Watchmen takes place on an alternate Earth where it’s 1985, Richard Nixon is President, and caped crime fighters are “retired” by legislation. But suddenly, one of the former crime fighters, The Comedian, is murdered. The murder is somehow connected to the growing prospect of nuclear war. Three of the crime fighters, Rorschach, Night Owl II, and Silk Spectre II, attempt to solve the mystery. Meanwhile, the only super hero, Dr. Manhattan, leaves Earth for Mars which triggers a global crisis. At 2 hours and 45 minutes, the movie is too long. Director Zach Snyder gets credit for making a movie based on a book that was thought unfilmable. But Snyder also gets demerits for being a little too slavish to the book. This is not so much a movie as a documentary. GRADE: B-.
The dialog in the previews looked so laughable. And not in a good way.
Most of the dialog was taken word-for-word from the comic book. Movie critic David Edelstein called WATCHMEN “embalmed.” I wouldn’t go that far, but the slavish attempt to film the book results in a lack of energy.