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Reviews43
sue-77's rating
I had read about the Watchers in several publications, all recommending the film. I love creature features so I was excited to check it out, especially as I'm a fan of Dakota Fanning and Olwen Fouéré (Tarot, Sea Fever, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Northman, Mandy).
I was expecting a straight up creature feature. Monsters in the woods maybe. Possibly aliens with the whole people in a box being observed kind of theme. It definitely is a people being observed film and there are 'monsters' but it is so much more than that by the end of the film.
I really don't want to give spoilers, but I'll say that the ending left me (a horror fantasy fan) happy to have a film that deviated from the usual genre themes. Is it a great cinematic masterpiece? No. Is it an entertaining, satisfying film that I will most likely rewatch? Yes, it is.
For a small film with very few actors it is well acted and compelling. The sets are well done and are frightening and give a sense of foreboding and claustrophobia. And the antagonists are genuinely frightening in both idea and appearance. Terrifying in their ferocity and yet sympathetic by the end of the film (No, I'm not explaining!)
Overall a fun film that was paced quickly so it doesn't lag at all. Dakota Fanning manages to create a character you care about even as you want to smack her 'rule breaking' attitude for a while. It's nice to actually have a female character fleshed out a bit in such a short (1 hour 42 minutes) fast paced film.
Definitely recommended.
I was expecting a straight up creature feature. Monsters in the woods maybe. Possibly aliens with the whole people in a box being observed kind of theme. It definitely is a people being observed film and there are 'monsters' but it is so much more than that by the end of the film.
I really don't want to give spoilers, but I'll say that the ending left me (a horror fantasy fan) happy to have a film that deviated from the usual genre themes. Is it a great cinematic masterpiece? No. Is it an entertaining, satisfying film that I will most likely rewatch? Yes, it is.
For a small film with very few actors it is well acted and compelling. The sets are well done and are frightening and give a sense of foreboding and claustrophobia. And the antagonists are genuinely frightening in both idea and appearance. Terrifying in their ferocity and yet sympathetic by the end of the film (No, I'm not explaining!)
Overall a fun film that was paced quickly so it doesn't lag at all. Dakota Fanning manages to create a character you care about even as you want to smack her 'rule breaking' attitude for a while. It's nice to actually have a female character fleshed out a bit in such a short (1 hour 42 minutes) fast paced film.
Definitely recommended.
Yes, this was filmed somewhat simultaneously to Friday the 13th and yes this owes a lot to Village of the Damned, both much better films. Children in a town contaminated by a nuclear waste cloud and turned into little hugging freaks who kill sizzle you with their mitts.
The pluses: *The soundtrack is very reminiscent of Friday the 13th and actually quite eerie. It adds a great deal to a laughable film.
*The acting isn't bad. At least the male characters are decent. The female actors aren't given much and that's because...
The minuses: *The scriptwriter evidently hated women. Every woman in this film is either a slutty caricature, an unpleasant brash female or a complete simpering idiot. Now a lot of films of this period had similar stereotypes for women, but this was also the age of the final final girl genesis, not to mention Alien's Ripley and Terminator's Sarah Connor (this film is no where near those but you get the idea). The women in this film make you happy to see them off (and pissed that they are relegated to the 'only tell the little woman what you want her to know even when it puts everyone in peril' role).
*Just the general plotline is bad/stupid, yet somewhat entertaining.
So if you have absolutely nothing else to watch and you want to roll your eyes some, have at it. Otherwise, no, just no.
The pluses: *The soundtrack is very reminiscent of Friday the 13th and actually quite eerie. It adds a great deal to a laughable film.
*The acting isn't bad. At least the male characters are decent. The female actors aren't given much and that's because...
The minuses: *The scriptwriter evidently hated women. Every woman in this film is either a slutty caricature, an unpleasant brash female or a complete simpering idiot. Now a lot of films of this period had similar stereotypes for women, but this was also the age of the final final girl genesis, not to mention Alien's Ripley and Terminator's Sarah Connor (this film is no where near those but you get the idea). The women in this film make you happy to see them off (and pissed that they are relegated to the 'only tell the little woman what you want her to know even when it puts everyone in peril' role).
*Just the general plotline is bad/stupid, yet somewhat entertaining.
So if you have absolutely nothing else to watch and you want to roll your eyes some, have at it. Otherwise, no, just no.