Who's Watching the Watchmen?

This weekend I sat through the 2 hours and 45 minutes of The Watchmen. There won't be any spoilers in this, so if you really want to see it, and haven't yet, I won't be ruining anything for you. As if I was worried about that.

So I had limited expectations going into this movie. This is usually a good thing. I have made claim that going to the movies usually doesn't turn out well, since you end up going to see a movie you want to see, thereby holding the movie in a higher light with higher expectations, ultimately giving the movie a lesser chance of impressing you. The movies that I have walked into with zero expectations have continued to impress me. See also: Pirates of the Caribbean, Little Miss Sunshine, Love Actually. The movies that I was excited to see and hoped for the greatest movie ever, disappointed me. See also: Happy Feet, The Last Kiss, Wicker Park (i didn't see it in the theaters, but still relevant for me). Only exception: The Dark Knight. All of that being said, this movie didn't have very high expectations to live up to. And it still didn't quite make it...

There were some things that I enjoyed. The movie takes place in an alternate history United States where a group of 'superheroes' emerges in the 1940s and again in the 1960s, helping the U.S. win the Vietnam War. This interests me. It was cool seeing how the writers think the world would have played out if certain events went differently in history. It was interesting to see what events changed, and what events are considered inevitable.

The whole basis of the movie also interests me. It was meant to deconstruct the superhero concept. I like the idea of deconstructing something idealistic. Exploring 'the other side of the equation' in this case means showing the dark side of a publicly idolized figured. This was also famously done in The Dark Knight Returns graphic novel, as I have come to learn, but the Watchmen was another take on this idea. It follows a group that was not always accepted by the people. I like that.

Finally, it appears in my post-viewing reading, the movie followed the original graphic novel to a tee. There is some controversy involving the original creators and the movie creators, but as far as plot, imagery, tone, character depictions, and any other aspect of what I have come to know, this movie is pretty spot on.

So those broad ideas impressed me. Not much else did. It was overly gruesome. Unnecessary male nudity, including the ever-present glowing blue member. A brutal attempted rape scene. An unstructured plot with a jumbled feeling. Interesting choices of soundtrack that sometimes brought a comical feel to something far from a comedy. And the thing was 162 minutes long.

So overall, this movie did not strike a very fond cord with me, and will not get any recommendations from me. But for those of us that watch Entourage, and know who Sloan's friend Tori is, well then you might want to rent this sometime.