Watchmen and Moral Relativism: An Essay

This week I decided to review an old favorite, Zach Snyder’s  

"Watchmen" (Warner Brothers 2009). As always, when I do a “re-watch” of a film that is decade or older, I think in terms of present day Vs. past; the realities of before and how the film related to them. I dissect the film a little more to see how well or badly its theme(s) could fit into the present.  

I first saw the feature when it was new. I had just turned 29 and the release of the film had come just some weeks following President Obama’s inauguration—Don’t worry, I’m not going there. Still, when I compared everything that was going on at the time to what just was and then to what could be, I think it safe to say that my past and present perspectives, as well as my opinions, of the movie "Watchmen" are not so different.  

"Watchmen" is very a different so-called comic book movie to all the rest of recent times and of the past decade plus. It delves much more uncomfortably into the study of morality, accountability, and the relationship between them. Truthfully, "Watchmen" beautifully presents as one of the best examples of moral relativism.  

Moral Relativism? What is that exactly? Well watch "Watchmen" and you might get some idea. The definition is none that you might readily understand or ascribe to any single author. Rather, what someone might deduce, when they use everyone’s favorite search engine, is that the term is just a fancy way of saying one’s sense of morality depends on circumstance. Whether that was/is or wasn’t/isn’t obvious to the viewing audience, such is the case with every character adapted to the movie.

Snyder did an amazing job of highlighting the “moral of the story” without making his adaptation of the 1986 graphic novel of the same name feel too much like so-called “virtue-signaling”. That’s due in part to the action, mystery, and thrill-ride grittiness the film delivers.  

From the moment we’re introduced to The Comedian (AKA Eddie Blake), we are embedded. We’re witnesses, if you will, to Blake’s brutal murder which, until we get to know that character, remains a question. Eventually, we discover Blake was a member of The Minute Men: a group of 1950s heroic masked avengers, who are mostly law enforcement. The reason for the masks is explained in time for the reasons Blake was killed before the open credits. Still, if you watch "Watchmen" with your eyes open, you’ll get the idea. 

The opening credit sequence is, itself, an introduction to the Minute Men, who over time—to the tune of “The Times They Are A-Changin’” Bob Dylan, 1964—either age out of the Minute Men or leave for other reasons. It’s during that title sequence that The Comedian is seen on a certain grassy knoll, in a certain town in 1960s Texas, he is holding a rifle and it seems as though he’s just assassinated then President You-Know-Who.  

That’s it for those among the audience. To those with one set of values, Blake is decidedly a villain and, therefore, likely to have deserved being murdered by whoever killed him. On the other hand, for those whose morals cannot be compromised, namely the character Rorschach, the mystery of The Comedian’s death remains unsolved while his unknown killer unpunished. 

No more spoilers from here on out, as that’s just enough food for thought vis-à-vis the worthwhile exploration of Moral Relativism. Just some minutes into the film and the viewer is already hip deep in the troubled waters of human nature. You have then the question of whether to solve a “terrible person’s” murder or to ignore it as something that happens to bad people. That’s a timelessly relevant theme if you ask me.  

For

The characters in "Watchmen" are vastly different to each other. They are separated by moral codes, ethical standards, ideals, but, most importantly, time. Morality, in the film, is suggested to be subject not only to those dissimilarities but to every context in which the question of morality is posed.  

If you can imagine a universe in which costumed villains exist, you can as well imagine a group of masked vigilantes having arisen from their various origin stories to fight them. The cause and effect are academic. In fact, by universal law one thing begets another. Where everyone in every universe of human imagining finds agreement in the following statement: the ends justify the means.  

At the time that "Watchmen" was released, The United States had been eight years at war. Regardless of the politics of one group or another, everyone agreed the war needed to end by any means. Similarly, as simultaneously, the wars on drugs and crime have never ceased. No one likes crime and “justice for all” is something every forward-thinking person seeks in daily life, even if that means killing the “bad guys.”  

Constitutions have been based on less and the movies to promote the culture thus create are celebrated frequently, if not forever. Whether "Watchmen" was a form of propaganda I leave to you. It is only the social commentary on the paper-thin lines between right and right wing, liberalism and whatever horrors construct utopia. 

Against 

There is a story within the story of "Watchmen", called Tales of The Black Freighter. This, the audience would only have experienced on small screens at home. It tells of a ship captain who is lost at sea alone, after a deadly encounter with a ghostly pirate vessel. As he treads water amongst the remains of his ship and crew, he hears the pirates as they pass chant “More blood—more blood—more blood!”  

The metaphor of that supporting narrative, as it relates to the one Zach Snyder featured, is clear. The arguments of predetermination and “savage human nature” are explored as often throughout the film as the concept of the moral imperative to commit murder. Again, we find ourselves not only at the true beginning of the film—after Blake’s mysterious death and the title sequence to portray him as a villain—but (see what I did there?) in the place of Blake’s killer. It only takes some bits of evidence to decide that Blake is bad and got what he deserved. But Blake, himself, makes something of a statement on that point. 

“Justice is coming to all of us,” says The Comedian. His line is famous, as (albeit less so) is his other line within that scene: “…mankind’s been trying to kill each other off since the beginning of time.”  

Are these lines the spawn of cause and effect? Which came first, killing or justice? Is there a form of killing that is more just than another? If so, how many deaths are necessary to finally achieve peace? 

The world of Snyder’s "Watchmen" is one in which the lines of good and evil (right and wrong) are blurred to say the least. There are bad guys who are killers and there are bad-guy killers who claim to be good guys. The questions above remain until the end of the film, which yields for us neither an actual answer nor an ending.  

The bad guys die but the ones who killed them get to live on. No one is held responsible for their actions. No consequences or traumas are explored. It’s like a heist movie and world peace was the prize. 

—Oh gosh, I’ve spoiled that bit as well and I’ll have to spoil you more. Your fault! The movie’s only 14 years old—  

The characters in "Watchmen" who adhere to their strict moral code are punished and shamed, as the movie suggests the only moral absolute is life, itself. No one among the "Watchmen" (the characters) makes any messianic sacrifice, only the people they all claim to be protecting.  

So, what’s it to be? Is morality a relative construct? Does it bend to the wills of time and circumstance? After comparing the themes of a film to our real lives, can we provide the world with answers?  

Dear reader, with the good opinion that the movie "Watchmen" is worth three hours of your life, I leave the discovery of solutions up to you. 

-- J.P.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog post are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of any company, organization, or individual referenced. Any images used in this blog post are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to infringe on any copyrights or trademarks.