After months, if not years, of waiting, I finally went to see ‘Watchmen’. First of all let me say that I wasn’t a die-hard fan of the comic, but I was a fan nonetheless. I’m also a big fan of ‘300′ and couldn’t wait to see what Zach Snyder would pull in a film like Watchmen. I have mixed feelings about the outcome. The film feels like a mix of a few different movies, and at times a bit over the top. There’s lots of ‘300′ and ‘Sin City’ style action AND violence. The film in fact is extremely violent, then again so is the comic. Here are some of the praises and issues that I have with ‘Watchmen’.

First off, it’s very true to the story. This was one of those things that if they changed a lot from the comic, fans would be up in arms about since there’s such a strong following. Also, the cast was very well chosen. Rorschach was played by Jackie Earle Haley, and I don’t think anyone could have played it better.

On to the so-so things. The action sequences were very well choreographed, but the slow motion was so over the top that it took me out of it. In a film like ‘300,’ where the entire film takes place basically in a comic book, you accept the visual stimulation as it comes. It belongs there. Slow motion in that case made everything better because there was so much detail in every shot. In this film, however, imagine if you were to watch ‘Speed’ and every 30 seconds they just slowed down…. it’s kind of like… what? I appreciated it, I just think it was over done.

Another thing that bothered me was the violence. I know what you’re going to say, “why don’t you go play with your dollies,” but no. It’s not that I can’t handle violence and gore, on the contrary, I tend to treat myself to a little ‘Sin City’ here and there, or ‘High Tension.’ But as was the case with ‘Pan’s Labyrinth,’ in some cases it was simply uncalled for, and it distracts. In that film, we’re mostly in a little girl’s magical world. But remember the scene when the step father is interrogating the father and son found in the mountains, and he beats the son with a bottle, and they show you the whole thing? That was enough face-bashing for me for a while. Same deal with Watchmen.

There were other things that were more out of their control, I feel, because of time constraints. The film was already very long, and some things just couldn’t make the cut, so if you haven’t read the graphic novel, some things will be left unexplained. I almost wish they would have split the film in two.

Grade: B

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Tags: Film Reviews