The Watchers
Directed by Ishana Night ShyamalanA young artist gets stranded in an extensive, immaculate forest in western Ireland, where, after finding shelter, she becomes trapped alongside three strangers, stalked by mysterious creatures each night.
Where to Watch The Watchers
The Watchers Ratings & Reviews
- Paulo Coelho AlvesAugust 13, 2024It's big on mood but the premise feels a little too derivative of the show From and it really doesn't stick the landing.
- Cappy JuneNovember 1, 2025Good movie. Longer than expected, had to get up and stretch my legs. Cat fell asleep. Recommended for a long flight
- Daniel GustavssonMarch 30, 2025It's a tough one to review. On one hand it's kind of creative, and on the other hand it's kind of awful. It has some nice ideas but executes on them poorly. Wasted potential nonetheless.
- cyberbillpFebruary 21, 2025This actually got better the longer you watch it. I liked the folklore, I had no clue going in, and it really redeemed itself with a great ending. I'll probably watch this again. 3.5 stars from me, which is pretty good. Solid enjoyable film.
- EvilbeastyOctober 31, 2025Slower than I expected but a good story. Enjoyed it.
- Daniel SchmidOctober 16, 2025A mystery story which conveys dread throughout the movie. The scenery is beautiful, the creatures are scary but interesting, the characters are interesting, and the ending is so wonderful, it's really a beautiful piece of art. Definitely a recommendation.
- Neon GhloesSeptember 24, 2025Those gawdamn fairies! Stay off my lawn!
- touch_toneJanuary 12, 2025It was pretty good honestly.
- MetroidTalonAugust 22, 2025The Watchers opens with promise but fades fast. The setup hints at mystery and tension, but the execution is sluggish and scattered. Characters make baffling choices, the lore feels undercooked, and the scares never land with impact. There’s atmosphere and potential in the concept, but the film keeps circling without ever finding a satisfying point. A slow spiral of wasted ideas that leaves more frustration than fear.
- Todd HayAugust 17, 2024I enjoyed it. Interesting premise, did keep you guessing. It is an M. Knight movie, so it does have its twists, but not to the same degree as his other work. End was a bit abrupt, and disappointing- but over all an enjoyable few hours.
- tellumAugust 19, 2025The premise was executed in a real clumsy way, to the point that you end up having way too many questions, and when one of them is actually answered it just gives you many more questions.
- UniqueMovies Deb HJuly 30, 2025Boring and slow!! No patience to watch it all. 👎💫✨💫
- Kevin WardJuly 1, 2025The Watchers is a solid debut feature with some striking visuals and some moments of genuine intrigue even if the script gets bogged down by frustrating character decisions and exposition dumps by the end. Dakota Fanning stars as Mina in search of her estranged sister, but she finds herself in a eerie forest in Ireland unable to find her way out. She happens across Madeleine (Olwen Fouéré), Ciara (Georgina Campbell), and Daniel (Oliver Finnegan), all similarly stranded in the wood, but having taken refuge in an isolated room with a one-way mirror where unknown entities come to watch them when the sun goes down. As strange as the setup is, I was very much enjoying the film. The premise felt ripe for a thematic exploration of mimicry, voyeurism, and performative aspects of identity. The group of strangers have to essentially perform each night for this unseen audience but the only real instruction is to be themselves. Mina doesn’t seem to have a real sense of who she actually is. We see flashes of her life in which she liked to dress up in wig and makeup and just go out on the town as someone else, perhaps as a counter to the fact that she has a twin sister, a literal copy of her own genetic makeup, somewhere out in the world. How much of our own identity is simply copying what we see in others? Stuck in “the coop” as the group has come to refer to their refuge, they do have access to a television and a copy of a Big Brother style reality show Love Island (season 3) that they watch over and over. This voyeurism heavily mirrors their own situation which has the unknown watchers peering in on their lives every evening. It’s when we begin to find out more about the watchers that the film takes a bit of a turn and instead of going deeper into the thematics, it gets a little too bogged down in establishing the lore of these creatures. Steeped heavily in Irish folklore of faeries and changelings, the film spends much of the final act attempting to explain this world and its inhabitants. Obviously, the idea of changelings still lends itself to the thematic ideas of identity and mimicry, but by the end this aspect seems kind of completely lost. Still, I mostly enjoyed this film. I think Ishana shows significant promise as a director. I had actually watched all of the Apple TV series Servant and I believe she directed several episodes. I will be curious to see what she has up next.
- Mr. DFebruary 7, 2025I enjoyed, likely because of the sound more so than the movie. It's a one trick pony who never really goes anywhere.
- Casper HørningOctober 15, 2024Slow
