Warner Bros. Film Research

Title: Watchmen (2009) Cert. 18


Genre: Superhero / Action / Thriller / Mystery


Synopsis: "Watchmen" is set in an alternate 1985 America in which costumed superheroes are part of the fabric of everyday society, and the "Doomsday Clock" - which charts the USA's tension with the Soviet Union - is permanently set at five minutes to midnight. When one of his former colleagues is murdered, the washed up but no less determined masked vigilante Rorschach sets out to uncover a plot to kill and discredit all past and present superheroes. As he reconnects with his former crime-fighting legion - a ragtag group of retired superheroes, only one of whom has true powers - Rorschach glimpses a wide-ranging and disturbing conspiracy with links to their shared past and catastrophic consequences for the future. Their mission is to watch over humanity... but who is watching the Watchmen? (Source: http://www.imdb.com/)


Director: Zack Snyder (Other works: '300' - 2006, 'Dawn of the Dead' - 2004)

Cast:

• Malin Akerman ... Laurie Jupiter / Silk Spectre II
• Billy Crudup ... Dr. Manhattan / Jon Osterman  
• Matthew Goode ... Adrian Veidt / Ozymandias
• Jackie Earle Haley ... Walter Kovacs / Rorschach
• Jeffrey Dean Morgan ... Edward Blake / The Comedian
• Patrick Wilson ... Dan Dreiberg / Nite Owl II
• Carla Gugino ... Sally Jupiter / Silk Spectre
• Matt Frewer ... Edgar Jacobi / Moloch the Mystic
• Stephen McHattie ... Hollis Mason / Nite Owl
• Laura Mennell ... Janey Slater
• Rob LaBelle ... Wally Weaver
• Gary Houston ... John McLaughlin
• James M. Connor ... Pat Buchanan (as James Michael Connor)
• Mary Ann Burger ... Eleanor Clift
• John Shaw ... Doug Roth

Locations Filmed: Mainly Canada, with specific locations for specific requirements, such as the Bloedel Floral Conservatory in Vancouver for part of Veidt's home, and a Vancouver soundstage for Nite Owl's lair. A Vancouver backlot was also used to recreate Watchmen's iconic version of New York City for use in many scenes, pictures of which can be seen to the right. Certain sequences include film from the actual New York City.

Production Companies:

• Warner Bros. Pictures
• Paramount Pictures
• Legendary Pictures
• Lawrence Gordon Productions
• DC Comics

Distribution: 

• Paramount
• United International Pictures
• Universal
• Warner Bros.
• Other smaller companies and subsiduaries such as Bontonfilm and Solar Films or specifically located branches such as Paramount Japan.

Exhibition Formats:  

• General theatrical release
• IMAX theatrical relelase
• TV (Sky Movies)
• Downloads (iTunes, PSN)
• Blu-ray
• DVD

Cinematographic Choices:

• Shot using 35mm film.
• Super 35 process used.
• Aspect ratio 2.35:1 
• A mixture of CGI and live effects used for background scenery and for features such as Rorshack's mask and the character of Dr. Manhattan.

Production Budget: $130 million ($130,000,000)
 

Worldwide Revenue: $185 million ($185,253,487)

Box Office Gross:  

• $107 million ($107,503,316) in US
• $77 million ($77,743,688) elsewhere

Critical Reception: Generally commended as a 'smart, stylish, decent adaptation [of the comic]' (Empire), but criticised for 'sink[ing] under the weight of its reverance for the original [comic,]' (Washington Post) with a complex plot. Received a score of 56 on Metacritic, and 64% on Rotten Tomatoes, along with this consensus:

'Gritty and visually striking, Watchmen is a faithful adaptation of Alan Moore's graphic novel, but its complex narrative structure may make it difficult for it to appeal to viewers not already familiar with the source material.'

Marketing:

• Viral site: http://www.thenewfrontiersman.net/ 
• Viral videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/thenewfrontiersman
• Advertised with posters and digital merchandise in Playstation Home 
• Posters and theatrical trailers, including teasers, were used.