumes over the years, and the numerous historical figures that pop up (David Bowie is in the best opening credits I've seen in a long time.) I took my friend to see it and she'd never read the comic so I did spend a little time running over a few plot points as the film went on. Snyder's clearly not pandering to the uneducated masses and as a fan I can only be happy for this. I worry that many people will go to see the film based on the action packed trailers, believing it's a huge superhero bust up block-buster. Despite it's excellent moments of action, it's not your typical story.
Moore's strengths lies in his characters. Watchmen's heroes are more human and complicated than the better known heroes, like Batman and Spiderman. Each has their problems and see their pasts as crimefighters as both gifts and curses. Nite Owl (the excellent Patrick Wilson) a.k.a. Dan Dreiberg, is a bored, middle aged, chubby man who finds himself weak and impotent (in more ways than one) without his former alias. Laurie Jupiter (Malin Ackerman, the weak link in the line up) yearns for normality she'll never have and Adrien Veidt (Matthew Goode, surprisingly good) has made a fortune from franchising his former alias, Ozymandias, yet fears for the state of the world. Overall the casting is good, with rhe stand out being Haley. Rorschach is a popular character with the fans. His unique form of do-gooding brings out gasps of shock and respect in equal numbers. Spending most of his time wearing an ink blot mask which changes with his mood, Haley still manages to bring out the complexities of his character, making him somewhat admirable but never shying away from his wrong doings, no matter what his intention. He sees himself as a man surrounded by filth which he needs to fix. Between this and his Oscar nominated role in Little Children, he's fast becoming onr of my favourite actors. The most normal of the bunch, if they can be called that, is Dan and Wilson nails the everyday monotomy of his thoughts and his awkwardness. I couldn't quite decide what accent Goode was using for Adrien but he played the role better than I thought he would. He's still too youthful looking but he gives you reason to understand and trust Veidt. I had a real problem with Ackerman as Laurie. Silk Sceptre II isn't a chatacter I particularly like. I found her to be whiny, self centred and a little slutty. But at least she had some sort of a personality. Here, Ackerman plays her like an orchid - beautiful but not up to much. The costume change works if you think about it (the fetishising of the super-hero) but other than a great pair of legs and a nice wig, she just doesn't have the necessary skills. Stand out supporting characters include Carla Gugino as the original Silk Spectre.
But the biggest challenge for Snyder was always going to be Doctor Manhattan. Formerly a nuclear scientist called Jon Osterman, Manhattan (Billy Crudup) gained super powers after a freak accident that left him with the ability to experience all of tie at once and be used as a weapon by the US military. He's almost completely devoid of emotion, detached from reality and he's a naked, glowing blue man with his cock out. Kudos to Crudup for giving Manhattan enough humanity yet keeping his cold exterior. The effects work better in close ups than they do in long shots (the overtly muscular physique is accurate to the comic but looks off on screen. And the penis is distracting.) I'm glad the film was made in a time where effects have come so far. The America of Moore's world is dirty, gloomy and occasionally grotesque. It's a world that could end at any moment and brief flashes to newspaper headlines and the cabinet meetings with Nixon (really bad make-up, he looks like a circus clown) heighten the fear.
While Snyder isn't completely successful in his adaptation (unavoidably, some bits are missed out and scenes are cut) but 80% of his work is excellent. He doesn't shy away from the darker aspects of the story which is both good (the unflinching violence is pitch perfect, especially when tied to Rorschach) and bad (The single funniest sex scene you'll see all year.) The fight scenes are perfectly choreographed and even though he lays on the slow motion a little too much, it looks pretty damn cool (a shallow thing to say but it's true, except for that sex scene.) Equipped with an excellent soundtrack it's good for the ears as well as the eyes. The biggest fanboy quibble is with the ending which has been changed from the comic, the only major change that has been made. I may be a little controversial here but I prefer the movie ending. It works better, doesn't lose any of the power of the finale and it allows Snyder to take out some of the plot lines that would have bogged down the story.
It's not an easy story, it's very long and if you go in expecting a big latex covered punch-up then you'll be underwhelmed by Watchmen. It's a film by a fan for the fans and Snyder has proven himself worthy with such a difficult project. It's obvious throughout the entire movie that he cares about this story and will do anything to protect it. It's not as good as The Dark Knight but between the two movies, the superhero is finally being taken seriously. Read the graphic novel, then see the film.