What the Watchmen movie was Missing

Watchmen: Tales of the Black Freighter & Under the Hood
Directors: Mike Smith & Daniel DelPurgatorio
Starring: Gerard Butler
Genre: Animation, Short Horror
Rated: R
Tag line: The animated epic that completes the Watchmen experience.
Amazon's rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars
My rating: 3 stars

Plot: After surviving an attack by the Black Freighter, a mariner attempts to make it back home in order to protect his family and seek revenge against the demons on board.

Review: There was a great disappointment when I saw Watchmen earlier this month because the Black Freighter wasn't included. I suppose had it been, the movie would've been longer than it was and a lot of you party poopers would've complained even more. However, the movie company did know just how important the Black Freighter is to the story so they did release an animated version of the fictional comic book.

While I still feel the movie should've contained the story, the animated short (it runs about 25 min) does deliver and fanboys shouldn't be disappointed. The grisly animation, horrific gore and tone that Gerard Butler gives us is just how we imagined (or at least I did) the Black Freighter to play out. It's a must watch if you've seen the Watchmen movie or if you're going to see it for the first time.

Who Watches The Watchmen? I did.

Watchmen
Director: Zack Synder
Starring: Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffery Dean Morgan & Patrick Wilson
Genre: Action, Drama, Sci-fi
Rated: R
Tag line: It's the End of the Superhero As We Know It.
My rating: 4 stars

Plot: After the murder of Edward Blake, a.k.a. The Comedian, masked vigilante Rorschach begins to investigate the death of his old friend. Paranoid that a "mask" killer is out targeting his former partners, he digs deeper into the conspiracy. As the dots begin to connect, mapping what he feared, something more devious is revealed: The plot to kill millions of innocent people.

Review: I'm not going to lie to you: Like every nerd out there in the world who read Watchmen, I was afraid that an adaptation of the movie would fail and ruin the concept of the highly acclaimed graphic novel. Zack Snyder isn't known for his masterpieces - at least in my opinion - as he pretty much destroyed the concept of Dawn of the Dead when he remade it. However, direction of the movie (and the screenplay as well as actors) was more than I anticipated. The movie, in sum, was awesome.

What was known as the unfilmable comic book does not displease those who loved the original concept. Approximately three hours long, the movie isn't for those who have the misguided information that this is in fact a superhero movie. It isn't. Much like the graphic novel, the movie digs deep into the psychologies and philosophies of each independent superhero the film revolves around. From the powerlessness of Dan Dreiberg who never let go of his alter ego, Nite Owl, to the god that closed his eyes concept of Dr. Manhattan. Each actor gives his and her own interpretation to each of the characters, never straying from their true meaning.

I should now take a small side step to let those of you who are planning to take your children to see the movie: Dr. Manhattan is completely naked throughout most of the movie and you get to see him ENTIRELY.

The movie leaves you with the question: What if Superheroes were real? Would they resemble the ones we fictionalized in our comics, or would they be more inclined to be like the ones presented in Watchmen?

Soundtrack
Watchmen OST
Artist: Various
Amazon rating: 4 out of 5 stars
My rating: 4 stars

Even with the shitty My Chemical Romance remake of a classic Bob Dylan song aside, the soundtrack to Watchmen is nothing less than stellar. Featuring artists that have left their mark in the music hall of fame - MCR, aside of course - the music takes you back to a yesteryear when music was good and had significance.

The Watchmen Score is also worth listening to.