Brilliant, but can't wait for the extended cut.

Rating: 8/10 (8 March 2009)

There are lots of things I could tell you that you probably already know about 'Watchmen' like how it has taken the apparently un-filmable graphic novel over 15 years to reach the big screen and has in the past been linked to directors such as Gilliam and Greengrass to name but two. I could tell you how director Zack '300' Snyder wanted this to be over four hours long (roll on the extended version) or how writer Alan Moore isn't credited due to his longstanding fallout with Hollywood and their butchering of his work. So it is with trepidation that I go to see what turns out to be the first great film of the year. Forget the Dark Knight this is much darker, this is everything that Batman wanted to be but failed to live up to. It's grown-up, violent, philosophical, visually stunning and apart from the end almost entirely faithful to the subject matter in question. Firstly if you haven't read the graphic novel I suggest at some point that you do and revel in its many layers and subtexts, it truly is a great work. So too is the film, a thinking mans superhero movie, it's deep, disturbing but utterly engaging from start to finish. Set in 1985 with Nixon in power the cold war is at a critical point and the doomsday clock is set at four minutes to twelve, a retired superhero is murdered which becomes the catalyst for the rest of the films events and lead by the pushy psychopath Rorschach the Watchmen must reform to save the world. Without giving too much away Watchmen is an intelligent and visceral experience that stays with you long after the credits have rolled. It is stylised but not overly, the soundtrack is used well and the effects are breathtaking. The cast of relatively unknowns handle their parts well but its Snyder, his vision and attention to detail that should be rewarded, it's a testament that it has ever seen the light of day never mind being so good, so any minor flaws can, for now, be overlooked. So sit back, switch on and enjoy the spectacle of what most will regard now and in years to come as a clear leader in its genre.