Watchmen

There are two things which catch your eye when you go see a movie at the cinema. First is a possible cinematic master-piece, projected on the big screen, with sound that can blast vibrations into a thousand people’s spine at a time. The other is normally to the side of the screen, its green and illuminated and never changes in appearance, the emergency exit. What made me think of this, well it had to be the film I was watching.

It was not all bad, and I must stress this. Unlike almost every other film playing that night, Watchmen did use a classic form of filming with the camera being mounted on a tripod, avoiding the steady hand swagger which generates motion sickness. The only other saving grace for this film is the latest CGI, nothing has come this far in the use of high definition and detail. When the matrix first slowed a bullet ten years ago.

So, what about the film? Well it is a long drawn out story which seems never ending. Cutting from one masked hero to another, from one point in time to the present, you are left confused to what this film is about. Finally in the last hour (there are nearly 3) a story starts, and the film gets a little direction.

I am sure that a true comic book fan will find it a great triumph, but with this genre it has to be good, and this misses the mark. The hype worked, people flocked to see it, but more will be disappointed before the end of the night.

First up I better state my opinion of the comic book so you know where I’m coming from. Although extremely enjoyable I found it to be slightly over rated. I guess this is due to the fact that I only read it a couple of years ago so nowhere near when it was published, the idea of a bleak superhero story or even an anti-hero wasn’t that original for me and I guess the books impact was slightly lost. Although saying that I did find it enjoyable, even though it did feel long.So what about the movie? Well Zack Snyder certainly is a big fan of the comic. His attention to detail and recreation of the world the movie is set in is spot on. The costumes, the characters and the grime of the city all look like they’ve been taken out of the pages of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ original scribbles.

All the actors nail their parts too. I was concerned when I saw Jackie Earle Haley was to play Rorschach, I thought he’d be too skinny and small for the part but if anything his portrayal is the most faithful.

I enjoyed this movie for what it was. It stayed close to the original story, albeit slightly updated to feature nuclear war as the impending doom, and I think most fans of the comic will be pleased (although you can never please every geek). But this could be the movie’s downfall. Most people these days want, or expect certain things from Superhero films and although Watchmen does have excellent special effects and great set pieces, it is unlike most other Superhero films and is about the characters as opposed to the stunts. I came away from the cinema feeling satisfied with my experience but I think about 80% of the people in there with me came out disappointed and wondering why there’s been so much fuss over the movie (which Alex’s view backs up).