Watchmen (2009)
[Director's Cut]
[Director's Cut]
After twenty years the ultimate graphic novel, a tale many hold to be amongst the greatest stories ever written, has finally been brought to cinematic life! "Watchmen" is a visual feast from start to finish. But not just that; it is also an excellent film overall, because of a terrific screenplay, stylish direction and great acting. The cast is a stellar! With Malin Akerman being the only weak link, there is little left to be desired. Billy Crudup's passive monotone is exactly what you'd imagine from Manhattan, Matthew Goode's affluent inflection and precise delivery of his words just the right amount of ego and genius Ozymandias contains, and Patrick Wilson's bumbling loner-geek brings Dan Dreiberg to life, showing all the insecurities that vanish when inside the Nite Owl suit. Where the true brilliance lies, however, is with Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Comedian and Jackie Earle Haley's Rorschach. The visuals in "Watchmen" are truly stunning and hypnotic. Director Zack Snyder caters to comic readers by striving for artistic mimicry in imitating specific panels from the graphic novel. The drastic color scheme creates a mesmerizing, innovative style, pleasing to the eye and reminiscent of comic art. The visual approach is apparent from the opening credit sequence (It opens with a chilling scene of a vicious super powered fight). Through iconic, almost photographic stills Snyder elegantly presents the superheroes' history. It effectively introduces the audience to the world of the Watchmen. Brutal violence is beautified through split second slowmo shots to enhance powerful punches and emphasize the bright, agonizing gore. The fight scene choreography feels like watching a comic book in action, showing the audience every hit, every bullet wound, every blood splatter. The film utilizes its parent text by truly capturing the comic book on screen. The music suited the time period and captured the intended emotions. Overall, Synder delivers a movie rich in cinematic bluster and verve whilst creating a dark atmosphere in a world rife with paranoia and fear. The story ticks over nicely with plenty of educating flash-back sequences which enables the new viewer to get to grips with both plot and characters. Whether its colorful, chilling scenes of graphic violence, various ex-superheroes representing the best and worst of humanity, or a whodunit mystery, "Watchmen" proves to be a ride of pure adrenaline. It'll make you squirm, laugh, gasp, and most importantly think. One of this year's best movies!
- My Rating: 9.25/10
- Rotten Tomatoes: 64% (6.2/10)
- IMDb: 7.8/10
2 comments:
I expected a lot from this movie (I was promoting it all year long in my blogs), because I believe Snyder's a genius, but it did leave me empty after I finished watching all of those 3 hours.
I did like the cast, especially Malin, Matthew Goode and Patrick Wilson (the last two being my cinematic discoveries :))), and the visual aspect, and the costumes and the sets, but in the end it just didn't have the wow factor, and the story was too complicated, boring and long, making the whole movie way too self-centred.
I'd give it 6 or possibly 7 stars.
I was crazy for the opening scene! It reminded me a lot of Kill Bill's fighting style [and I'm the biggest Kill Bill fan]!
Snyder is an absolute visual genius and he's very creative with the camera. In my opinion Watchmen was almost as good as 300. I enjoyed 300 so much that I went to see it for the second time in the theatre.
You are right about the WOW factor - it didn't have it, but it was no way boring! thought it was average [Like you] and
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