A breathtaking motion picture event

Rating: 8/10 (6 March 2009)

Director Zack Snyder has done the impossible. He has made the "unfilmable", legendary graphic novel, Watchmen, into a film. But Watchmen is not merely a film  it is a motion picture event, unlike many that have come before it. The stakes were high, and the furor of fanboys worldwide would cause anyone a touch of anxiety over such a beloved property. But after the reverence and blood-splattered brilliance of 300, did anyone actually think Snyder would do a bad job?
Featuring a plethora of a cast, Watchmen takes place in an alternate 1985, where Richard Nixon is in his fifth-term as President, America won the Vietnam War, and costumed heroes have been banned. The film picks up with Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) investigating the murder of Edward Blake (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). He finds out early on that Blake is actually another costumed hero, The Comedian, and gets it in his head that there may be a "mask killer" on the loose, and Blake was just the beginning.
What unfolds of course is the stuff of comic book legend. Mixing intrigue, action, suspense, romance, horror, and pitch black comedy, Watchmen is a tale that is not for the faint of heart, and may leave more than one person baffled. The reverence for the source material bleeds right through each frame of the film, from the obnoxiously bright yellow opening to the colourfully drab finale. It is clear that Snyder, writers Alex Tse and Solid Snake himself, David Hayter, and the rest of the crew had the graphic novel close by at every waking moment to ensure authenticity to the book. So much of the graphic novel's twelve chapters have been reproduced here, and with such a heavy attention to detail that it is nearly a carbon copy.
Yes, there are some changes here and there, but many nuisances will only be picked up by the most avid of fans (the most obvious is the ending). They are simply well concealed, or have been modified so casually that it should not matter to anyone that it has been altered. The filmmakers even improve on a few of the flaws of the graphic novel (and still wallow in a few as well), almost complementing it as having a stroke of originality to it. Yes, some things have been outright removed as well (and should appear in the future, already announced Extended Cut DVD releases), but again, many of these removals are for the better.
This is of course, due to the editing of the picture. At 163 minutes, this movie is a touch gargantuan in nature. But after sifting through the lengthy backstory moments early on in the film, the film practically flies by. For such densely loaded material, Snyder and company have managed to address practically everything, and have not sacrificed the film's pacing. There are a few slow spots, but never do they feel as drawn out as the likes of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I was genuinely surprised by just how fast it flew by, and how new the material felt even though I knew every beat that was coming. They just make the material so interesting that it becomes too difficult to bear looking away for any instant.
But the film's pacing manages to still be an issue. The filmmakers managed to make the film accessible and understandable to readers and non-readers alike, but at times it may feel a little overwhelming for anyone new to the story. It is clearly not to the point that the film is for fanboys only, but there is a certain aura about the film that stalls it from immediately registering for everyone. I even had to second guess myself on more than one occasion, and imagine I will be explaining this film for a long time coming. The film is incredible either way, but I think a few extra minutes of explanation could have helped the film go a long way.
The acting is great across the board. Haley is an absolute marvel as Rorschach, exhibiting an even greater performance than his Oscar-nominated turn in Little Children. He plays him with just the right amount of psychopathic touch that the audience is still able to feel pathos when needed. His attitudes are so twisted and his personality so convoluted that it is almost like watching two different people, instead of just him. He is so in tune it is downright frightening. Much the same goes for Morgan. He does not get an immense amount of screen time, but he does an amazing job with what he is given. This character is the worst kind of scum, but Morgan still makes him likable, and brings a gritty edge totally missing from the graphic novel. It will be hard not thinking of his portrayal anytime I read the graphic novel from here on out.
The rest of the supporting cast, no matter how significant, are overshadowed or downplayed because of these two overbearing performances. Despite being on screen for a significant amount of time, I just could not latch onto Patrick Wilson's Nite Owl II. He just lacks the right strength and looks, to make something of this character. Malin Akerman does a great job with Silk Spectre II, as does the heavily CGI-ed Billy Crudup as Dr. Manhattan. But the two of them never seem to be totally immersed in their characters like Haley or Morgan. Their stories and dialogue are there, but they lack the intensity of the original work. Matthew Goode is simply not given enough to make the impression he needs to as Ozymandias.
Watchmen is not perfect, but then it never was going to be. Despite this, Snyder and company have crafted a truly reverent work unlike any other we will see for a long time. With breaktaking scenes, and amazing performances from at least two cast members, Watchmen needs to be seen to be believed.
8/10.