The directors cut is the only one worth watching. It comes across has a completely different story than the theatrical version. And is far closer to the source material and is a surprisingly great movie presented in the directors cut.

This is probably the most effective use of Zack Snyder's particular style: dark backgrounds, sharp colors, slow-mo action, random splurts of blood, and a general dread pervading every scene: the world of Superheroes is on the precipice of annihilation.

Even if you've seen this before, it's a remarkably engrossing movie -- probably thanks to its amazing cast: Jackie Earle Haley sinks into the growling, unflappable detective Rorschach, Jeffrey Dean Morgan smiles a big toothy smile while the psycho Comedian guns down Vietnamese soldiers, and Billy Crudup conveys a world of hope and hurt through Dr. Manhattan's monotone voice and slight facial tics (often enough to make you ignore his definitely visible blue dingdong).

It's a movie that takes its time, introduces its heroes and makes their moral compasses crystal clear. We come to understand, and even sympathize, with all of their point-of-views that have grown gnarled, jaded, and subdued under the specter of the Cold War. And it quickly becomes apparent that the movie isn't really about the mystery of who killed the Comedian. It's really about a much deeper, simpler, and aggravatingly unclear question at the heart of Supehero mythos: is humanity even worth saving?

And I admire that the movie refuses to answer.

Amazon should have multiple criteria for disc reviews, as I would give the film four stars, but this release gets two from me. First, this is just a 2K version being released on the 4K platform; it did not come from a 4K scan, so it looks only marginally better than the Blu-ray. While advertised as a 4K/Blu-ray combo set, the Ultimate Cut is presented on the 4K disc, while the shorter (and frankly superior) Director's Cut is relegated to the Blu-ray. You can't get the Director's Cut on 4K. This is basically a repackaging of the Blu-ray Ultimate Cut set, though it leaves out the Watchmen Motion Comics disc that was presented with the earlier release. Annoying, but at least it doesn't claim otherwise. However, the slipcover does claim that it features two commentary tracks, one by Zack Snyder and one by Watchmen comic artist Dave Gibbons, and this is untrue. Neither commentary appears on this version; they can only be found on the previous Blu-ray version. This is false advertising, plain and simple. Perhaps someday a proper 4K release, featuring an actual 4K scan of the film, along with actual inclusion of the extras it claims to contain, will be released-I'd hold out for that. If you have the Blu-ray of the Director's Cut, there's no reason to upgrade to this version. If you have the Blu-ray of the Ultimate Cut, the only thing you are getting with this version is a mildly better picture, so decide for yourself if it's worth the price tag for that slight improvement, given that you'll need to hang onto your Blu-ray for the missing extras. Warner Brothers really dropped the ball on this one.

I read the comic/book a year or so before the movie came out. It is a masterpiece and perhaps the most engrossing, deep and complex comic I have read. I didn't have decades of built up love and admiration for it so I feel I was able to watch the movie without the prejudice and hatred some die hards have for the film. The movie had no chance of matching the depth and commentary (on comics and the world) that the book was able to deliver and I am okay with that. Justice could only truly be done to this story on HBO. For the approximately three hours Snyder has to work with he delivers the boiled down essence of the story.

What works:

The opening credits montage is just brilliant. It is the history of the Watchmen world told in stunning imagery with the perfect tone of nostalgia, lost innocence and post-war Americana. The credits lead us from the 1940's through the 1980's. It is only five or so minutes long but is worth three stars on it's own. I pop the Blu-ray in to watch the opening from time to time.

Similarly, the origin story of Dr. Manhattan is spot on. You feel the transformation from a man to something alien and god-like. There is love, fear, sadness, regret - essentially an entire movie worth of story compressed into the timeframe of a music video. I could have watched just the Dr. Manhattan story and been satisfied.

Rorschach is perfectly cast and comes across true to the book.

Visuals are Zack Snyder's forte and this movie is great to look at even with the sound off. He mimics many shots directly from the comic drawings/panels and in general knows the visual language needed for a superhero story.

What doesn't work:

The ending didn't need to be altered from the book to be effective.

Ozymandias seemed miscast and weak - not enough screen presence or menace.

The sex scene set to Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen was cringeworthy.

The fight scenes were too choreographed and cinematic. There was no sense that these were amateurs playing at being heroes. Instead, they felt like comic heroes from the DC universe at the top of their game which they are most decidedly not supposed to be.

Overall:

This is a solid movie that works more as a visual companion to the book. If watched on its own merits without having read the book it may feel more like an overstuffed tale with too many characters that is trying to do too much at one time.