Neighborhood Watch

I kind of love this movie. It's a slow-burn, but it knows what it's about. It reminds me most of the great (if rather more substantial) film Cutter's Way from the seventies, in terms of characters who, somewhat despite themselves, are drawn in to the obsessive pursuit of justice, whatever the cost.

The two main leads are really good. Not perfect perhaps, but convincing in the roles they play. Quaid does a solid job as Simon, a haunted, self-doubting psychotic, who, whatever his personal demons, knows exactly what he must do, when duty calls, even if he doesn't know quite how to do it.

Cue Jeffery Dean Morgan's maverick ex-campus security 'director' who reluctantly gets drawn into Simon's to find a kidnapped girl.

It's mostly low key, but really works, and there are some nice set-ups and pay offs.

I watched this and felt oh so very slightly better about the world by the time the credits started rolling.

I don't want to suggest this is going to rock your world - it won't - but at the same time I wish there were more films like this.

This film attempts to create a taut, suburban thriller but ultimately delivers a lukewarm and unmemorable cinematic experience. The film suffers from a severe lack of narrative focus, meandering aimlessly between its paranoid, observational premise and an underdeveloped character drama without ever truly committing to either. The supposed "tense" interactions between the characters feel forced and contrived, lacking the genuine spark and raw danger necessary to engage the audience.

The dialogue, often laden with clichéd pronouncements about community and suspicion, feels painfully artificial. It's as if the writers simply strung together a series of tired genre tropes without any regard for natural conversation. While the film's premise hints at a clever deconstruction of suburban paranoia, it never lives up to its potential, instead settling for a predictable plot and thin character development. "Neighborhood Watch" is a film that promises a thrilling mystery but serves up a slow, uninspired bore.

Is it worth watching? No. It's a forgettable film that promises a thrill but delivers a chore.

If I would describe Neighborhood Watch as an overall movie in one word, it would be... regular? It's a very regular movie. But when done right, a regular movie can be highly enjoyable. This is the perfect example of that.

Jack Quaid gives possibly his best performance. He seems perfect for this role of someone suffering from severe mental illness. Jeffrey Dean Morgan also plays his role well. And their on screen chemistry and character dynamics are a big part of why this movie succeeds.

It also helps to have good writing. Several small parts end up coming into play later. Even if it doesn't have a major impact, these callbacks show that they care about making a good movie. And I was emotionally invested in the story and these characters.

(1 viewing, 4/26/2025)

The film mostly worked for me because of the odd pairing of the rough and decisive ex-cop played by Ed Deerman (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and the diminutive and tormented Simon McNally (Jack Quaid) who struggles with schizophrenia. The unlikely duo prove they have unexpectedly strong chemistry as they form an unlikely alliance to find a woman that Simon believes he may have seen being kidnapped.

The actual procedural aspects of Deerman and McNally's investigation are the weakest aspect here from my perspective. They sort of just wander around encountering violent criminals for most of the film's brief runtime. But there are elements to the film that we don't typically get in these types of films, so I will give it a pass for neglecting the procedural aspects somewhat.

I adored Duncan Skiles' previous film, the vastly underrated serial killer thriller The Clovehitch Killer, and he shows all the same strengths as a director here that he did in that film. The story never lacks a sense of purpose, and the sparkling interactions between its two leads keep the story rolling steadily forward to a satisfying if unmemorable conclusion. I think a couple frightening scenes and potentially a violent encounter at the film's conclusion might have helped to make this more well-rounded as a thriller.

The exploration of Simon's mental health struggles is quite well done and integrated effectively throughout. The film even puts the audience somewhat in Simon's situation where we're not entirely sure what's real and what isn't. We feel the effects of Simon's struggles in a similar way to how he does because we too are uncertain to what extent what we are seeing is real and how much we can trust our senses.

Deerman, while not as likable as Simon, has a nice character arc as he comes to respect Simon and rethink his dismissive treatment of him as a "nutjob." A third-act sequence in which Deerman helps Simon to cope with his paralyzing demons is well-acted and powerful to behold. Deerman is the kind of rogue cop with a heart-of-gold that we can't help finding lovable even if we shouldn't. Even if his methods are problematic, his unimpeachable desire to save an innocent young woman keeps the audience in his corner.

Visually, the film feels like a 70s period thriller due to the sepia-tinged cinematography. This is in spite of the fact that the characters use iPhones and other technology. But I think Skyles was perhaps emphasizing retro aspects intentionally to create a more old-fashioned noir feel. At any rate, this doesn't feel entirely like it's set in the present day even though it ostensibly is.

All in all, Neighborhood Watch may not break new ground as a crime thriller, but its emotional resonance and strong performances make it a quietly compelling film for genre stalwarts.

There are elements of this film that really shine. Overall, I liked it. There are a few spots I'd normally nitpick on but Jack Quaids performance (at least to me) was great. I also think Jeffrey Dean Morgan could have done more with his role but the script hampered his performance. Still, he made the most of what was given to him.

The movie is executed well in terms of direction, lighting, cinematography and sound, but the dialogue was wooden at times - the director should have realized that and listened to his actors. This didn't happen often but when it does, you notice it.

Ultimately, it's about a retired cop and a person with mental health issues working out a friendship between them. That is possibly the most appealing aspect of this movie. You'd think it'd be minor thing. But Morgan and Quaid pulled it off!