The original 12-issue comic book series “Watchmen” was first printed in 1986 and 1987. Now, over 20 years later, one of the most long-awaited movie adaptations of a book has finally been made, and critics reactions are widely varied. In truth, the movie was great in many ways, but lacking in a few ways as well.

The setting of the film (and of the book) is an alternate past, where there were many costumed vigilantes fighting crime in the streets around and after World War II. However, a law was passed in the 1970s that outlawed vigilantism, and so the heroes were forced into retirement. Then, in 1985, the United States found itself on the brink of nuclear war with the Soviet Union. It is also in 1985 that one of the more famous retired vigilantes is murdered. Fearing the death was the beginning of a conspiracy, a few of the retired vigilantes return to work illegally, trying to see if the death of one could mean the death of many to come. These heroes coming out of retirement were known, before their group was made illegal, as the Watchmen.

The big controversy that surrounded “Watchmen” was its total alienation from its original writer, Alan Moore. Alan Moore (who wrote the original comic book) is notorious for hating the movie adaptations of his books. Other movies that have been based on his comic books include “V for Vendetta,” “From Hell” and “The League of Extraordinary Gentleman.” They all received immense disapproval from him, and although he was willing to sell the movies rights to Watchmen, he has had his name removed completely from the credits. According to IMDb, the movie is credited solely to the comic book’s artist, Dave Gibbons. This makes perfect sense, since the movie does more credit to Gibbon’s work than to Moore’s.

Visually, “Watchmen” was beautiful. Its dark color scheme and bleak tone match the source material perfectly, and many of the shots match the book panel for panel. The sets, character costumes and action scenes all do great justice to the book, and this is something that the fans were very nervous about in the time leading up to the film’s release. Zack Snyder, who also directed “300,” had a fine attention to even the smallest detail, and he also did a wonderful job casting. All of the actors looked like their comic book counterparts, but none so much as Jackie Earle Hayley, who played Rorschach. He did an excellent job portraying the film’s sociopathic, uncompromising masked hero, whose disturbing tendencies give the late Heath Ledger’s Joker a run for his money.

Another standout was Patrick Wilson, who played The Night Owl II. His character is an awkward, middle aged man who is deeply self-conscious and misses his old vigilante work very much; the acting of this role is spot on.

It is the story itself which has suffered most in transition between book and film. Many of the events in the plot are the same in the film as in the book, but there are a few major things that were changed, most notably (and without spoiling it), the ending. These changes greatly impact how the story as a whole affects the viewers. In the book, you have no idea who the villain is until the end, and then when the revelation comes, it is truly shocking, but in the film, you have a hunch the whole time, so you aren’t that surprised at the end. Also, many aspects of the story lost some of their depth in the film, taking away from of the story’s emotional appeal in favor of visual appeal and action.
Many of the movie’s flaws may only be noticeable to those who have read the book. However, there are some aspects of the movie that might seem a bit over the top and corny to those who haven’t read the book, so it works both ways.

Fans of the comic book will love the accuracy to the book’s look and feel, and people who have never read the book will enjoy a dark and satiric look at the superhero genre and indeed our world as it could have been. The movie is quite dark, and has several scenes of gory violence, as well as sexual content. For diehard comic book fans, as well as those who are mature enough to enjoy this movie’s underlying message without giggling at the occasional nudity, “Watchmen” is a definite must-see. For everyone else, there are the watered down, weak and generic super hero movies like “Fantastic Four,” which might have nice action scenes, but won’t make you think the way “Watchmen” will.

My Review:
4 Stars (out of a 5 star scale).

JOSH FOSBENNER
Staff Writer

Music is an amazing thing. Then again, so are movies and novels. The greatest thing, though, is when these elements can be combined: a band creates an interesting storyline that they proceed to base lyrics and music on. This is called a concept album; an album that tells a story. Concept albums used to be something one could only find within the progressive-rock genre, back in the 70s and 80s, but in recent years, artists in many different genres have started creating great music with a story as its backbone. The following are, in my opinion, the five best concept albums released in the last five years:

1. In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3 - Coheed and Cambria (2003): This album, by New York progressive rock band Coheed and Cambria, is probably the strongest concept album released in the last five years. Although it is the band’s second release, according to rollingstone.com, it is actually the third chapter in a five-part story, with each album telling part of a larger whole narrative. As of the now, the band has four albums, constituting parts two through five of the story, and the eventual fifth album will tell the elusive first part of story, since the band did something similar to what George Lucas did with Star Wars; that is, telling a story from the middle to the end, and then going back and telling the beginning as a prequel. In fact, the story of the albums is similar to Star Wars in that it is a sci-fi tale of epic proportions, involving a galaxy in conflict and how that conflict impacts the lives of two central characters, husband and wife Coheed and Cambria Kilgannon.

