Notes on "Watchmen"
[Second warning (in case anyone's reading this on FB, which doesn't recognize LJ tags): There are SPOILERS in this note. Stop reading if you don't want to know...]
But first, a mini-rant in response to the common complaint about Watchmen being "unfilmable": you're right, it is. Here's a newsflash: SO ARE ALL BOOKS. It comes with the territory of being a different medium. Just get over yourself already, and enjoy the film for what it is, and what it's worth. If you can't do that, seriously, it's your loss. Especially in this case.
Zach Snyder approached 'Watchmen' with the same respect he showed for '300'. Granted, there were more than enough "bullet time" sequences (it worked very well in "300"--not sure about here). But I liked the shots (not to mention the dialogue) that seemed taken right out of the panel. That worked really well. I especially liked the Fearful Symmetry segments (Chapter 5), and the bits from Watchmaker (Chapter 4), which I didn't particularly care for in the book. It needed motion--and Billy Crudup's voice--to bring it to life.
If the movie ever did the book a favor, it was in humanizing Rorschach. I found myself thinking that he may have actually had a point; where I saw no way to agree with him while I was reading the novel.
On the other hand, Laurie seemed to me a waste of ink in the book, and the movie did nothing to change that impression. Sure, we needed to have that whole "dramatic" bit about her being the Comedian's child. (or did we, really?) Then again, in my mind that also makes her mother a waste of space. Every other character in this cast--even Veidt and the Comedian--seemed a lot more compelling.
One more thing before I drop this useless subject that is the Juspeczyk family: who did they get to do that horrible makeup job on Sally Jupiter? The gopher?
Ok, enough of that... On to the really good acting.
I didn't think it was ever possible to hate Jeffrey Dean Morgan, but in his turn as Eddie Blake he made it impossible not to do just that. Patrick Wilson made sad seem laugh-out-loud funny, bringing an awkward humor to the portrayal of Dan Dreiberg's pathetic existence. Both the novel and the motion comic made Doctor Manhattan seem alien. Billy Crudup brought Jon Osterman to the screen, as well as Doctor Manhattan. He was as much human as... um, whatever Doctor Manhattan is. And as for Matthew Goode and Jackie Earle Haley... never has madness and rage been so appealing. Veidt and Rorschach now join the ranks of my all-time-favorite psychos.
Thank you, thank you, thank you, director and screenwriters... for getting rid of that ridiculous giant-squid-type-creature. That alone would have made the film worth it, if nothing else.
(Although, it turns out they didn't entirely get rid of it... apparently Veidt's machine is a Sub Quantum Unified Intrinsic field Device... yeah, cute, Zach... )
Tyler Bates' awesome score took a back seat to the even more awesome soundtrack. Wait for Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah". You'll laugh. Really.
About that other complaint: No, it's not Superman, or Spiderman. It's not about superheroes. In fact, it's more about villains than heroes. It's about people on both sides of the law needing saving from themselves. The villain is us.
And if you didn't get it (or don't think it could ever apply to you), I'm pretty sure you were watching the wrong movie...