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Watchmen

****

Stars: Jackie Earle Haley, Billy Crudup, Patrick Wilson, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Malin Akerman, Matthew Goode

Director: Zack Snyder

Rated: R

Runtime: 160minutes

Action/sci-fi/thriller

Leave your notions of X-Men and Super-Man at the door - the standard superhero format is turned on its head in this heavily stylised and graphically violent epic.

Based on the cult comic by Alan Moore - who refuses to deal with Hollywood following lacklustre movie versions of his League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen and V For Vendetta - Watchmen was thought to be unfilmable.

It is a tangled web of complex plots, sub-plots and back stories, a huge cast of characters and complicated and diverse themes.

Snyder, fresh from 300, does a better job than expected of bringing it to life and condensing it into less than three hours.

He faithfully replicates the look of the comic's dark sets and much of the dialogue is a direct lift.

The story is set in an alternative 1985 in America, where Nixon is enjoying a third term, Vietnam was a triumph and costumed crime-fighters are part of everyday life.

The Soviet Union are on the verge of launching a nuclear attack on the U.S. but are only stopped by the ominous presence of Dr. Manhattan (Billy Crudup) a blue-skinned superbeing who can manipulate matter and see into the future thanks to an atomic accident.

He is the only hero not driven underground and banned for upholding their own brand of vigilante justice.

When one, the Comedian (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), is murdered, his washed-up former comrade Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) sets out to rally the troops and find his killer.

But in doing so he uncovers a diabolical conspiracy that threatens their lives and the future of humanity.

Watchmen is a world away from the good vs. evil simplicity of X-Men or Heroes.

It's basically a cautionary, dark satire about what the universe would be like if costumed superheroes existed.

Drunk with power and overcome by rage at mankind's capacity for cruelty, these heroes become villains as they take justice into their own hands - in blood-soaked ways.

A cell isn't good enough for a child murderer, so Rorschach slams a meat cleaver through his head.

This stylized violence features heavily throughout as limbs are broken the wrong way, sawn off and limbs are devoured by dogs.

The heroes are flawed, masochistic and cruel. You can't blame someone for bumping off the Comedian - the man was a psycho.

There are elements of famous supers in the characters - Nite Owl calls to mind Batman, Dr Manhatten has the abilities of Super-Man, Ozymandias (Matthew Goode) has the brains and billions of Lex Luthor, Silk Spectre has Wonder Woman's sexiness and strength, while Rorschach and the Comedian are Wolverine-type vigilantes.

Rorschach is the real star of the piece, with Earle Haley giving a compelling and chilling performance as the troubled hero.

Delivering a Taxi Driver-style voiceover, he resembles a Bogart-type sleuth in a noir thriller as he hunts his friend's murder

The ink blot on his mask moves to reflect his mood as he tackles paranoia, fury and fear.

Watchmen is slow to get going and can be confusing, although the stunning opening montage does a wonderful job of explaining the existence of our heroes and the alternative history.

It's also accompanied by Dylan's classic The Times They Are A'Changing, one of many tracks in a superb soundtrack that works in tandem with the plot.

Overall, Watchmen is a visually stunning, challenging piece of filmmaking that plays with the conventions of the comic to superb effect.

Given the scale of the source material and the massive expectations of its fans, Snyder has done an exceptional job. He teams its dark violence and fantastical elements with its hard-hitting socio-political commentary and cynicism.

A must-see for fans of the super-hero genre, noir, action and all those keen to see a great movie.

Watch if you liked: The Dark Knight

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