Two things struck me about Watchmen.
First was how small it looked. I realize that in the age of visual effects we know what an effect looks like. So panoramic vistas don't look big. They look small, like an effect. What looks big is when we see a set and movement through a set and 360 degree views through a set.
Second, the main anticipation structure of the story doesn't work because it derives from a print, not film strategy. The ticking nuclear countdown clock is essential to the plot. But because it's a literary device, not an emotional one, the third act lacks the forward propulsion it needs to be effective. We never really feel like the US and Russia are moving toward war. Film anticipation would have required a different approach—people panicking, a military b-story, fighters in the air. But for many fans, that would have contaminated the film.
