|WATCHMEN war begins - is it good or isn't it?

Watchmen remains relevant because its critique of the period speaks to us more generally about the interaction between ideology, mass culture and their pulls on the individual. That the film proves unable to convey this relevance lies squarely on the shoulders of the filmmakers.

NVDL: Once again, AO Scott disappoints:

The tone and overall understanding of the Watchmen ethos by this reviewer [AO Scott] is completely flawed. We need to get back to the basics and the Watchmen is a good place to start.
— kursk, UK

clipped from movies.nytimes.com Unfortunately, this review shows exactly how much damage a widely publicized adaptation can do to the source material. Especially for those unable-- or unwilling-- to differentiate between the original and the act of interpretation that any adaptation necessarily represents. The violence in Watchmen, the graphic novel, comes as part of a broader ethical critique that is anything but 'nihilistic.' Moore's work challenges the reader to step beyond the sort of impasses that both the Cold War and the plot's final dialogue represent. Considering Snyder's previous outing, '300,' I am not surprised that this nuance escaped the director in favor of aestheticized violence and adolescent angst. To conflate Snyder's adolescent reading of the graphic novel with the work itself is sloppy and, to use the Scott's own conceit, intellectually immature. — Joaquin, NY, NY