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Movie: Watchmen
Director: Zack Snyder
Actors: Jackie Earle Haley, Patrick Wilson, Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Matthew Goode, Carla Gugino
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Watchmen is based on the critically acclaimed graphic novel of the same name, created by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. The story is set in an alternate America in 1985, a society where the costumed heroes have been forced to take off their masks and capes, and act like a normal citizen again. But when former superhero The Comedian is being killed, his colleague Rorschach decides to visit the other team members, Silk Spectre, Nite Owl and Dr. Manhattan, to find the killer before they become the next victim. While the heroes get tangled up in a mysterious conspiracy, the Cold War is heading for its disastrous climax.
After many years, in which several directors had their turn, but backed out, Zack Snyder (300) finally managed to get the job done and adapt the beloved graphic novel. The film starts off impressive with the brutal murder of The Comedian, followed by overwhelming slow-mo images accompanied by Bob Dylan's lyrics. The first scenes set up the tone for the rest of the film, which combine stunning visuals with the complicated storylines. The cast looks exactly like the inked characters; Malin Akerman plays the role of sexy Silk Spectre, Billy Cudrup is perfect as Dr. Manhattan, Jeffrey Dean Morgan is aggressive as The Comedian, Patrick Wilson is moving as Nite Owl II, but Jackie Earle Haley's performance as the mysterious Rorschach, who plays by his own rules, impresses the most.
It's hard to transfer a comic with that many and diverse storylines to a limited amount of time. Zack Snyder uses more than 160 minutes to tell the story and makes the right decisions to leave out parts of the original material, adjust storylines so it all works better on the big screen. These things are always tough, especially when a graphic novel has such a devoted fan base. I've read Watchmen several times and I also whish some scenes were more like the comic, but it doesn't work like that, things can't be shot exactly like the comic and Snyder knows exactly what does or doesn't work.
Watchmen can be hard to swallow for those who aren't familiar with the graphic novel, but when you're in for something different, you have to see it. One thing's for sure, Zack Snyder fucking did it, he takes his time to deliver a film that is true to the original material and, most important, doesn't back down and doesn't cut out the essential elements of the comic. Watchmen is an unusual superhero flick and that's why this flick is so unique. It's an epic film, which stayed with me for quite some time and I can't wait to see it on the big screen again.
Written by Reggy 01/03/09
© wb 2009
© wb 2009
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