An Average Movie-Goer’s Review
No spoilers! If you would like spoilers – check out the Spoiler post
I love horror movies and if I’m going to watch them anyway, why not write an entertaining/funny review from the POV of an average movie-goer and not a professional critic.
Today we’re looking at the Shudder exclusive, 2022’s Watcher
After married couple Julia (Maika Monroe) and Francis move to Bucharest, a stranger constantly watches Julia from a neighboring building and the stranger might be more deadly than he appears.
Is it Scary?
Watcher will have your heart pounding. While there isn’t many jump scares besides a couple of effective ones, you will be tense throughout because it’s basically Anxiety: The Movie.
In the end, Watcher might leave you a bit scared especially if you often get the feeling that you’re being watched.
Review:
Watcher is great and the number one reason is Maika Monroe’s acting. The film and her acting both do an excellent job of making you feel what her character is feeling. Combined, this makes it incredibly easy for the audience to relate and put themselves in her shoes.
Overall the story works and it does a great job of making the audience question certain things which is always a plus in slow-burn horror movies. The dialogue, for the most part, works and feels believable.
Now while Watcher is great, it still does have some negatives. The movie doesn’t really tell us anything about the main character’s past. They’re basically a blank slate except for a few details so it makes it hard to empathize with the character although you will definitely empathize with the situation.
There are also a couple of bad character decisions that make you question, ‘why?’ but none are completely outrageous. The movie is also a bit predictable (at times) if you’ve seen a few of these kinds of movies in the past but it does have a few subversions and great scenes.
Still, none of this ruins the experience, and overall Watcher is great. I highly recommend it to those who like slow-burn, anxiety-inducing movies that have you questioning what is going on. If you only like fast-paced, jump-scare-filled slashers (nothing wrong with that) this might not be for you.
Cast IMDB