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Watchmen (Blu-ray Disc, 2009, Directors Cut)
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Everybody's favorite graphic novel comes to the screen (after years of rumors and false starts), less a roaring work of adaptation than a respectful and faithful take on a radical original. Watchmen is set in the mid-1980s, a time of increased nuclear tension between the United States and the Soviet Union, as Richard Nixon is enjoying his fifth term as president and the world's superheroes have been forcibly retired. (As you can probably tell, the mix of authentic history and alternate reality is heady.) Things begin with a bang: the mysterious high-rise murder of the Comedian (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), a masked hero with a checkered past, puts the rest of the retired superhero community on alert. The credits sequence, a series of tableaux that wittily catches us up on crime-fighting backstory, actually turns out to be the high point of the movie. Thereafter we meet the other caped and hooded avengers: the furious Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley), the inexplicably naked Dr. Manhattan (Billy Crudup, amidst much blue-skinned, genital-swinging digital work), Silk Spectre II (Malin Akerman), Nite Owl II (Patrick Wilson), and Ozymandias (Matthew Goode). The corkscrewing storytelling, which worked well in the comic book, gives the movie the strange sense of never quite getting in gear, even as some of the episodes are arresting. Director Zack Snyder (300) doesn't try to approximate the electric impact of the original (written by Alan Moore--who declined to be credited on the movie--and illustrated by Dave Gibbons) but retains careful fidelity to his source material. That doesn't feel right, even with the generally enjoyable roll-out of anecdotes. Even less forgivable is the blah acting, excepting Jeffrey Dean Morgan (lusty) and Patrick Wilson (mellow). Watchmen certainly fills the eyes, although less so the ears: the song choices are regrettable, especially during an embarrassing mid-air coupling between Nite Owl II and Silk Spectre II as they unite their--ah--Roman numerals. In the end it feels as though a huge work of transcription has been successfully completed, which isn't the same as making a full-blooded movie experience.Read full review
Well, the movie is great... I expected more from the "director's cut", I dont know, relevant scenes, but maybe my expectations were too high. Nonetheless, this has 3 discs (DVD, Blu-ray and Special Features), which was great for the price. The quality of the image of the blu-ray disc is not as good as Batman The Dark Knight, for give an example, which is amazing in quality, but better than a regular DVD. I recommend this movie, it is a good movie, but be aware that not all blu-rays looks the same (at the beginning of the blu-ray they show Blu-ray scenes of other movies and it seems that 300 or other movies do not look as great as the Dark Knight, which is presented also in the scenes to compare them in your screen, so it is not just this movie).
First off, understand how much I like the graphic novel. I actually collected this issue by issue "back in the day". I thoroughly enjoyed the original movie adaptation and eagerly awaited the Director's Cut. While it doesn't add as much content as I thought it would have, it definitely helps with continuity and character development. It also adds back an important element regarding Hollis Mason that ended up on the cutting room floor.
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First thing I must say is be careful. Watchmen DC on Blu-Ray is buggy. Even with a perfect disc, some players with random skip entire chapters, or in worst cases repeat chapters. New firmware may correct the problem. I've found no explanation, but it does happen with random Blu-Ray Discs on some players. That aside, it's an absolutely perfect movie. I'm not ashamed to say that I choked up during the credits, the use of image and sound is superb. The faithfulness to the original story is about %98, not like some other recent films, IMO, the new Transformers franchise is about %50 right, GI Joe was about %85, and everyone knows that the comic book industry had to invent an entire new line of alternate universe accommodations for the X-men and Fantastic 4 movies. I'm not even sure most recent zombie movies technically have zombies, more like brain damaged, hungry mutants. So I say Kudos to the director and writers, it's been a long time coming. If anyone has ever looked at America through truthfully cynical eyes, came to realize the ruin of majesty, the corruption that threatens not only us, but all mankind,... they'll love this movie for what it is, a brutal tale of why the world really needs heros. Ahh, and on a last note, the special features are incredible. I do recommend the Directors cut on dvd, most players can upconvert to 1080p/i, and that does makes a difference in quality. But, as always, Blu-Ray has the visual advantage. Good luck, be careful, and don't assume the disc is broken if it doesn't work straight out of the wrapper.Read full review
Watchmen is a rare film and because of that it may scare off some looking for the usual superhero fare. Watchmen packs in a lot in its two hours and forty minutes so it never feels too long or boring. The film is densely plotted and original. Give director Zak Snyder (300, the 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead) credit for turning Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons graphic novel into a film; the project had been long gestating since the late 80's. Terry Gilliam was set to direct at one point but ultimately deemed it to be "unfilmable". According to many Snyder's vision of Watchmen is faithful. Not having read the novel I have to believe they are probably right. Snyder did not seem to want to compromise the integrity of the project. At one point, the studio was in talks with Snyder to make it PG-13 but ultimately Snyder decided it wasn't going to work. Snyder has also said that he is going to add an hour for the DVD and Blu-ray version of the release. Now on to the film itself, The Watchmen meets and exceeds expectations. The film is set in an alternate reality of the US in 1985. Nixon just won his 5th term in office and the US is in a cold war with Russia and nuclear war is all but on the brink. Masked vigilantes have been part of the culture since the 40's the first group was called the Minutemen and we get a brief synopsis of what happened to them. The latest group are The Watchmen. Some of the Watchmen don't don their masks and fight crime anymore as superheroes are now made illegal. Some decide that its still their obligation. Did I mention someone is trying to kill off superheroes? This brings the group back together. The movie has a lot going on including a very involved mythology which is very engrossing. The film is very satisfying and will leave you discussing and thinking about the film for a long while. Very highly recommended on Blu-Ray for the graphics, audio and just overall movie experience.Read full review
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