Set in an alternative version of 1985, Watchmen tells the tale of a time when being a superhero has been outlawed.
An old hero of questionable morals, The Comedian, is murdered and in classic Raymond Chandler fashion, a film noir detective story is set in motion. Rorschach, a somewhat trouble hero from times past, attempts to find out what happened to his friend while also setting down a path that sees him and the Watchmen pit against each other and the world to decide the fate of humanity.
The Blu-ray transfer is exquisite. This film has quite a bit of grain at times to add to the gritty nature of the world so the quality of the transfer isn’t as apparent as something like Sin City or Wall-E. However, the detail and the colour reproduction are perfect and are the closest thing you will get to seeing it at the cinema.
Unfortunately, this two disc set is a little disappointing. The features are good but compared to the director’s cut and the ultimate editions that are on the horizon, it seems like a waste of time. It reminds me of when the first Harry potter only came out in pan and scan with a widescreen version slated for later in the year. Are we expected to buy it twice?
The special features are all in HD, which is nice, and include featurettes like “Mechanics: Technologies of a Fantastic World”, “The Phenomenon: The Comic That Changed Comics” and “Real Super Heroes, Real Vigilantes”. There are also viral videos and some small videos made during product for the web.
Personally, I’d wait for the extended editions to hit stores but if you need your fix of watchmen action, this set is pretty good. At least it looks awesome.
