Watchmen Review

‘Watchmen’ is Faithful, Fun, and Ultimately Astonishing

-----Based on the graphic novel that forever changed the medium and much of the publics’ outlook on superheroes, ‘Watchmen’ takes place in an alternate 1985. Due to the influence of masked adventurers and caped crusaders, the world is a very different place. With the all powerful Dr. Manhattan behind the U.S., Nixon is still in office (his fifth term to be exact), the United States easily won Vietnam, and in the climax of the Cold War, superheroes have become society’s scapegoat. As tension rose between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, superheroes were outlawed by the Keene Act, most of them already dead or retired. However, the paranoid, uncompromising vigilante Rorschach has never quit. And when Edward Blake, formerly the costumed crime fighter known as the Comedian is murdered, Rorschach quickly jumps to the assumption that there’s a conspiracy against masked heroes.

-----The actors do an excellent job not only portraying, but also looking the part of their comic book alter egos. Jeffrey Dean Morgan is excellent as the government funded Comedian, aka Edward Blake. At times heroic, at others unforgivable, Morgan conveys the conflicted character’s motives and outlook on life with an authentic and effective performance. As the always violent antihero who looks at the world as one big joke, he helps extend one of the comics premiere themes about human nature. Malin Akerman plays Laurie Juspeczyk, aka the Silk Spectre II. While some may consider her performance wooden and simple, I found her to be very subtly intriguing in her role as the girl who was reluctantly cast into the life of a spandex clad crime fighter by her mother, the original Silk Spectre. The character in the book is one who often tries to shadow her real feelings and take an adult, if cynical outlook on life that often conflicts with her true feelings. Call it choppy acting, call it subtle allegory, regardless, I thought she portrayed her character well. Patrick Wilson is also excellent as the retired Nite Owl II. He brilliantly portrays the conflict between washed out Dan Dreiberg, and his old alter ego Nite Owl. He catches that everyman mentality with a subtle, occasionally humorous, and inspired performance as he portrays a character trying to do the right thing in a world of gray areas.

-----Billy Crudup is smooth and objective as the continually detachable Dr. Manhattan, the only hero in the story with actual powers, of which he has more or less unlimited reign. He can even see his own future and past, but is unable to control either. His powers have lead to the current world situation as tensions build to what seems an inevitable doomsday. Matthew Goode turns in a surprisingly good performance as Adrian Veidt, aka Ozymandias. I use the word surprisingly only because fans of the source material were worried that he may come off too young. And while he certainly isn’t as old as the actual character from the book, he does well at playing the billionaire entrepreneur who uses his past as a crime fighter as a basis for making millions. With Veidt often considered the smartest man in the world, Goode is good (ha ha) at playing the intelligent and physically astute businessman. Carla Gugino plays the original Silk Spectre and mother to Laurie. As the arguably senile and agreeably reminiscent old woman, she mirrors her comic book counterpart with a certain experience that really helps the primarily young cast. Adding that vintage feel whether in flashbacks or in tons of aging makeup, Gugino’s veteran talents only lend to the rest of the cast’s strong performances.

-----Despite the many good and even great performances given by the strong cast of relatively unknowns, the true performance comes from Jackie Earle Haley, as none other than the strong minded vigilante, Rorschach himself. Initially questioned for being too old, fans will have no doubt he was perfect for the role after his first five seconds of screen time. Having sent in his audition tape in a homemade costume, Haley’s love for the source material shines through in his dramatically astounding and sincere dedication to the character. Not only do the makeup departments and costume designer make him look like the comic panel come to life, but his performance is commanding and rough in all the right places. With the stance of an unswayable man and the groggy rasp of a voice he uses behind the mask, Rorschach’s black and white values are brought to the silver screen in one of the most convincing and downright gritty performances I have ever witnessed; he brings the comic book to life for me, and I can’t imagine anyone else in the role. He has the right walk, talk, and even the right height for the character. He also provides perhaps the high point of the film in a fight scene filled with desperation and calculated intensity that takes me back to a classic battle in the original ‘Matrix.’ Some may recall when Morpheus took on Smith in an effort to give Neo time to escape, ultimately leading to his own capture. Anyway, regardless of how they feel about the film, all fans of the comic should agree that Haley gives a fantastic performance as uncompromising as the source material itself.

