Watchmen (DVD)

Based on the award winning and critically acclaimed graphic novel by Alan Moore, Watchmen had some incredibly high expectations to live up to. Moore's novel is a complex and emotional story, with detailed plot lines and many parallel stories that run throughout as the story unfolds. Set in America, in a dystopian 1985 where Nixon is still president, the Watchmen are masked vigilantes that aim to rid the city of crime. However, unlike your average comic book superhero, these guys have no powers, with the exception of Dr Manhattan, a hero who, after being trapped in an 'intrinsic field subtractor' and disintegrated, returned with God-like powers over all ...  Read the complete review

When retired hero "The Comedian" is murdered it seems clear that someone is out to get retired crime fighters. Masked hero and psychopath Rorschach is not one to stand by and wait to be next and sets about tracking down the killer. Meanwhile Dr Manhattan is busy researching a way to stop the impending nuclear war between the USA and Russia while other retired heroes are simply trying to find a place for themselves in the world. "Watchmen" is undoubtedly an epic movie. It screams epic from every pore be it the recognisable soundtrack or stunning opening scenes. Everything about it is big and this is clearly a film that aims itself above ...  Read the complete review

This film is currently on general release. After 20-odd years they've finally made a film of Watchmen, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' revolutionary comic series. It's helmed by Zack Snyder (the 'visionary director of 300' as posters hilariously tell us). As with Twilight and Harry Potter, this is a film that comes with a lot of baggage - it has to both satisfy the fans and be something normal people can enjoy. It's rather handicapped by the fact that Alan Moore himself has been extremely vocal in his displeasure about the film's very existence. I suspect some fans are going to be predisposed to dislike it right from the start for that reason. I hoped ...  Read the complete review

So, after a tortuous journey, The Watchmen finally makes it into cinemas. The big question is: was it worth the wait? With a few minor reservations, I'm happy to be able to answer with a resounding YES. Watchmen is excellent in its own right and about as faithful an adaptation could be hoped for. Watchmen is set in 1985, in a world on the brink of nuclear war. The murder of a former masked hero, The Comedian, brings his colleagues out of retirement to investigate something which turns out to be more sinister than a simple murder. The Watchmen comic is stunningly complex in its plotting and a short summary can't hope to do it justice. This ...  Read the complete review

A review of just the film, Watchmen was released in 2009 and is available on region 2 DVD now. In an alternate version of 1980s reality, the world sits on the brink of nuclear Armageddon, as relations between the USA and the USSR sink to an all-time low. A former member of the superhero group known as The Comedian is murdered in his apartment, catalysing a chain of events that sees one of his former team mates, a psychopath named Rorschach investigate who committed the act. Rorschach's investigations will see him reunited with friend and former team mate Dan Dreiberg, whilst the enigmatic mega-hero known as Dr Manhattan lurks in the background deciding whether ...  Read the complete review