The Brewhaha on..."Watchmen"

"I'm not locked in here with you!  You're locked in here with me!"
-Rorschach, during a prison riot

"I suppose I was just thinking, 'That'd be a good way to start a comic book: have a famous super-hero found dead.' As the mystery unraveled, we would be led deeper and deeper into the real heart of this super-hero's world, and show a reality that was very different to the general public image of the super-hero."

-Alan Moore, the creator of the Watchmen comic

"After the revelation of “The Dark Knight,” here is “Watchmen,” another bold exercise in the liberation of the superhero movie. It’s a compelling visceral film — sound, images and characters combined into a decidedly odd visual experience that evokes the feel of a graphic novel. It seems charged from within by its power as a fable; we sense it’s not interested in a plot so much as with the dilemma of functioning in a world losing hope."
-Roger Ebert....of RogerEbert.com

"Alan Moore has kept his name off the film, not because he mistrusts Hollywood [...] but because he feels that movies can't do what comics do: you can't take your time absorbing the details, go back and re-read what went before, or put it aside when it all gets too much. While Watchmen is still as rich, daring, and intelligent an action film as there's ever been, it also proves Moore absolutely right. As a comic book, Watchmen is an extraordinary thing. As a movie, it's just another movie, awash with sound and fury."
-Nick Dent, Time Out

So goes the hype (and criticism) for the 2009 superhero movie, "The Watchmen," based on the critically-acclaimed comic graphic novel series by Alan Moore.  One could say that comic book movies have become a dime a dozen over the years, with well-known characters like Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, and even lesser-known properties like Jonah Hex and Ghost Rider jumping from the comic pages to the big screen. 

The Watchmen is unique among comic book adapations for several reasons.  For one thing, it was published as a standalone story in a universe completely separate from mainstream properties like Marvel and DC.  (While the characters are supposedly based on previous DC heroes, Alan Moore decided to reinvent them for the purposes of his story.)  Since it was a standalone story, it was limited to the original 12-issue miniseries; even C or D-list superheroes like Hex or Rider have probably gotten at least a few years' worth of publications and ongoing series.

The fact that this movie is based off a miniseries made it possible for the filmmakers to make a much more faithful adaptation than most comic book movies.  Where the main DC/Marvel properties such as Supes or Batman generally have to take a "broad strokes" approach in adapting years, if not decades, worth of comic book adventures to the big screen, the Watchmen is almost a shot-for-shot adaptation of the original graphic novels.  Those who have read it would agree with me when I say that the graphic novels were drawn in a sort of cinematic style, which makes the movie adaptation flow that much better.

One thing the Watchmen does for the superhero genre in general is take away the "camp" factor, where the good guys are wholeheartedly good, the bad guys are irredeemably evil, and the world can be saved with some well-placed punches.  The story takes place in a literal "Cold War" atmosphere, an alternate universe where U.S.-Soviet tensions are high and the "heroes," now outlawed and forbidden from engaging in vigilante activities, are working to stop armageddon in their own warped ways.  None of the characters featured are wholly good or evil, from the hardened, urban-dwelling Rorschach, to the all-powerful, otherworldly Dr. Manhattan, and from the unflappable, derisive Comedian, to the Nite Owl-Silk Spectre "battle couple."

In considering the characters, though, there are some shortcomings.  When I first heard Rorschach's voice, it almost seemed too hoarse and gritty.  I got used to it after a while, but hearing him try to channel the Dark Knight when he began speaking was a bit distracting.  Also, the sex scene...good God.  I was watching the unrated DVD, so I can't speak for the theatrical version, but someone, whether it was the actor (presumably the Nite Owl character) or the director, was really into the sex scene.  For those of you who haven't read the comics, I'll just say that the source material does not merit the two, three, five-minute sex scene in the movie.  (In my professional opinion, though, I will say it was shot extremely well, and with a keen fondness for the female anatomy.)

The most divisive changes for fans probably involve the climax.  While it makes sense for the filmmakers to excise the whole "giant squid" plot, I felt the film took the typical Hollywood tactic of delineating "good guys" and "bad guys" toward the end.  While it's true the heroes would feel some sort of disgust with the final bid to end World War 3, the climactic showdown incorporated much more violence than the graphic novel, particularly in the last few moments at his arctic hideout.  The effect was that the scene lost much of its original psychological effect, and it ultimately detracted from the basic theme of the graphic novel, which is that even "heroes" can do disgusting things in the name of "justice."

Overall, though, I was very impressed with this movie.  It was obvious the filmmakers put a lot of work into bringing the Watchmen to the big screen, and it's not every day you see such an ambitious project in theaters.  It maintains the spirit underlying the graphic novels while adapting the narrative for a moviegoing audience.  In this sense, there are some noticeable changes such as the few discussed above, but overall I was amazed with what I saw.  Whether you're a hardcore comic book reader or just someone getting into it, I can't promise that this movie is pitch-perfect.  All I can promise is that it's a matter...of who's watching the Watchmen...

Note:  Brewsky is enthusiastic contributor.  Movie reviewer.  He understands it.  Sees the little cracks in society, sees the little men in masks trying to hold it together.  He sees the true face of the twenty-first century.  Chose to become a reflection of it, a parody of it.  No one else saw the joke.  That's why it's not funny...