.jeri.

My back finally has enough endurance for me to be able to go to the theater again. For the most part, this wasn't much of a problem for me because this is a slow season for good movies. But Watchmen came out and I was upset that I missed it when everyone else was going out to see it. Three weeks later, all the talk has died down, and I was finally able to see it on Sunday. I never read the book and didn't know anything about it going into the movie.

Watchmen tells the story of several people who were once costumed heroes, who have been (mostly) inactive for many years. Much like the Incredibles, their glory years have come and gone. Several of them are brought together again when one of them is killed, and another suspects that they will all be targets of an unknown assassin. Many of them reprise their roles in an effort to save their friends as well as others, and throughout the process, there are several flashback sequences that tell the audience the story of most of the individual characters as well as the group of heroes as a whole.

For the most part, I really liked how the story traveled back and forth through time. I think everyone agrees that the opening credits do a great job of covering years of history without having to use any dialogue or titles. There was one moment when I started to squirm at the idea of yet another flashback, but then I realized that the story was probably written that way, with chapters focusing on individual characters. The more I thought about it the more I realized it was a lot like Lost, and I just eased into it and went along for the ride.

I really liked the scope and the themes that are covered in the movie. Some of it is familiar territory, just because there's been such an influx of comic movies in the past decade or more. What I like about them, as well as about Batman, is that they are not superheroes. They are, mostly, just people making choices and living out their lives according to their convictions. That way there doesn't need to be a focus on being given a gift and whether or not to do good about it, or whether the ability makes one a freak. I like that the story is told in an alternate history, and seeing the differences and similarities between that history and our own. I liked the ultimate quandary that faces everyone, and seeing how each respond to it. I also like the sort of open ending that leaves the audience thinking about whether they are glad or upset with the final scene, and why they feel that way.

Although it's not an original complaint, I didn't care for some of the makeup going on in the movie, particularly the ridiculous cracks in the comedian's face and that heinous nose on Nixon. The movie also seems a little bit like it's trying to prove itself a little too hard, perhaps by one-upping the violence factor in an effort to make itself stand out among all of the other action and comic movies. I like action that plays out smartly rather than action that seems to exist for pure shock value (see: sawed off arms).

I was also upset by the lack of focus on the movie's villain, who was unfortunately made to be a little two-dimensional because his character was glazed over in the back stories. Perhaps the intention was to take focus off of him so people wouldn't suspect him, or perhaps it got edited out for time. But it really bothered me, especially because he seemed to have some abilities that seemed above the scope of physical possibility, which weren't explained (if I remember correctly.. so much went on I just might have missed it). Anyway, since the movie was focused on the group as a whole, it didn't seem fair that we missed out on learning more about him.

Some of the other complaints people have made didn't really bother me. The scenes a lot of people complained about I just saw as pages from a comic. I didn't dislike any of the characters, either. Overall, as the movie continued, I liked what it was doing more and more, despite its flaws. It felt like something new to the scene in terms of scope and theme, and I appreciated that a lot about it, along with the visual flair, which I think I forgot to mention until now. Interesting flick!