A young artist gets stranded in an extensive, immaculate forest in western Ireland, where, after finding shelter, she becomes trapped alongside three strangers, stalked by mysterious creatur... Read allA young artist gets stranded in an extensive, immaculate forest in western Ireland, where, after finding shelter, she becomes trapped alongside three strangers, stalked by mysterious creatures each night.A young artist gets stranded in an extensive, immaculate forest in western Ireland, where, after finding shelter, she becomes trapped alongside three strangers, stalked by mysterious creatures each night.
- Director
- Writers
- Stars
- Awards
- 1 win & 1 nomination total
Siobhan Hewlett
- Mina's Mother
- (as Siobhán Hewlett)
Joel Figueroa
- Darwin
- (voice)
Thabile Michelle Hlongwane
- Newscaster
- (as Michelle Hlongwane)
Eabha Connolly
- Little Girl
- (as Éabha Connolly)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Summary
Reviewers say 'The Watchers' delves into themes of duality, transformation, and folklore, inspired by Slavic mythology and Celtic traditions. The film's atmosphere, set design, and cinematography are lauded for their eerie and tense mood. However, the script, character development, and pacing are criticized for being lacking and predictable. The twist and ending receive mixed reactions, with some finding them surprising and others deeming them poorly executed. Dakota Fanning's performance is noted, though opinions on its effectiveness vary. The adaptation from the novel is often discussed, with many reviewers comparing it unfavorably to the source material. Overall, 'The Watchers' is seen as a mixed bag.
Featured reviews
Having read some reviews, most of which very negative, decided to give Dakota another shot after the very emotionless performance she displayed on the latest Mr Ripley series. Again, the prodigal War of the Worlds actress offers a very emotionless, expressionless performance. It's like she doesn't want to be there, or is generally numbed. Not having a strong lead made this rely on the premise alone, and it did deliver.
Story is somewhat fresh, suspenseful, well paced action. Overall good entertainment for a monday night flick at home, but no more than that.
I'll give it a 6/10 for the effort put on everything but the acting.
Story is somewhat fresh, suspenseful, well paced action. Overall good entertainment for a monday night flick at home, but no more than that.
I'll give it a 6/10 for the effort put on everything but the acting.
"The Watchers" provides an interesting premise at face value. Horror movies that involve a twist on folk stories accompanied with an eerie location usually pair well together and in this case, it does.
Ishana Night Shyamalan's directorial debut is one to be proud of. You can clearly see sprinkles of her father's style imbedded in the film but also boasts her own unique vision.
In regards to the plot, the story is interesting enough to keep you invested throughout the duration. It reveals just enough to ask questions but not enough to give them away.
The design of the "Watchers" is the highlight of the film. Without spoiling too much, every time they were on screen I was fully engrossed. Enough was shown of them that made me wanting to see more.
The worst unfortunately, are the characters which were one dimensional and lacking realism. They acted in ways no human would in this situation, especially the lead. A good horror movie requires realistic and likeable characters to vouch for. "The Watchers" struggled to create such.
As most horrors unfortunately do, "The Watchers" does have some moments that I found a bit silly. Moments where you ask yourself "why would she do that" or "why did that happen like that". Such moments didn't help the film.
I was skeptical towards the beginning on the film, thinking that it would meander in its plot and ultimately be repetitive. However, as the film progressed and its locations changed it kept the story fresh and wanting more. The ending boarded on lacklustre however, I didn't mind that it didn't get too ridiculous and over the top. Felt more realistic and poignant.
Overall, a decent debut film that highlighted a fresh look at folk-lore. The frustrating characters and some silly moments did prevent it from being great. 6.4/10 for me.
Ishana Night Shyamalan's directorial debut is one to be proud of. You can clearly see sprinkles of her father's style imbedded in the film but also boasts her own unique vision.
In regards to the plot, the story is interesting enough to keep you invested throughout the duration. It reveals just enough to ask questions but not enough to give them away.
The design of the "Watchers" is the highlight of the film. Without spoiling too much, every time they were on screen I was fully engrossed. Enough was shown of them that made me wanting to see more.
The worst unfortunately, are the characters which were one dimensional and lacking realism. They acted in ways no human would in this situation, especially the lead. A good horror movie requires realistic and likeable characters to vouch for. "The Watchers" struggled to create such.
As most horrors unfortunately do, "The Watchers" does have some moments that I found a bit silly. Moments where you ask yourself "why would she do that" or "why did that happen like that". Such moments didn't help the film.
I was skeptical towards the beginning on the film, thinking that it would meander in its plot and ultimately be repetitive. However, as the film progressed and its locations changed it kept the story fresh and wanting more. The ending boarded on lacklustre however, I didn't mind that it didn't get too ridiculous and over the top. Felt more realistic and poignant.
