Left me cold

Rating: 4/10 (7 March 2009)

I never read the comic so I went in completely cold. After seeing it, I have even less of a desire to read the comic than I did before I saw it.
None of the characters or plot lines engaged me on a human level in the way The Dark Knight, Sin City, or the Spider-Man films did. In fact, I actively disliked every character and had not a care in the world whatsoever if any of them lived, died, achieved their goals, failed to achieve their goals or anything else. I agree with Rorschach when he criticizes Dr. Manhattan for making the entire movie unnecessary. The film is also extremely violent, which I guess is part of the book, but I wasn't prepared for it. Conan is right when he says its closer to Saw than Spider-Man. The ads make it look like X-Men or something.
I didn't think Watchmen was particularly insightful when it came to matters spiritual or scientific. The two most philosophical conversations both take place on Mars; one is kind of an Ecclesiastes-lite and the other is a sort of post hoc ergo propter hoc explanation of what the film considers a "miracle."
On the other hand, the visuals are extremely impressive. I know some people didn't like the compositing and animation of Dr. Manhattan, but I couldn't disagree more. Overall, I'd give the movie a 10 out of 10 on the production level and a 4 out of 10 on a story level.