2. Act II: The Meaning of, and All Things Regarding Ms. Leading - The Dear Hunter (2007): Massachusetts band The Dear Hunter could be one of the most unique bands to have attained some kind of widespread success recently, especially in a climate dominated by very generic radio-rock. The band uses a fusion of cabaret theatrics, modern hard rock, and sometimes folk and blues. They tell the story of a boy whose mother, Miss Terri, was a prostitute, and after she dies, he is in the process of trying to learn more about her life when he himself falls in love with a prostitute, whose name is Miss Leading. This album deals with love and lust, and the differences between the two. As the title suggests, this album is the second part out of a larger whole. There are six parts in the planned story, with Act III in the works currently.

3. What To Do When You Are Dead - Armor for Sleep (2005): Probably the most well-known of the five bands mentioned in this list, Armor for Sleep are an alternative rock band from New Jersey. Unlike the last two bands, Armor for Sleep do not have a multi-album story, but each of their individual albums has a strong central idea that gives their music added depth. For this album, that idea is death. The songs tell the story of a boy who commits suicide as a result of relationship problems. After dying, he is essentially a ghost, and he roams about the places he used to go in life, and introspectively ponders his life. He progresses through the five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and finally, acceptance. The album is a deep meditation on life, death and how one person can impact others.

4. Kezia - Protest The Hero (2005): Canadian progressive-metalcore band Protest the Hero used their incredible musical dexterity to create a concept album that not only tells a decent story (somewhat reminiscent of “The Scarlet Letter”), but that also contemplates some big issues in today’s society. The basic story is of a woman named Kezia, who is sentenced to death for an unspecified crime. The narrative comes from three different perspectives: Kezia herself (featuring beautiful female guest vocals to play her role), her prison guard and the prison priest. Each perspective gets three songs on the album, with the final track being an overall summation of everything taking place after Kezia has been executed. The lyrics question the true guilt of some criminals, sexism and the morality of the death penalty.

5. Owsla - Fall of Efrafa (2007): By far the most underground band on this list, Fall of Efrafa are a melodic hardcore punk band from the United Kingdom. Everything about the band, from their name to their lyrics, is influenced by the novel “Watership Down” by Richard Adams, as noted on the band’s MySpace page. With a truly epic sound that utilizes heavy down-tuned guitar, screaming vocals and heavy backing cello, the band sings about political and religious oppression and contemplates what true freedom is.

JOSH FOSBENNER
STAFF WRITER

Since they announced it in July, Coheed and Cambria’s “Neverender” tour has been the source of much hype.

For those who are not familiar with Coheed and Cambria, they are a progressive rock band from New York, and all of their albums are concept albums (that is, they tell a story). So, when the band announced on their Myspace that they would be playing a series of four-night shows, during which they would play their entire discography in sequential order (one album per night), their fan base became hysterical with excitement. The event was set to take place in only four cities: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and London. New York was the first city to host the event. 

There was already a line in front of Terminal 5 in Manhattan two hours before the doors were set to open for their show on the third consecutive night of performing. The people in line were extremely excited, and there was much chatter going on about what was to be expected, based on the first two nights of the show. Fans who attended the first two shows said they were amazing, and hopes were high for night three. 

A little before 7 p.m., the doors finally opened and the crowd flooded in. The venue was spacious, there was a bar at the back and there were also two levels of balconies that wrap around the room. It was a very nice venue, overall.

At about 8:30 p.m., the show began to a riotous applause. The night’s performance was from the album “Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV: vol. 1: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness.” The opening track on it, “Keeping the Blade,” is a piece done by a string ensemble, so the recording was played, with minimal light on the stage. The audience swayed and the anticipation could be felt in the air. For the first song, guitarist and vocalist Claudio Sanchez came out alone, holding his white double-neck guitar. He played “Always and Never” alone, and as the song was ending, the rest of the band took the stage for “Welcome Home,” a song some people may know from the video game Rock Band. The audience had been calm for the first two songs, since they are both very soft, gentle songs. But “Welcome Home” was different. It’s a powerful and heavy song, and the crowd came alive, instantly pushing and crowd-surfing.

