**1/2 out of ****

When I finished reading "Watchmen" at work in high school, I was floored by the sheer power of the graphic novel. If you have read the novel, you know what I am referring to as the power of the dialogue and themes. "I did it 35 minutes ago." WOW! Are you kidding me? Lines like that are what made the novel great and moving. This was lost in translation, as I expected. Did I enjoy the movie? Hell yes! The testosterone in me loved every broken arm and glasses-splitting headshot of it! The pretentious side of me was left unmoved and wanting more. Was this because I had read the novel? Maybe. Was this because Zack Snyder tried too hard to stick with the untranslatable novel? Probably. Snyder is a master of exploiting the violence/sex-loving side of us males - great for "300," not for "Watchmen."

Alan Moore, writer of "Watchmen," also wrote "V for Vendetta," which the Wachowski brothers directed back in 2005 and did a phenomenal job of the adaptation. They proved that a proper adaptation could be done; Zack Snyder proved that it's hard to do. Aside from the loss of the pure power of the story and a few other details only a fan boy would complain about, this movie was fun - a little long, but fun. The IMAX experience really helped the sometimes-boring storyline. Had it not been for IMAX, I would be giving this movie lesser marks for sure.
To return to my critical analysis of the film, I liked it ... mostly. Purely as a movie, it was too long and a little abstract for the average viewer. It was violent, plenty violent, full of adult themes and fun to watch once the action started. The movie was visually stunning and will do well in the box office as expected by anyone and everyone. However, as a fan of the novel and movies in general I am forced to give this movie a par rating, plus a little for the splindifferous magic of the IMAX experience.