Watchmen

Sorry, fans. I never read the comic book, and I didn't like the movie.

It was eye candy, no doubt about that. With Zack Snyder at the helm, you can expect a real visual treat. But somehow the story just doesn't cut it.

The first rule in film adaptation is that someone without prior knowledge of the adapted material should still be able to appreciate the story. The adaptation should stand alone. That said, screenwriters David Hayter and Alex Tse should take the blame. Yes, I know people said that the comic book was unfilmable, but they said the same thing about Lord of the Rings, and look what Peter Jackson was able to pull off. Some screenplays take decades to write; all it requires is effort and a lot of creativity.

Well, there's the sexy Malin Åkerman, anyway, who kept my mind preoccupied most of the time. I love her hair. It looks good on her. Some things kept bothering me though, like why does Rorschach's mask keep changing all the time? Yes I know it's a reference to the Rorshach inkblot test, but why? Why does his mask do it, but not his face? Is it some kind of special mask? They never bothered to explain it.

Another thing that bothered me was the fact that they cut out a lot of shots in the lovemaking scene (another demented decision by the Philippine censors). They already gave it an R-18 rating, and they've been showing Dr. Manhattan's penis dangling all the time, so why did they even bother shortening the love scenes? It's not like there would be children in the audience, what with all the free-flowing blood and gore.

Anyway, this is my opinion, and go see it for yourself if you're a fan of the comic book. But like I said, a great adaptation should stand alone, and this film is not too friendly with people who have no idea about the comic book whatsoever.



Watchmen. UK. 2009.

Rating: Six out of ten.