The next four songs kept the crowd similarly energetic, and then the band slowed it down for its beautiful acoustic ballad, “Wake Up.” The lull was only temporary, however, and the liveliness of the audience came back right away for the band’s upbeat single, “The Suffering.” Things continued magnificently, and after two more songs, it was time for the capstone of the album, a four-part, 30 minute epic called “The Willing Well.” Coheed and Cambria have never played the first three “Willing Well” songs live, so that was a very special treat. The fourth part, “The Final Cut,” has been a live staple for the band’s last two tours, and it has become their live jam song. The recorded version is almost eight minutes long, but when it is played live, the band extends it to around 20 minutes, creating one of the most epic concert experiences since Pink Floyd’s performances of “The Wall.” After the first 10 minutes, guitarists Claudio Sanchez and Travis Stever left the stage, leaving only bassist Michael Todd and drummer Chris Pennie. The duo played for a few more minutes and it really showcased Todd’s ability as a bassist, which is sometimes overlooked. Then he left stage and it was just Pennie and his drum set, similar to what Rush does at their shows. The five minute drum solo that ensued was intense, leaving no doubt about Pennie’s mastery of his instrument. Finally, the entire band came back on stage and dove right back into the song’s main riff, finishing it off with a bang.  

That was the end of the album, but not of the show. No band could have ignored the cheering of the crowd for an encore, so the band took the stage again and played a medley of three songs: “Everything Evil,” “Devil in Jersey City,” both songs of their first album, and “The Trooper,” an Iron Maiden cover. Finally, they finished the night with “A Favor House Atlantic” their biggest commercial hit off of their second album, “In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3.” Needless to say, the crowd left Terminal 5 with a feeling of the utmost satisfaction.

Everything about the night was incredible, from the tightness of the band’s sound to the colorful light show. It was a night in a series of concerts that made for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Senses Fail, a screamo band from Ridgewood, N.J., has a penchant for making depressing albums. This remains true on their newest album, “Life Is Not a Waiting Room.” The main theme of the songs is addiction (especially to alcohol), making it a heavy album in terms of lyrics. But herein lays the catharsis: sometimes one has to talk about these things in order to deal with them; and Buddy Nielsen, vocalist of Senses Fail, sings his heart out.

Senses Fail has evolved a fair bit since their album, “From The Depths of Dreams,” debuted in 2002. Their music was faster, displaying a punk influence and the lyrics dealt much more with the sorrow of death and failed relationships. Their first full-length album, “Let It Enfold You,” is still regarded by many fans as their best. It was raw emotion put to music and this made it beautifully tragic. The band then had some more noticeable changes to their sound with their next release, “Still Searching.” The music was less raw, and it took an obvious influence of pop-punk. The emotion was less angry and heartbroken, more depressed and trying to cope. Many Senses Fail fans did not like “Still Searching” as much because of this change in sound. This may have made people wary of this new album, thinking that it would just be a re-hash, but it is surprisingly not. “Life Is Not a Waiting Room” feels like it belongs between “Let It Enfold You” and “Still Searching,” striking a perfect balance of the best aspects of both albums.

Musically, the album is tight. The guitar work is the most notable, as it has become much more technical since the band’s last album, “Still Searching.” There are some decent solos, but they are not so flashy and long that they overshadow the rest of the band’s performance. Even when not soloing, guitarists Garrett Zablocki and Heath Saraceno create a very listenable sound by creatively implementing dual guitars. Dan Trapp’s drumming is good, but relatively typical for this genre. It could be the drumming from any number of bands, and while it does work well with the music, it does not set the band apart.

Mike Glita, the bassist for Senses Fail, left the band in December of 2007, and the band has not found a permanent replacement yet. The bass for this album was played by a temporary bassist: Jason Black, from the band Hot Water Music. The bass isn’t very prominent, but like a figure in the background of a photo, it would be noticeable if it was removed. Overall, the music ranges from more gentle and mellow to heavy and angry. Comparatively speaking, at its lightest “Life Is Not a Waiting Room” sounds somewhat like newer Armor For Sleep, and at its heaviest, it’s akin to From Autumn To Ashes, but with less shrill screaming.

The song “Fireworks at Dawn” starts the album off, with a catchy beat and eerie sounding guitars. It then gets heavy right away with the song “Lungs Like Gallows,” then gets a little more gentle with “Garden State” and “Family Tradition,” two songs that hearken back to the album “Let It Enfold You.” It picks up again with “Wolves At The Door,” and this pattern continues for the rest of the album.

As a whole, the album flows well, and makes a great soundtrack for long drives in the autumn months.This is a fairly satisfying release from Senses Fail. It isn’t their best, but it is solid and it should appeal to fans of the old and new equally. The heavier sections might not appeal to everyone, but truly emotional music has to express feelings in their rawest form, and sometimes that means screaming. If the overall depressing themes of the lyrics don’t appeal to all, it should be noted that not all the emotion on “Life Is Not a Waiting Room” is completely hopeless. There seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel, some shining moments where not all is lost:

“But my life’s in need of repair,
There’s got to be more than this.
I don’t want to just exist
As a hollow house for bones,
More alone every minute.
Is there a place where I can start again?”

JOSH FOSBENNER
Staff Writer