Overall, a decent debut film that highlighted a fresh look at folk-lore. The frustrating characters and some silly moments did prevent it from being great. 6.4/10 for me.
I went into this film with fairly high expectations, intrigued by the trailers and the interesting concept. I recognized only one actor, Georgina Campbell, the lead from "The Barbarian," a film I quite enjoyed. I was also eager to see how Ishana Shyamalan's directorial debut would turn out.
To start, I think the film was very well directed, featuring some really cool and creepy shots that effectively conveyed the story without relying heavily on dialogue. The initial concept of the creatures was interesting; I assume they are based on a real mythical creature, which adds a nice element of realism to the horror genre. However, that's where the positives end for me.
The acting felt mediocre. Despite what I've seen online, I had no issues with the accents, being from the UK and accustomed to Irish accents. The acting, however, often felt forced, and I didn't find the relationships or the characters' dread believable. The only scene with commendable acting involved Georgina Campbell.
My main issue with the film is the twist. Without giving away spoilers, I found it incredibly obvious and poorly thought out. It felt like a placeholder from the first draft, something that should have been replaced with a more refined idea.
Overall, it's an okay film. Not something I'll rave about, but if you're looking for a short horror movie to watch over the weekend, it might be worth a try.
To start, I think the film was very well directed, featuring some really cool and creepy shots that effectively conveyed the story without relying heavily on dialogue. The initial concept of the creatures was interesting; I assume they are based on a real mythical creature, which adds a nice element of realism to the horror genre. However, that's where the positives end for me.
The acting felt mediocre. Despite what I've seen online, I had no issues with the accents, being from the UK and accustomed to Irish accents. The acting, however, often felt forced, and I didn't find the relationships or the characters' dread believable. The only scene with commendable acting involved Georgina Campbell.
My main issue with the film is the twist. Without giving away spoilers, I found it incredibly obvious and poorly thought out. It felt like a placeholder from the first draft, something that should have been replaced with a more refined idea.
Overall, it's an okay film. Not something I'll rave about, but if you're looking for a short horror movie to watch over the weekend, it might be worth a try.
7Ggc1
Many movie critics are predictable. Shyamalan's daughter has an approach to filmmaking and storytelling not different from the father and in fact the movie is received with mild reviews :)
But honestly I quite liked it. First of all, it's not super scary but it's moody and it has its quite unsettling moments. Sound design is top notch, would have loved to see this in Atmos, but even in 5.1 or 7.1 it was still great. The story is sufficient but also interesting, in general the movie keeps you hooked till the ending. This is typical of father's movies. There are also some metaphors but they land quiet flat for me
Not a movie for movie critics but a good atmospheric and folkloristic movie for movie theatre audience. Also it's a pg13 so suitable for a broader audience Said this, I found first omen (another recent horror movie) quiet better.
But honestly I quite liked it. First of all, it's not super scary but it's moody and it has its quite unsettling moments. Sound design is top notch, would have loved to see this in Atmos, but even in 5.1 or 7.1 it was still great. The story is sufficient but also interesting, in general the movie keeps you hooked till the ending. This is typical of father's movies. There are also some metaphors but they land quiet flat for me
Not a movie for movie critics but a good atmospheric and folkloristic movie for movie theatre audience. Also it's a pg13 so suitable for a broader audience Said this, I found first omen (another recent horror movie) quiet better.
The Watchers is a fun movie to watch with friends. I feel that a common problem people now have about movies is that you think that if it is not a cinematic masterpiece it's a terrible movie.
The acting wasn't great but not bad. I felt the leads were pretty good to.
The story was actually a good idea and I liked that part as well.
Overall scare was really just an meh. Not scary at all to me. It was more of a thriller than a horror. I was hoping to be scared but I wasn't. I would say the scare was equal to A Quiet Place.
I would actually recommend this movie. It was fun and i was intrigued the whole film.
The acting wasn't great but not bad. I felt the leads were pretty good to.
The story was actually a good idea and I liked that part as well.
Overall scare was really just an meh. Not scary at all to me. It was more of a thriller than a horror. I was hoping to be scared but I wasn't. I would say the scare was equal to A Quiet Place.
I would actually recommend this movie. It was fun and i was intrigued the whole film.
Did you know
- TriviaThe title was changed to "The Watched" in the UK and Ireland to avoid confusion with the Netflix series The Watcher (2022).
- GoofsCharacters have been trapped in one location for months or even years and look clean and healthy, are shaved, have good haircuts ...
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Project: Episode dated 21 June 2024 (2024)
- How long is The Watchers?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Observados
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $30,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $19,071,404
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $7,003,537
- Jun 9, 2024
- Gross worldwide
- $33,371,404
- Runtime1 hour 42 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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