Watchmen Film Review, by Director Zack Snyder
Snyder's Much-Hyped Watchmen Comic Adaptation Delivers for Newcomers
Mar 7, 2009
As a celebrated comic series that was long in finding its way to the movie screen, Watchmen brings with it all the complicated questions that surround film adaptation. By opting to chart its own course, the film is able to succeed on its own terms, offering a unique and enjoyable fantasy experience for the casual Watchmen fan or one who has yet to pick up the book at all.
A Film is for Watching
The problem of Watchmen's adaptation can be summed up by asking, how can a film be faithful to a text? But even here Watchmen is an exceptional case, as it is drawn from a highly visual text that requires less imagination from readers to visualize, and less creativity to realize in the form of a motion picture.
The film must also exist within the limits of film form, at least if it is to be commercially viable. Watchmen again pushes the envelope, running over 2 ½ hours while omitting subplots and details that were by no means extraneous to the comic, but perhaps not necessary for a basic comprehension. The sheer number of characters, most of whom beg for a flashback origin story, demands that even the basic mystery plot that drives Watchmen results in a film of epic length. Because these characters are far more nuanced and natural than the typical superhero, spending time with them is a pleasure, even in the case of some less-than-pleasant personalities.
Many reviews of the film have focused on describing the characters which is an easy way to solicit excitement but does little to make a meaningful statement about the whole. Watchmen would not be as enjoyable without engaging characters and well-written dialogue, but the overall impression is achieved through putting those characters into a cinematic environment and telling their stories in a cinematic way. The “alternate universe” paradigm, blending real history, pure fantasy, and revisionist speculation may be an established narrative model in comics, but it is refreshingly novel in a film.
Though much has been made of the countless instances where images from the film correspond directly to frames from the comic, Watchmen has the rhythm of an action film, slowing down on occasion to dispense with necessary information but letting the cutting pattern comment on the mood of a scene or the state of mind of one of the characters. When one considers director Zack Snyder's previous effort, 300 (2007), the visual style of Watchmen seems restrained and deliberate. Likewise, the audio track, unavailable for the comic book storyteller, is used in keeping with film music conventions. Popular tunes provide a sense of time in a film that spans five decades and offer yet another point of intertextual reference.
The Critics Persist
It seems that every rigorous analysis of Watchmen is sure to praise its attentive fidelity but moderate that praise with a reminder of the altered ending, omitted details, or lack of intricacy. As with any adapted work, those who appreciate the right of priority will undoubtedly give preference to the original work, believing that there is only so much value to be had in a derivative version. No film, not even Watchmen, can do much to challenge these notions of artistic ethics. What Watchmen does, and does well, is provide an entertaining movie experience that requires no prior knowledge or special skill to recognize. If film is still “the art form of the masses”, then this is sometimes all that should be asked for.
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