Watcher

What would you do, some blokes looking out at you, in a place that you've just moved, leaves you a bit more than bemused, seems to follow you around, when you're wandering in town, you're keen not to lose your head, though it's making you see red.

Julia becomes increasingly concerned about the attention she's receiving from a mysterious neighbour, although her pleas go unheard by both the local constabulary and her partner, leaving her increasingly isolated and psychologically challenged.

Not the most original thriller you've encountered but well made and performed and Maika Monroe may well be an actor going places.

"Watcher" follows Julia, an American who moves to Bucharest with her husband, Francis. While Francis is fluent in the language--his mother is Romanian--Julia is not, and struggles with the language barrier. Even worse, she also finds herself being watched by a man in the adjacent apartment building, and comes to believe that not only is he stalking her, but that he is a serial killer.

It goes without saying that "Watcher" is playing with a familiar concept--this is a premise we have seen in a large number of films, most famously in Hitchcock's "Rear Window," but "Watcher" also pays respects to Roman Polanski's "apartment" films, most notably (and effectively) "The Tenant" (the other two being "Rosemary' Baby" and "Repulsion"). What makes it stand out, however, is that it is well-acted, visually elegant, and at times throttling in its suspense. There are a number of scenes in this film that (no pun intended) grab you by the throat.

"Watcher" is the breed of film that toes the line regarding whether or not the fears and paranoias of the protagonist are legitimate, or the product of something else, but director Chloe Okuno telegraphs it intelligently by positioning the audience in tandem with Julia--as we watch her sink into her isolation, we are isolated alongside her--and it is because of this that her fears play out as believable, despite her husband's skepticism. The writing here is both subtle and smart, and there are a few key moments that are as dislocating to the viewer as they are to the protagonist; the screenplay is multi-pronged in a way that makes the audience question not what they are seeing, but rather, what it is indicative of. Julia's disconnect from the language only helps to reinforce a sense of suffocation, and the gloomy, rain-soaked Art Deco architecture of the city only amplifies the sense of unease.

Of course, none of this would work without a believable lead, and Maika Monroe plays this character very effectively. Burn Gorman is also extremely effective as the mysterious creep across the way. The film's finale, though tense, is still fairly downbeat (which is the status quo in this film), but it offers enough grand guignol to be memorable and shocking. In the end, while "Watcher" is not necessarily revelatory, it is a well-crafted, nervy take on a well-worn concept. There are some standout moments in this film that make it worth watching for any genre fan. 7/10.

Wow, just wow. I had no expectations about Watcher, but it turned out to be really good.

Like seriously, everything worked so well up until the ending, which felt somewhat disappointing and didn't make much sense. It wasn't the worst thing they could've done though, so thanks for that.

Actual care was put into the film and it shows. All the elements they have are nothing new, really, but these blend quite well. The unfamiliar environment, the language barrier, the fear, and the feeling of being misunderstood and left alone by the careless close ones. Great acting, great atmosphere, great music. Just overall a solid thriller that tried to step away from cliches as much as possible.

I can agree that the pacing was relatively slow, but it only helped absorb the atmosphere of what was happening.

A split 7.5/10 could've been an 8.5/10 if not for the ending that felt a little too much, although I get the message.

I am looking forward to new movies from the director.

Great visuals. They did a good job of filming every scene to make everything look super creepy. Acting is mostly good, but I absolutely hated the husband's character. I get that he had to be that way to keep the story going, but man it's frustrating.

Above average thriller about people looking out of windows. I wonder where I've seen that before? Of course the entire premise would fail if they'd only buy some curtains like normal people but they don't. Maika Monroe plays the damsel in distress but her character is a bit of a misery guts and spends most of the movie scowling, sulking or frowning. Burn Gorman is perfectly creepy. The movie itself is low key and by the numbers as if it was written and directed according to a check list but it's effective for all that. There's quite a lot of Romanian language so if you watch without subtitles you miss some dialogue but I'm not sure if you miss anything important.