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The Watchers (film)

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The Watchers
Theatrical release poster
Directed byIshana Night Shyamalan
Written byIshana Night Shyamalan
Based onThe Watchers
by A. M. Shine
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyEli Arenson
Edited byJob ter Burg
Music byAbel Korzeniowski
Production
companies
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
Release date
  • June 7, 2024 (2024-06-07)
Running time
102 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1 million[2]

The Watchers (titled The Watched in the United Kingdom and Ireland[1]) is a 2024 American supernatural horror film written and directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan, produced by M. Night Shyamalan, and based on the novel of the same name by A. M. Shine. It stars Dakota Fanning, Georgina Campbell, Olwen Fouéré, and Oliver Finnegan.

Filming took place from July to September 2023 in Ireland. The Watchers was theatrically released in the United States, United Kingdom and Ireland by Warner Bros. Pictures on June 7, 2024. The film received mixed-to-negative reviews from critics.

Plot[edit]

Mina, an American living in Ireland, works at a pet shop and is struggling over the death of her mother from an accident she caused as a child, becoming estranged from her twin sister in the process. She is tasked by her boss to deliver a valuable bird, whom she names Darwin. Driving into a vast forest, Mina's car breaks stranding her in the forest. She explores and finds the car missing when she returns. Later she encounters an old woman watching her. After hearing inhuman noises in the forest, she follows the old woman, Madeline, to a bunker-like building. Upon entering the bunker, nicknamed 'The Coop', Mina meets the other two occupants of the bunker, Ciara and Daniel. Madeline explains that a mysterious group called 'The Watchers' observe the group through the mirrored glass in the coop every night.

The next day, Mina attempts to leave but finds there is no way out of the forest. Madeline explains the rules: The Watchers kill anyone outside the coop at night, they are afraid of light, and they must never enter the Burrows, a set of tunnels around the forest that The Watchers stay in during the day. Mina bonds with Ciara and Daniel, learning they have been stranded in the forest for several months and have never seen a Watcher. Ciara mentions her husband John left the Coop days ago to get help but has not returned. Mina clashes with Madeline who feverishly follows the rules and seems to be fine obeying the Watchers. Mina and Daniel explore a burrow and retrieve several items including an old bike and a camcorder before fleeing after Mina glimpses a Watcher burn itself in the sunlight. The group decide to use the camera to capture footage of a Watcher to prove they are real. John seemingly appears at the Coop but Madeline refuses to let him in, claiming he's a Watcher. "John" fails to verify himself to Ciara and is seemingly attacked. The Watchers break part of the mirrored glass, spooking the group. Madeline returns the items to the burrow the next day to appease The Watchers.

Months pass and winter falls. The group struggles to cope with the worsening conditions and begin to turn on each other. After an argument, Daniel locks Mina and Madeline out of the Coop at night forcing them to seek shelter in the forest. They witness the Watchers, humanoid creatures that imitate the Coop occupants, react angrily to Madeline and Mina's absence. The pair manage to get back into the Coop and Madeline explains that 'The Watchers' are a race of ancient beings called 'Changelings' or 'Faeries' and are attempting to learn how to imitate humans. The Watchers, furious with Mina's repeated breaking of the rules, attempt to get into the Coop. The group discovers a hidden door leading beneath the Coop and seek refuge. Below the Coop is another bunker filled with supplies and a computer. On the computer are video diaries from a professor who created the Coop. He discovered the Watchers and wanted to study them but soon found they were better at imitating him than he expected. He managed to capture one and started to bond with it. In his last video diary, the despondent Professor explains a way to escape the forest before requesting that his university notes be destroyed and is last seen climbing back to the Coop to kill the Watcher and then himself.

The next day, the group leave the underground bunker to discover that the Coop has been ransacked. With no other choice, the group follow the Professor's advice to escape, reaching a river and boat with Darwin's help as night falls. Daniel encounters a Watcher mimicking John and is tricked into helping him. The others escape as The Watchers kill Daniel. Mina, Madeline and Ciara manage to reach civilization and escape the forest.

