Watchmen - A Dark World and a Moral Lesson

Watchmen is one of my favorite movies. At first I was not sure what factors attracted me to such an unusual and dark plot. But the more times that I have watched it, the more I have learned to appreciate it. A first time viewer (and even a careless second or third time one) might feel a bit overwhelmed with its hard to digest messages.  But I believe that is because, to fully appreciate this narrative, one must be doubtful of happy endings as they do not reflect reality.

The plot takes place in an alternative version of history, during the most critical time of the Cold War. When Alan Moore created Watchmen, he was mirroring the fears and anxieties surrounding a generation that had to live with increasing fear and the constant threat of nuclear destruction. The comic book was published in 1986, when the tension between the Western world and the Soviet Union were rising. Much later, in 2009, the story was made into a film by director Zack Snyder.  The fact that the comic book was transformed into a film so many years after its first publication makes me wonder about any intentions of commenting on how our current society should or shouldn’t be.

  

 The city of Manhattan, in which the story takes place, is not represented as a normal urban setting. Instead, it is constructed to be overly hostile, filthy and obscure. From the beginning, we see the city as extremely violent and quite literally stained with blood. The Comedian is brutally killed and thrown out of the window of a building, leaving his vital fluids splashed all over the pavement. Further, the weather of Manhattan is constantly gloomy, dark and sinister. In the same scene in which the Comedian is killed, we see outside the window a dark and rainy city. Throughout the movie, the scenery is somber and unwelcoming. There is no ray of sun at any moment. The city reflects the world’s emotions, where fear and violence predominate.

Meanwhile, the Doomsday watch shows the proximity of the end of the world, close to reaching midnight. The audience experiences anxiety as the tension rises. The world could be vanished at any second.  At the end, our fear becomes reality, as nuclear energy is used to destroy the largest cities around the globe. But the destruction was not from nuclear bombing. Adrian Veidt had used a machine to simulate Dr. Manhattan’s energy so he would be blamed for the mass destruction. Veidt’s plan was designed to create utopia, by killing millions to save billions.  His plans worked, as world leader’s put aside their differences and focus their attention on fighting against who they believe to be the humanity’s new enemy. However, we are given to understand that peace will only be momentary. Before being killed, Rorschach had sent personal journals that revealed the truth to a local newspaper.

  
The ending scene, works in the narrative powerfully summarizing the message of the movie. Although the story is filled with themes of violence and destruction, its actual purpose is to promote anti-war ideals. It suggests that war should not be used as a tool to resolve the world’s problems, as it can only bring greater damage to humanity by taking countless lives.

Adrian justified his murderous ways as a mean to achieving peace, in the same way that many world leaders justify engaging in war. Even though the world seems a little brighter at the end of the movie, when peace is temporarily achieved, the audience is left sure that it would not last. Eventually old conflicts would be rekindled all over again.  In this way, the dark world of Watchmen is fascinating and terrifying at the same time. The story shows us a world that could quite possibly be our own reality, if we are not willing to engage in mindful moral reflection of our use of war and thirst for power.