Watchmen

One of the great things about the superhero genre, when done right, is that it explores what ordinary people do when given extraordinary powers or circumstances to deal with. Alan Moore created the limited series Watchmen in the mid-80s, developing a compelling story about former vigilantes in a world where the United States and the Soviet Union are dealing with rising tensions. Moore’s piece is widely recognized as one of the greatest books of all time.

But Moore, after bad experiences with From Hell and A League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, turned his back to Hollywood and never wished to return. He swore off of film projects of his works, choosing instead to give any cut of financial gain to Watchmen and V for Vendetta artist Dave Gibbons. As such, Moore’s name does not appear in the opening credits of the film.

Zack Snyder, director of 300, does a great job pulling this massive work together and snugly places it in a well-paced, well-delivered 162 minutes. He proves himself to be a capable director, using many of the same action shots from 300 but adding a sense of depth to the locations and passion for the characters. Snyder, strangely dubbed as a “visionary” in the film’s press, might prove to be one hell of a talent someday.

Watchmen introduces us to a parallel universe where Richard Nixon (Robert Wisden) is still the President of the United States thanks to a law passed to eradicate term limits. The America we’re shown features superheroes, of course, operating under the restraints of their humanity. The world is dangerous, with nuclear war predicted by the Doomsday Clock and Nixon’s recent outlawing of “superhero activity.” The bastard.

The story sets up with the murder of Comedian (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) by an unknown force. This draws other superheroes, a team called the Watchmen, together to figure out what’s going on. Each brings his or her past to the table in solving the mystery and each wonders who’s next to die. Interestingly, only one of the Watchmen appears to have superpowers in the literal sense. He is Dr. Manhattan (Billy Crudup) and he lives outside of space and time. He’s blue.

The Watchmen also include the world’s smartest man Ozymandias (Matthew Goode), the Nite Owl (Patrick Wilson), Rorshach (Jackie Earl Haley), and Silk Spectre II (Malin Akerman). Each character has his or her own cross to bear. In the case of Silk Spectre II, she has to live up to her own mother, the first Silk Spectre (Carla Gugino). There are interesting family dynamics, compelling back stories, and the final matter of figuring out just what the hell is going on.

The plot is labyrinthine and broad in scope, yet it remains entirely understandable on screen. Snyder does a remarkable job composing this symphony of characters, placing their stories and their histories where they ought to go. Because he takes his time with the project and is meticulous in his approach, we are able to get to know each character and, subsequently, care about where they’ve been and where they’re headed.

The beauty of Watchmen lies in the fact that Snyder chooses to dwell on the contradictions presented by these characters. They are more than mere anti-heroes, which is ultimately Moore’s doing, but Snyder doesn’t hide from their realities and keeps them concise, clear visions of opposition and passion. We learn of relationships between characters, flaws, and nihilistic attitudes towards humanity and damn near everything else. And we learn of this substance without sacrificing one iota of Snyder’s action-packed style.

Snyder’s typical slow-mo action sequence style is evolved somewhat here, although he utilizes many of the same tricks from 300. The scenes have a visceral quality and are given time to develop. They are creatively choreographed and often gory, lending more darkness and depth to the storyline. Even within the action sequences, we are treated to characters that kill indiscriminately for different reasons.

Watchmen is one of my favourite comic book movies. It is enthralling, intelligent, and briskly-paced. Snyder’s work is good and his delivery of the complex storyline eclipses The Dark Knight and Iron Man in terms of depth and thought. There’s a lot to like about Watchmen and a lot going on, but that’s nothing several repeat viewings won’t fix in a hurry.

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