Days later, Mina heads to the professor's university to destroy the notes. Mina learns that The Watchers once lived in peace with humanity but a war broke out and they were forced underground and sealed in. She also learns about half human and half watcher hybrids, able to explore the world during the day. Mina visits Ciara at her home and shows her a set of photos she found in the office, revealing that Madeline was the Professor's wife who died before he entered the forest. Mina realizes Madeline is the Watcher that the Professor managed to capture in the bunker.

The real Ciara arrives at the house as the Ciara that Mina was talking to reveals herself to be Madeline. Madeline cycles through forms of Ciara, Madeline, John and Daniel before knocking Ciara unconscious and attacking Mina. Madeline reveals that she had always wanted to escape the forest and plans to imitate Mina. Mina realizes that Madeline is a half-human half-Watcher hybrid and manages to talk Madeline into calming down, encouraging her to let go of her grief and her anger towards humans. Madeline transforms into her true Watcher form and departs. Sometime later, Mina has reconciled with her sister and has got over her own grief. Meanwhile, Madeline, imitating the form of a child, keeps watch over Mina.

Cast[edit]

Production[edit]

In February 2023, New Line Cinema announced it would produce The Watchers, written and directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan in her feature directorial debut.[3] That April, Dakota Fanning and Georgina Campbell joined the cast.[4][5] Principal photography took place in Dublin, Wicklow and Galway from July to September 2023.[6][7] In mid-July, production was granted an interim agreement to continue filming during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.[6] The film was self-financed by Ishana's father, M. Night Shyamalan, and sold to Warner Bros. for $30 million.[8]

Release[edit]

The Watchers was theatrically released in the United States, United Kingdom and Ireland on June 7, 2024, by Warner Bros. Pictures. It was briefly delayed to June 14 before returning to its original date.[3][9]

Reception[edit]

Box office[edit]

In the United States and Canada, The Watchers was released alongside Bad Boys: Ride or Die, and is projected to gross around $8–10 million from 3,300 theaters in its opening weekend.[10] The film made $1 million from Thursday night previews.[8]

Critical response[edit]

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 30% of 101 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5/10. The website's consensus reads: "Heavy on eerie mood but undone by an obtuse script, The Watchers can only hold the gaze for so long before tedium sets in."[11] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 48 out of 100, based on 21 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[12] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C–" on an A+ to F scale, while those polled by PostTrak gave it a 51% overall positive score.[8]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "The Watched (15)". BBFC. May 28, 2024. Archived from the original on June 2, 2024. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
  2. ^ "The Watchers – Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  3. ^ a b D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 14, 2023). "Ishana Night Shyamalan Making Feature Directorial Debut With New Line Thriller 'The Watchers'; Summer 2024 Release Set". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 14, 2023. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  4. ^ Grobar, Matt (April 26, 2023). "Dakota Fanning Boards Ishana Night Shyamalan's Supernatural Thriller 'The Watchers' For New Line". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  5. ^ Kit, Borys (April 28, 2023). "'Barbarian' Breakout Georgina Campbell Joins Dakota Fanning in New Line Supernatural Thriller 'The Watchers' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on April 28, 2023. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Kay, Jeremy (July 19, 2023). "Sam Raimi horror, The Watchers among new indie shoots approved by SAG-AFTRA". Screen Daily. Archived from the original on August 10, 2023. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
  7. ^ Rajput, Priyanca (September 5, 2023). "Ishana Shyamalan's debut feature The Watchers wraps in Dublin". KFTV.com. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  8. ^ a b c Anthony D'Alessandro (June 7, 2024). "Sony Owning Weekend As 'Bad Boys: Ride Or Die' Drives To $50M, 'Garfield' Pounces On 2nd Place – Friday Box Office Update". Deadline. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  9. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 28, 2024). "'The Watchers': Ishana Night Shyamalan Horror Movie Moves To Father's Day Weekend". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 29, 2024. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  10. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony; Tartaglione, Nancy (June 5, 2024). "'Bad Boys: Ride Or Die' Hopes To Avoid Speed Bump At Sluggish Summer Box Office With $75M+ Global Opening – Preview". Deadline. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  11. ^ "The Watchers". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  12. ^ "The Watchers". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved June 8, 2024.

External links[edit]

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