Music Video version of the story

Rating: 5/10 (27 July 2009)

I'll preface this by saying I have an inherent bias; I read the comics when they first came out. No movie can compare to that experience, nor to reading the complete book. It was specifically designed to exploit the unique strengths of comics as a storytelling medium. Trying to leave that out, how is the film as a purely cinematic experience? Enh.
The film is nicely shot and staged, but the performances vary from great(Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan), very good (Billy Cruddup), uneven (Patrick Wilson, Malin Akerman) to lifeless (Matthew Goode). The film is more of a string of music videos, with dialogue in between, than a single narrative. Many of the line readings are flat, which detracts from otherwise fine scenes. The Nixon make-up is laughably bad and distracting. Those scenes come across like a bad SNL skit. The historical montages are very good and the most effective pieces.
Jackie Earle Haley and Jeffrey Dean Morgan really bring their characters to life, which is good, as they are central to the narrative. Billy Cruddup manages a fine performance, even while dealing with effects rigging for the CGI visuals.
I have only viewed the director's cut on DVD, so can't really comment about the theatrical cut. Suffice to say, it's a long 3 hours. It is engaging at times, but it's like riding in a car with a manual transmission and a brand new driver; there are a lot of fits and stops, with occasional smooth moments.
Ultimately the film is disappointing. It does attempt to bring the source material to life, but it gets bogged down by the weight of the material, and is unable to capture most of the subtext. At the risk of fan heresy, I would say the film would have been better served to depart more from the source material to make a tighter story. For a full on adaptation, a mini-series would have been a better vehicle, as the time to properly translate each chapter would be better used. As a theatrical experience, it doesn't flow well.
Anyone looking for a pure action movie would be disappointed by the source material, as well as the film. Watchmen is about the concept of the hero versus the reality of the world's problems. It does have action scenes, but they are not at the center. The film does convey the jist of those ideas, without really exploring their depths. Really, you could have gone two ways with this film and been more successful. You could go the Kubrick route, ala 2001, and explore the ideas presented; or, the pure action route and just focused on the murder mystery/conspiracy. This film tries both, but succeeds at neither. It's a worthy attempt, but, ultimately, a failed one.