-----The movie is technically spectacular. Providing visually majestic images worthy of, if not surpassing his work on ‘300,’ Director Zack Snyder proves he was the right man for the job. The slow motion, fast motion mix, and the certain epic sensibility carried by every scene make this one a beautiful and deep study of modern imagery. Taking all of the right cues from the book, while also using the big screen to his advantage, Snyder has created an enriching and extremely faithful adaptation of the king of all graphic novels.

-----The effects, like much of the film, give the eerie alternate reality a certain mood and uniqueness. Dr. Manhattan’s origin will thrill you, and many of the fight scenes are as gritty and effective as seen in ‘The Dark Knight,’ while also as beautifully orchestrated as those in ‘The Matrix.’ If that’s not an accomplishment, I don’t know what is. Many of the stunts too, are almost exaggerated with impact. Whether it’s the Comedian getting thrown across a room, or the Silk Spectre II kicking thugs ten feet through the air into a brick wall, the style of intensity is original and helps convey the superhero archetype that the graphic novel and the film slowly destroy throughout this adult themed, dark, and sophisticated story that revolutionized the genre.

-----The musical score was somewhat startling at first. Playing with a somewhat old school, dark sound, reminiscent of ‘Lethal Weapon,’ but mixed with a somewhat neo-noir style, it’s not your typical background filler. Not to mention the often used 80s tracks that continue to immerse you in the time period. Following suit, the costumes for every era were done to an amazing detail. Faced with the task of a number of decades in history, all slightly warped by the colorful avengers that fill the universe of ‘Watchmen,’ the costume department passed with flying colors (quite literally). Their work should warrant an Oscar nod 10 months from now. Indeed, the overall look and attention to detail seen throughout ‘Watchmen’ present Snyder for the intricate and skilled surgeon he’s proven to be.

-----Do not go into ‘Watchmen’ expecting a popcorn flick about good vs. evil. Don’t expect your heroes to act like heroes, because the bottom line is, that’s the point of the book; they’re only human. Anyone condemning the film or the book for the above reasons is obviously out of touch with the fact that this stereotyped genre has no limits. ‘Watchmen’ is a leap in the right direction for the superhero film, and will surprise many with the issues tackled by what they perceive as a genre containing only simple stories about perfect heroes. The book opened Pandora’s Box, and just as ‘The Dark Knight’ cracked many eyes to the extent of the genre, ‘Watchmen’ should succeed in opening them wide.

-----Die hard fans will, in all but rare circumstances, love this film. Somehow managing to fit all of the primary pieces of the extremely long and multilayered story, Snyder has proven that the once thought un-filmable movie can be made, and to cinematic perfection. I stand by that no one could have done a greater job of telling the story in under three hours, while never feeling too slow or too fast, keeping a steady and intriguing pace. And while the comic obviously includes many intriguing back stories and is the perfect medium for the story, the movie version provides everything you’d want from it as well, neither impeding on, nor wandering too far from the source material. Once you’ve watched this, the book will still be just as enjoyable, and the movie’s pluses (whether they are an accent you couldn’t here by reading or all of the amazing scenes in motion) will also offer great entertainment.

-----Snyder set out to make a three hour advertisement for the book, and even before the films released sales skyrocketed on the hype created from the amazing trailers. Mission accomplished, and I can finally relax now that I know it’s been done correctly. I must however, stress that fanatics of the comic should be sure to see it twice before judging it, because if they’re like me they’ll spend the whole first viewing tense, afraid a key element will be forgotten, or that the altered ending won’t work. Let me assure you, it does work; all of the key elements and scenes are included. This is an amazing film. The action is breathtaking, the cast ideal, and the story as bold and true as it was in the comic books 23 years ago.

Official Trailer