Watchmen

Watchmen is a graphic novel written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. It was originally published as a 12 issue comic book series from 1986 to 1987 and was collected into graphic novel format in 1987. Watchmen is a deconstruction of the superhero comic genre, depicting an alternate history where two generations of costumed crimefighters emerged, one in the 1940s and one in the 1960s, changing the course of the Cold War and American society. In Watchmen's vision of 1985, the US and Soviet Union are on the brink of nuclear war and superheroes have been outlawed after civil unrest. When one former crimefighter, the Comedian, is murdered by an unknown assailant, it falls to the last hero still operating, the paranoid, unhinged Rorschach, to find the culprit. Believing that someone is attempting to kill costumed heroes, Rorschach warns his former colleagues, including Nite Owl, a gadget-based hero not unlike Batman, Silk Spectre, daughter of a first-generation hero who was pressured into the job, Ozymandias, the so-called smartest man in the world, and Dr. Manhattan, a godlike being who works for the US government. It turns out that the murder of the Comedian is only one part of a much larger conspiracy with ramifications that will change the world.

Cultural Impact
Watchmen has had a huge cultural impact since its release. It is the only graphic novel to be part of Time Magazine's top 100 novels of all time, alongside such works as "To Kill a Mockingbird." Its success had a huge effect on the superhero comics that DC and Marvel Comics were publishing at the time, leading them to include darker themes and more morally ambiguous characters. In 2009, it was adapted into a live-action movie.

The Movie
The movie “Watchmen” was directed by Zack Snyder and distributed by Warner Bros and Paramount Pictures (internationally). The budget for the movie was $130 million. Released in February/March 2009, grossed over $185 million worldwide. Watchmen was filmed in Canada (mostly British Columbia).

Particularly interesting is the soundtrack; it features three songs by Bob Dylan (Desolation Road, All Along the Watchtower and The Times They Are a-Changing for the opening). Other notable songs areThe Sound of Silence (Simon & Garfunkel) and Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen).

The official soundtrack was released as album on March 3, 2009.