"Watchmen" Remains a One-of-a-Kind Superhero Story After 10 Years

Scene from Watchmen

The two-year span of 2008 and 2009 is a period that is hard to be taken for granted in the realm of modern superhero cinema. Starting with Iron Man covertly creating the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the period would produce three films that not only received critical praise but set the guidelines for the next decade. The Dark Knight gave rise to the "dark and gritty" aesthetic and, attached to that film in trailer-form, was the biggest anomaly of the group: director Zack Snyder's Watchmen. Even without a certified string of hits, Snyder was billed as a visionary in the trailers as The Smashing Pumpkins played over teaser footage. It's an egotist move that may define his recent work, but at the time he was a mere madman who thought it was a great idea to adapt the most unadaptable graphic novel in comics history. The results have been divisive, even leading to the most audacious "alternate cuts" since Blade Runner. With a remake from The Leftovers' Damon Lindelof on the way, it seems like Watchmen is a property that won't go away. While Snyder's vision isn't exact, what he has created stands as his towering achievement. Nothing he's done before or since is as fascinating, imperfect, audacious, confusing, and brilliant as this 2009 spectacle.

The idea of adapting Alan Moore's "Watchmen" is nothing new. As the one graphic novel that Time Magazine respectively listed on their "All-Time 100 Novels," it has a daunting history that goes above Batman and Superman comics. For starters, it's hard to digest as mainstream entertainment. It's a story with lofty ideas that include addressing murder, rape, and other adult themes that couldn't be packaged in a blockbuster without serious backlash. And for good reason. This story would need a giant budget to get even half of the details right, and even then distributors would likely be too sheepish to let half of the controversial substance fly. With every taboo under the sun blocking a successful adaptation and box office run, a logical filmmaker wouldn't take on the project for fear of bankrupting studios and potentially damaging the reputation of Moore's definitive work.

It's what made Snyder both exciting and odd for the part. He had created a surprise hit with the Frank Miller-based adaptation 300, but how would he handle a film with a scale so big that it could never fit even in the film that he created? There were two later cuts of the film that combined interstitial chapters from the book and pushed running time of over five hours. As for the theatrical cut, its three-hour run may have been expansive and all-encompassing, but even that wasn't able to avoid some removal. At a reported budget of $138 million, the film's international gross of $185.3 million meant that it wasn't a hit by any measure. With Moore reportedly so annoyed by production that he removed his name from the credits, the film had no chance of pleasing everyone. It was, after all, a Rated R movie. Along with David Fincher's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo two years later, there were few big budgeted adaptations for adult audiences that could compete with being geared towards adults.

At its core, that's what makes Watchmen all the more incredible of an achievement. In spite of countless backlash, the film came into existence in brutal fashion. With Snyder's penchant ramping style of slowing down action to emphasize its dark beauty, the film captured something that wasn't ashamed to paint comic book movies in the dark and gritty fashion that was yet to be felt from The Dark Knight's fallout. The film itself was a discussion of how superheroes can grow corrupt, mentally deranged, destroying what was pure over their own egos. It's a depressing story set on a massive scale where the human component involved existentialism over human's worth. It's a story where the heroes who dressed up in funny capes had mental breakdowns, harmed the innocent, and embodied a corrupted the world that they said they would protect. It was cynical and maybe not entirely in line with Moore's vision, but there was no denying that amid the self-seriousness and ambitious CG effects to render every character as carbon copies of the comics was something inspiring.

Watchmen was the dark and gritty comic book movie to end all dark and gritty comic book movies. If The Dark Knight could get away with running a knife through an innocent victim's mouth, then Snyder decided to show it. Yes, with a style that threatened to overwhelm the senses it sometimes came across as comical unintentionally. A man burning his hand in a deep fryer is supposed to be disturbing but is so heightened that there's no choice but to laugh. The same could be said for a sex scene aboard a floating ship set to a cover of Leonard Cohen's "Halleluiah" where awkwardness is mixed in the arousal. In some ways, it's the reality that even at its darkest moment, a comic book movie can't entirely be taken seriously when wearing silly outfits. It's an idea that Snyder moved away from in his later work, and it may have been for the worst.

While there are no Batman or Superman character level icons that came from the film, there's definitely a few compelling forces in the film. Rorschach is a masked vigilante who narrates the film and is among the most deranged in the group. His narration is a mix of Travis Bickle and the gruff voice of Christian Bale's Batman, and it's amazing to see him teeter on the edge of sanity throughout the film. He holds up a sign that argues "The end is nigh," proving just how little he believes in the world becoming better. He gets some of the film's more violent moments as well, including ridiculous bone snaps and stabbings that are played out in gloriously violent and cartoonish fashion. There's also The Comedian, whose jaded nature makes it easy for him to turn toward fighting for the wrong cause in almost every situation. Among the few characters that likely have gained some recognition from the film is Doctor Manhattan, whose nuclear appearance is full of depression and monotone existentialism as he questions not destroying humanity with his superpowers. It's when he leaves Earth that the world gets to see what he's truly made of in a CG world that is rather peculiar.

The rest of the film is built somewhat in a strange alternate reality where Richard Nixon got elected president for another term. The soundtrack is a nice mix of classic rock and covers, creating a feel of New York fitting for the film. The film shares its cynicism towards the era with many of the New Hollywood icons, creating a sense, not unlike Martin Scorsese that looks at the worst in humanity and tries to find answers within it. While Snyder doesn't seem intent on finding those answers, he does a great job of creating a global experience in the film that shows the weight of these heroes. By applying a 70's mentality to the film, it forces the story to grapple with the value of humanity. While this is a film released early into the Obama Administration, it does continue the trend of late-Bush era nihilism that defined pop culture. Nothing good can from the world, so why try and better society?

Watchmen is a film that has gotten flack for its inaccuracies. The final scene of nuclear destruction is deemed controversial due to Snyder changing it from a giant squid to a bomb. It's one of the many reasons that hardcore fans dislike what he did with the film. It's true that this is as much a vision of the world that Snyder envisions in his other work, but it does plenty to make a story with so much feel viable in a cinematic form. There was no way that this would be perfect. The performances range from dark and brooding to at points campy. It's a vision of a creator grappling with his ego and source material in equal measure. Unlike his other work, he has enough of a sense of playfulness that makes the film work. 

After 10 years, the film remains a high point in Snyder's career and set him on track to become one of the decade's most divisive filmmakers. After teaming with The Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan on the D.C. Extended Universe to make films like Man of Steel and Batman v. Superman, he has established his brand of dark and gritty aesthetic on a more accessible, PG-13 rated field. What's missing from these films is a bright color palette and style that made his films fun. Even the occasional slip into awkwardness made his work memorable and helped to make films like Sucker Punch singular achievements. It could be that the film took a massive toll on his creativity, but nothing since has felt as organic or interesting. At best he's maintained the nihilistic tone but without telling stories nearly as engaging. Yes, his D.C.E.U. contributions have their fans, but they feel like retreads of what he achieved in Watchmen. He hasn't made characters this strange and accessible since. It's a film that seems like an anomaly still because, in spite of the genre's continuing popularity, there hasn't been any blockbuster R-Rated superhero film of this scale. While films like Deadpool and Deadpool 2 may have better numbers, they play it far safer than Snyder did in 2009. If anything, the danger and crudeness of Watchmen makes it more of a rare achievement: a studio film that swung for the fences in very odd ways. It may be far from perfect, but it's still one of a kind.