ALTERNATE 80S: Watchmen

“To paint comic books as childish and illiterate is lazy.

 A lot of comic books are very literate - unlike most films.” 

-Alan Moore

Differences between the movie and the comic book. Doctor Manhattan, Rorschach and Nite Owl

The most acclaimed graphic novel, not only of the eighties but of all time, has finally arrived to the big screen in a way not everyone has praised as much. Created in 1986 by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, Watchmen depicts and alternate reality in the eighties where Richard Nixon is still President, the United States is edging closer to a nuclear war with the Soviet Union, freelance costumed vigilantes have been outlawed and traditional superheroes are in retirement or working for the government. Watchmen was among the first superhero stories that required an adult's point of view for full appreciation. 

Both the comic book and the movie succeed in showing various eighties themed memorabilia such as songs like 99 Luftballoons and Everybody Wants to Rule the World as well as those classic wooden TV sets that, as you may already know, are very cherrished here in 1980 Me.

Silk Spectre, Ozymandias and The Comedian.

Iconic comic book writer Alan Moore has been famously known for his position against adapting his creations to the big screen arguing that his stories are not intended to be told in just two hours due to their complexity and storytelling structure. "My stories were meant to be read sitting confortably in your favorite chair before a fireplace, not in the middle of a crowded movie theater" declared Moore. Both V for Vendetta and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen were significantly altered to change the sense of their stories and many people felt that a much more intricate story like Watchmen would suffer even more.  

Here are some of the most important changes made:

-Tales of the Black Freighter

Adding subtext and allegory to the main Watchmen story is a pirate themed comic book a kid reads within the comic. Although it had to be omitted from the movie for obvious time reasons an animation about it is going to be released on DVD.

-Different ending

The comic book ending where a weird looking alien squid destroys major cities around the world was changed to Ozymandias making it appear that Doc Manhattan had destroyed them with a big blue ray. The squid just didn't fit the movie's simplified storyline.

-Doctor Manhattan's penis

Many people insist that changing Doc Manhattan's penis from its "Michaelangelo's David" small uncut form in the comic book to a much more bigger apparently circumcised one in the movie goes against what the creators intended: showing the fragility of an all powerful being in devastated society (as oxymoronic as that may sound).  But, come on, if someone that can transform matter in any way he wants already has body of a steroid fueled body builder why wouldn't he make his genitalia a little bit more imposing?

-Other changes

Some scenes on the book are just slightly referenced in the movie, like young Silk Spectre dropping a snow globe, or NiteOwl's ship Archie attacking with its ear-piercing Screechers. Other subplots were obmitted like Rorschach causing his shrink to fall into his own downward spiral and some issues between The Comedian and his daughter Silk Spectre

Verdict

Taking in account all the omissions and changes done I can say this 162 minute long Watchmen movie is a very good and entertaining advertisement for its source material. The sales of the graphic novel have increased drastically thanks to the film and that should be good enough for Alan Moore, getting more people to read his books. 

  

Condoms celebrating Doc Manhattan's penis popularity (left), Alan Moore's worst nightmare as seen in The Simpsons(right)