The Watcher in the Woods

It is very very difficult to find a horror movie that is rated PG and creeps out the entire audience, but this is what U get with this film.

Its a low budget deal with C acting in some characters and B+ in others. The music is done very well. Camera work was quite good. Suspense was there. The story line and plot is done well enough that my wife and I were kept engrossed.

I can predict typical horror fans will down grade this gem for lack of blood, body counts, smoking/pot, macabre humor, and so on. Its a real tribute to all involved with this movie that it does not have many of the basic elements a modern horror movie of today generally has. I'm sure many viewers will decide that such a movie cannot even be classified as horror. And yet an honest viewer is forced to check the box marked 'spooky'.

Ending is both predictable and original.

I loved the original version of this movie. But what Melissa Joan Hart has done to this updated take on it is criminal. She obviously has no skills as a director and should stick to acting in Lifetime Christmas movies where she belongs.

Although the plot is slightly intriguing (strange happenings in a creepy mansion), and not everything about it is bad, there's something about it that comes off cheesy. I can't decide if it's the poor film quality, or the over done scary-movie cliches that happen too soon in the story; i.e. old ladies "sneaking" up, antique dolls, haunted little girls, and crows.

And, of course, there's the parents that refuse to believe anything is amiss. Please, filmmakers/writers, can we have open-minded adults just for once!!! It really wouldn't make the story any less creepy.

There's also many non-scary movie cheesy plot terrors: a boy telling our protagonist "I've never met a girl like you before" after knowing her for a total of 1 day. Additionally, they mention a certain character is homeless, yet later we see her living comfortably in her not too shabby trailer. (Plot hole alert!)

In it's defense, Anjelica Huston is pretty talented in her role, some of the camera shots are genius, and the locations are beautiful. And it picks up a little towards the end, luckily.

So, if you're wanting a truly haunting mystery, you could take or leave 'The Watcher in the Woods'.

I was hoping for a chance to see this story be told as an adult horror but I was disappointed.

One should watch a movie on its own terms, not by the standard you impose upon it and this movie's terms is not as a horror or even a dark thriller. It's a family fantasy with a sort of dark edge.

Not half bad but this side of the age of majority it just seems a bit too by the numbers to really have an effect and it's not exactly subtle.

Good production gives a sort of good atmosphere which they clearly didn't want to be too scary, but carries the movie a long away are its performances from two great actors of very different ages. Huston of course makes it look so easy and the other one: a very able thespian and a really beautiful girl with lips and butt that will haunt your dreams.

When my family saw they remade this film we where so excited to see it. We figured now days they could do some very cool things graphic wise and make our already beloved oldie something better. Its got some underlying aspects of the old story line but sometimes it felt forced to try to make some scenes make sense. The family seemed to always have it out for there teenage daughter and you got none of the happy family closeness from them like the old film which helped ruin it for me. The family's lack of caring for each other made me not care for any of them. The mood in this film wasn't very spooky and the acting of the British characters was annoying to watch not mysterious the setting also wasn't that spooky. Maybe a retitle would be better for this film I am resentful it was remade like this the old version wasn't 10 stars but I would have given it a solid 8. Just a request for those of us who have our favored old time movies stay away from remaking Child of Glass rename this film something else Watcher in the woods it was not.