The slow motion in Watchmen is, for the most part, a mixed bag. More often than not, it disrupts the flow of action scenes more than it helps, and the over-stylization of the movie becomes distracting at several key moments. But it is in the opening credits sequence that Zack Snyder (a man whose fetish for slow motion knows no bounds) displays the most artful use of very gradually moving imagery. The opening credits of Watchmen are the only instance in the film where the slow motion really worked perfectly with the material - the historical vignettes are arranged in such a "ripped from the tabloids" fashion, that they evoke both a period aesthetic while simultaneously depicting how glorified the old days of Superheroes were. The soulful vocals of Bob Dylan provides an excellent backing to this scene, creating a the nostalgic yearning for days long by felt throughout this film. Additionally, the juxtaposition between the heroic images of the start, and the increasingly cynical ones that lead into the actual film blend eerily well through the intermittent flashes of period cameras. While Snyder's film and especially his use of slow motion are hit and miss throughout this postmodern superhero film, the opening credits are the time when his aesthetic and the source material feel perfectly in sync, and it's glorious.
Self-evidently a man who writes for the Internet, Robert also writes films, plays, teleplays, and short stories when he's not working on a movie set somewhere. He lives somewhere behind the Hollywood sign.
