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Overanalyzing Anime
Blog Owner & Lead Writer
A direct adaptation of the 1986-87 #graphicnovel, Watchmen tells the story of a disbanded group of former vigilantes who must come together after one of their former members is murdered.
Since I’ve spent practically all month reviewing all things Watchmen, it seems appropriate that I close out the month by reviewing both the movie & the original comic. So, let’s dive into it.
I actually hadn’t heard of the Watchmen before this movie was announced. When I first saw the trailer I was immediately intrigued by the story &, as such, went out & purchased the novel. Upon opening the first page I immediately adopted Jackie Earle Haley’s voice as I read the first entry of Rorschach’s journal.
I love so much about this story - its visual effects, its faithfulness to the original text, as well as its willingness to take risks in regard to changing certain aspects. All of the actors played their roles perfectly, & even now with the advent of a new series in the works at HBO, I can’t think of anyone else more appropriate than those actors/actresses.
Speaking of taking risks, while I know many people didn’t like the change, I for one really enjoyed Zach Snyder making Doctor Manhattan the “cause” of the worldwide attacks. I personally thought it was brilliant & fit the narrative much better than the idea of a “psychic alien” attack - that was always a silly concept. I thought the change was genius & made Dr. M’s departure at the end more authentic.
While I do love this movie, I can’t say that it’s not without its flaws. However, the flaws really can be summed up to a single factor - a lack of time. With over four hundred pages to bring to life, it would be impossible to include *everything.* However, as a result of removing certain aspects the story does lose some of its impact.
All in all, while the movie has some flaws (most of which are due to time constraints) they don’t detract from the experience too much. It doesn’t reach the levels of the text on which it’s based, but it makes an excellent effort & brings many of the best moments to life.
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