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Watchmen (2-Disc) Special Edition [DVD] [2009]
![Buy Watchmen (2-Disc) Special Edition [DVD] [2009]: Jackie Earle Haley,Patrick Wilson,Malin Akerman,Carla Gugino,Billy Crudup,](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61XwsYIHFdL.jpg "Buy Watchmen (2-Disc) Special Edition [DVD] [2009]: Jackie Earle Haley,Patrick Wilson,Malin Akerman,Carla Gugino,Billy Crudup,")
Buy Watchmen (2-Disc) Special Edition [DVD] [2009]: Jackie Earle Haley,Patrick Wilson,Malin Akerman,Carla Gugino,Billy Crudup,
Buy Watchmen (2-Disc) Special Edition [DVD] [2009] Now
Suitable for 18 years and over
Paramount Home Entertainment
Release date: Monday 27th of July 2009
Starring: Jackie Earle Haley, Patrick Wilson, Malin Akerman, Carla Gugino, Billy Crudup, £24.99
Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review
Everybody's favourite graphic novel comes to the screen (after years of rumours 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. --Robert Horton
Watchmen DVD
Review date: 2010-01-11 Rating: 6 out of 10
Director Zack Snyder seems intimidated by the high reputation of the Watchmen comics. As a result his adaptation is over-respectful and adds little to the original. This is a shame as the few new touches that he has added (the credits rolling over a montage of images set to Dylan's ` The Times They Are A-Changing ` and a revised plot by the villain) are stylish and enhance the film. It remains a thrill to see the characters brought to life so well by the actors but the irony of such a seminal comic producing a rather average film has to be acknowledged.
Watchmen (2-Disc) Special Edition [DVD] [2009] Reviews
Loooong and boring.
Review date: 2010-01-01 Rating: 4 out of 10
I've never read a Watchmen graphic novel and don't feel that only comic book fanboys have the right to review and criticise a big budget internationally released movie that has been put on film to for the masses to enjoy and of course to make some money for the film studio.
I was really looking forward to this movie as it looked good and had many favourable reviews, however, it just drags on and on with a multitude of flashbacks and sometimes a flashback within a flashback and the plot just never seems like it's going to kick in. Usually by the hour and a quarter mark of a movie the viewer is aware of the story arc and the setup in order to have some idea of how the movie is going to pan out. This means that the viewer can get gripped by the story and actually want to continue watching to find out how it ends.
Unfortunately although Watchmen looks really nice it is just very boring and trundles along. There seem to be many people that have written reviews of this movie and other commenting on reviews saying how that person didn't 'get' it. Now personally I don't understand what there is to 'get'. I am a reasonably intelligent person and understand that the film was meant to be dark and show the inner conflict of the main protagonists etcetera but this does not mean that it wasn't boring.
Watchmen is a big budget studio movie. Big budget studio movies are a form of entertainment. Entertainment is supposed to make the person being entertained feel good about the experience and not like they felt obliged to reach the end of the experience just so they haven't wasted their money.
I know that most of the people that read this, if any, will say that they didn't find it a helpful review. Not because I haven't explained why I didn't like the movie to the best of my ability but because they like the movie and I don't. Therefore it's less of a judgment of my review and more a fact that they simply disagree with my opinion.
Anyway, if you haven't seen this movie but like other superhero films such as Iron man, Spiderman, X-Men etc then you may want to rent this movie and not buy it.
Which Special Features?
Review date: 2009-11-20 Rating: 10 out of 10
Watchmen (2-Disc) Special Edition [DVD] [2009] ISBN: B001NGO880 includes
Mind-blowing Special Features:
- The Phenomenon: The Comic That Changed Comics: The Original Graphic Novel's Groundbreaking Impact,
- Immerse Yourself in All 11 Watchmen Video Journals
- My Chemical romance 'Desolation Row' Music Video
Brilliant adaptation from the book, though not for everyone.
Review date: 2009-11-12 Rating: 10 out of 10
Watchmen is the feature film adaptation of Alan Moore's celebrated graphic novel, directed by Zack Snider.
