Voisins du troisième type

The Watch is one of those comedies that seems to rely too heavily on its cast's abilities and believes it can phone-in other key parts of filmmaking such as writing, tone, direction, and wit. When we laugh during the film, are we laughing because the scenarios are funny or because these are actors we've all seen in funny movies? Combing three of the funniest and most reliable actors working today, and one British actor who already has a loyal fanbase in America, seems like an easy recipe for success, but the recipe begins to call for too much and offer too little quickly.

The film was originally titled "Neighborhood Watch," but was quickly changed because of looming controversy from the Trayvon Martin case. You won't be thinking about that at all because the film offers so little resemblance to any "neighborhood watch" movie, program, or event in the last decade or so. It concerns Evan Trautwig (Stiller), a Costco manager and a loyal community activist, who has been starting clubs left and right for his humble Glenview, Ohio neighborhood. After one of his workers is murdered in the Costco, Evan creates a neighborhood watch program, which only recruits three misfits; loudmouth Bob (Vaughn), unstable Franklin (Hill), and offbeat Jamarcus (Ayoade).

As the watch works in a rather disorganized manner, they soon discover that the town is home to rather unearthly creatures and, obviously, since the police won't believe them, they must take matters into their own hands.

Ben Stiller gives his umpteenth rendition of the good-guy trying to do right, Vince Vaughn is a loud, obnoxious fratboy, who is struggling to maintain control as a single father looking after his rebellious teen daughter, and Jonah Hill is rather off-putting as an rejected police officer, mama's boy who continues to have trouble emoting and controlling his anger. While they are all playing stale archetypes of characters they have done in the past, they do manage to squeeze some laughs and chuckles here and there. But the king here is easily Richard Ayoade, who is sadly getting the cold shoulder with the film's ad campaign, which is boasting "STILLER, VAUGHN, AND HILL." Ayoade stars on a British sitcom called The IT Crowd, and has picked up followers in the U.S happily. Here, he delivers some memorable one-liners, as he sometimes effortlessly one-ups the other comedy veterans at their game.

What leaves The Watch with a pungent aftertaste is the writing, which to begin with, is not very funny, but is brought to the "decent" category because we see funny actors performing what is on the paper. The film was written by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, and Jared Stern, and seeing as both Rogen and Goldberg were the ones responsible for making Superbad's script so quick, witty, and hilarious, it is surprising to see The Watch flounder in the writing department. This is where the film becomes too reliant on its actors, as it neglects to give them some interesting dialog to bounce off of.

It is also apparent that the direction is obscured because of the screenplay continuously jumping into raunchy comedy, sci-fi elements, romanticism between Evan and his wife, drama between Bob and his daughter, etc. One moment, we are laughing tirelessly at R. Lee Ermey's over-the-top cameo and the next, we are rolling our eyes when the boys are being attacked in Bob's mancave by another life-form. Had the film been more consistent in its writing, I doubt this problem would've even been so noticeable.

Director Akiva Schaffer, one of the three members of The Lonely Island comedy troupe (the three make a cameo in the film) responsible for some seriously witty music videos and digital shorts on Saturday Night Live, definitely has passion for the weird and surreal, with his previous effort being the unsung cult classic Hot Rod. He simply does what he can with what he has, while The Watch scurries along in its screenplay of errors and its directions a plenty Starring: Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, Richard Ayoade, Will Forte, and R. Lee Ermey. Directed by: Akiva Schaffer.

'The Watch' is An Interesting Sci-Fi Comedy, that makes good-use of its promising premise & its well-decorated star-cast. Its Fun!

'The Watch' Synopsis: Four men who form a neighborhood watch group as a way to get out of their day-to-day family routines find themselves defending the Earth from an alien invasion.

'The Watch' isn't flawless. It has its share of minuses. But, overall, this first of its kind Sci-Fi Comedy appeals, because it makes you laugh at the right places & the performances are commendable. Talking of minuses, the uneven second-hour acts as a deterrent.

Jared Stern, Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg's Screenplay has merit. However, the second-hour, certainly, could've been more persuasive. Akiva Schaffer's Direction is credible. Cinematography & Editing are mentionable. Graphics are pretty cool. The Aliens are pretty creepy to look at!

Performance-Wise: Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill & Richard Ayoade are the life of 'The Watch'. Stiller is highly efficient, while Vaughn continues to impress us with his impeccable comic-timing. Hill & Ayoade are equally effective, adding much more to their characters than offered. Also, the on-screen chemistry between the four of them, is interesting. Rosemarie DeWitt does her bit well. Will Forte is sincere.

On the whole, 'The Watch' does work, at most parts.

The Watch has been getting a fair few negative reviews. Yeah, sure, it's no cinematic masterpiece, but I don't think it's meant to be. It's a comedy full of amusing conversations. There aren't really that many punchlines which will have your sides splitting, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have a certain charm.

Ben Stiller leads a neighbourhood watch team that accidentally stumbles across an alien plot to take over the world. Yes, it's as silly as it sounds. Yes, there are plenty of unbelievable moments and yes, there are plenty of plot holes. But, there's also so much right with this film, that I think, if you try, you should be able to gloss over any misgivings you may have for this and enjoy it for what it is.

It's the perfect movie to sit down and relax your brain. Let the silly men entertain you and snigger at their attempts to save the world. Plus, for all you horror fans out there, the aliens themselves are pretty decent budget with a few gory moments thrown in for added bonus.

It's daft, it's smutty, it's silly, but it's also very enjoyable.

Kudos to Richard Ayoade for getting his foot into Hollywood's door. Good luck to him - he shows he can hold his own among Hollywood's comedic A-listers.

I see a lot of people bashing this film for some reason. Sure it's not some cinematic masterpiece; when I went to see it I wasn't expecting that. "The Watch" is a funny buddy comedy, filled with crude jokes and the silly shenanigans that you'd expect from Stiller, Vaughn, the rest of the cast, and writer Seth Rogen. Like a delicious onion the film does a good job peeling away at the story. Yes, it is not hard see the plot coming, but it's how the characters deal with the situations they encounter, that makes the film entertaining. Crybaby critics with their stuck up trendy smugness, "See, told you the plot was predictable.." Wow, way to over dramatize the obvious, you're so clever. I bet that "Titanic" ending took you by surprise? For all those critics who whine and cry about "The Watch" maybe they should just stay home and watch one of their Disney classics on VHS. This is a great film to see, escape the chaotic world and have a few laughs.

We found this quite entertaining and the characters were good, but I have to ask who wrote the script - a bunch of schoolboys? Almost every gag was based on d*cks, c*m, big red b*lls, condoms and p*ss. Why? There are plenty of other ways of making gags funny, you know.