The storyline is centres around a group of masked vigilante's - people who chose to take to the streets in disguise to help keep the peace, later outlawed by the government and now trying to find an alternative route through life. The basic storyline follows Rorschach trying to solve the murder of the Comedian and a believed conspiracy of someone out to murder former 'masks'. That is really only a tiny part of the overall story, but to explain much more would reveal too much, suffice to say it is a huge and layered story - so if you came to this film expecting another 'Dark Knight' or 'Spiderman' you will leave sorely disappointed as the action and violence (which can be very brutal and visual) at times only appears as an addition to the storyline, rather than the huge set pieces common to many superhero or action movies (though neither classification really explains this film). The real difference in the Watchmen is the fact that nothing is ever really as it seems, and you are constantly left wandering who's side you are really on. From scenes of Dr Manhattan walking through the Vietnam battlefields vaporizing the Viet Kong, The Comedian fighting back riots in a fairly brutal fashion or the plan uncovered by Rorschach and Nite Owl throughout the film, you are constantly assaulted by scenes you may not expect - the wrong thing being done for the right reason, and an ending that will really make you ask a few questions about what is really the 'right' thing to do.
The film in general seems to have attracted some pretty polarized opinions, with a huge gulf between the people who really loved the film, and those who found it a very long story with too much back story and unexplained detail throughout. Partly this comes from people expecting another superhero movie and being disappointed, but even more so comes from the target market of the film. Zack Snyder chose to stick very faithfully to the graphic novel, to the extent that when you see many scenes you can see the panel of the book it is taken from exactly. This is the biggest downside to the film - to a fan and someone familiar with the book it is a hugely detailed and faithful adaptation, but to someone new to the story, it includes a huge amount of unexplained detail and storytelling that you miss completely without prior knowledge of the story. A great example is in the montage alongside the title credits - a montage of scenes of the first generation of masked vigilantes, a shot of the Dollar Bill, cape caught in a revolving door, shot dead by a robber. The Silhouette, lying dead on a bed next to her partner, murdered for being a lesbian. The Mothman, being forcefully put into the back of an ambulance to be transported to a mental asylum. All these scenes come directly from one f the passages of text between chapters in the novel, and to someone who has read the book make a detailed and moving montage. To someone with no prior knowledge it is a display of unknown characters with no back-story. This theme is seen often throughout the film - The newspaper vendor (though the Tale of the Black Freighter is a separate animation) and the newsroom being two more examples.
Technically the film is stunning, shot and edited in a very 'comic book' style and a fantastic match for the book down to the detail of many scenes being direct adaptations of specific panels in the comic. The fairly low key cast all perform their roles flawlessly, from the Disinterested Manhattan to the very black and white character of Rorschach and the middle aged wimp of the Nite Owl, the star being of course Rorschach - a character completely against the normal 'hero' shown in movies, yet somehow utterly compelling.
So if you are expecting another big budget superhero movie, you will most likely be disappointed in Watchmen, but to someone wanting an entirely different take on the superhero, with a hugely layered story and some quite adult themes, then the Watchmen is an utterly stunning film. Especially recommended to fans of the book itself.
Big blue dong time!
Review date: 2009-09-22 Rating: 10 out of 10
A very faithful representation of the much-loved graphic novel, minus the "Black Freighter" (hurray!), which is a separate production. Loved the book, loved the film, but it didn't add anything.
Product Details/Specifications
Actor(s):
Jackie Earle Haley
To find out more about Jackie Earle Haley click on their namePatrick Wilson
To find out more about Patrick Wilson click on their nameMalin Akerman
To find out more about Malin Akerman click on their nameCarla Gugino
To find out more about Carla Gugino click on their nameBilly Crudup
To find out more about Billy Crudup click on their nameCreators:
Carla Gugino (Primary Contributor)
Billy Crudup (Primary Contributor)
Recording label: Paramount Home Entertainment
Manufacturer: Paramount Home Entertainment
EAN: 5014437110831
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 2
Format: Limited Edition, PAL,
Release date: 2009-07-27
Audience rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 156 minutes
