Strong disagree. The marketing made me think it was gonna be trash, but the movie I thought was actually average to better than average. And if you put this movie together with all of M night Shyamalan’s movies, it’s in the top half.
Agreed! I imagined she'd see a glimpse of the "professor" when she went to clear out the office, and that would be the end, but no, it dragged and dragged and got worse and worse.
Agreed on all fronts, the explanation for how the coop was built has particularly stuck with me for just how ridiculous it is and I have no idea how they expected people to just accept that
@@austins.2495 Every story has to be set up, that doesn’t excuse the set up making no sense. “Be grateful” that I got a movie I didn’t enjoy? You know it’s ok to dislike movies right? I’m sure it’s happened to you before, it’s fine.
The fact that they were called watchers, were all in a room together without knowing each other, ans most of all that they themselves were watching a reality show and it panned back to this so many times.
Totally agree! They lost me at how not distressed they were being basically held captives and don’t even get me started in the married one and her nonchalant attitude. I mean have it make sense!
Yeah, the movie really flubbed the characters and their emotional states. In the book: Madeline is a no nonsense b*tch, strict, talks down to (or straight up yells at) Ciara and Daniel, seems to know more than she lets on, and she creates tension in the group because of her survivalist means. (She tells Mina to her face later that if she didn't make it to the door in time, she would have shut it in her face.) Ciara is quiet and sweet, convinced that her husband was still alive and getting help, and after Madeline wins over the "open the door" debate, she becomes a depressed mess and angry at the others (because she truly believed it was who she thought it was outside). Daniel was kind and sympathetic. Often put down the most by Madeline, even though he was always trying his best and also trying to keep Ciara's spirits up. Madeline's treatment of him brought back bad memories of his which eventually lead to him making a decision out of desperation. There was a dynamic that felt organic and believable in the book. Didn't really feel any of that tension in the movie.
I was waiting for this review lollll. It’s such a strange movie that really doesn’t even try to be scary or tense. Like the entire premise of the creatures “watching” them is barely in the movie? And instead we get overly complex lore that includes fairies. Whole thing was so awkward
The creatures were forced into the forest and to take shelter underground and used to be like gods, and used to live with humans... they explained that in the movie... They didn't just 'exist'.
@@RealBradMiller those "creatures" just existed, that's my pet peeve. It reminds me of his movie old, the reason people were aging rapidly was because of the rock formations... Ok and?? These twists just seem so lacking imo. I didn't like the movie "us" but at least they gave us a believable explanation for the clones (ums government project) instead of "they just came about 1 day"
@@thedonald011 Us is better than The Watchers but that isn't saying much. That movie was a complete mess. Stunning any professional reviewer gave that a thumbs up. Actually Peele reminds me of M. Night. His early work (Get Out) was great but Us and Nope are just plain bad. He might end up a one hit wonder like M. Night.
@@thedonald011 They are supposed to be like humans, dogs, cats, birds and other animals that nature just created them and its just simple like that. The movie gave them a huge amount of backstory so i dont understand why you are complaining. Complain about movies like Smile instead where the demon thing did not get any backstory at all during the entire movie.
I will say it was somewhat close to the book. THe book had about 3 twists. HOWEVER she did change the 3rd act, and the characters lost a lot of their traits. The book Mina was very smart and NEVER went into one of the nests. I love the book, but the movie dropped for me.
Agreed. I really enjoyed the book! But the movie....well, it really fell short. One thing I did really like was the casting of Madeline. She looked and sounded the part (imo), but a big coat replaced the grey shawl she always wore and they made her way nicer in the movie. :/
I watched this through the lens of a fairytale or graphic novel and enjoyed it like that. I know you shouldn’t need to reframe a movie yourself but it helps me. Lot of frustrating elements for sure. She’s definitely a Shyamalan lol
I saw this yesterday and had almost the same thoughts as you Cody. Irish folklore like banshees and changelings are genuinely terrifying so I was intrigued but this was meh. Bold, but meh. The only word that rattled in my head regarding Dakotas performance was wooden and I truly don’t think she had a lot to work with the writing. Genuinely loved the creature design and I’m a sucker for a good fantasy tie in but they just ran through all possibly lore ideas in the third act. I had an idea how I wanted to see it end so let’s discuss Cody! Lol great review
Cinematography is due to the DP not the director, so a movie can be shot gorgeously, but that is due to the cinematographers efficiency not the direction (In most cases anyway). also adaptation is due to the scrip writer, direction is reflected on the actors performances.
@@k-slay4407Which part is not totally true? Blocking refers to the movement of the talent relative to the camera and vice versa, and it has little to do with aesthetics or shot sizes. A DP is responsible for lens selection, camera operation, and lighting. So, I’m not sure which part is not totally true.
@@k-slay4407 Marriage is a partnership between two people, and it does not inherently define their roles within the relationship. Similarly, the collaboration between a Director of Photography (DP) and a director does not imply that their roles overlap. You seem to be overlooking my points: Cinematography is the responsibility of the Cinematographer. Blocking refers to the movement of actors in relation to the camera and vice versa, and it has minimal connection to Cinematography. Additionally, adaptation is the domain of the scriptwriter, and direction is reflected in the actors’ performances. I suggest you educate yourself on the distinct roles of a Director of Photography (DP) and a Director. Renowned DP Roger Deakins often discusses the nuances of cinematography and his responsibilities in the field. look up his videos.🐵🐒
@@k-slay4407 Marriage is a partnership between two people, and it does not inherently define their roles within the relationship. Similarly, the collaboration between a Director of Photography (DP) and a director does not imply that their roles overlap. You seem to be overlooking my points: Cinematography is the responsibility of the Cinematographer. Blocking refers to the movement of actors in relation to the camera and vice versa, and it has minimal connection to Cinematography. Additionally, adaptation is the domain of the scriptwriter, and direction is reflected in the actors’ performances. I suggest you educate yourself on the distinct roles of a Director of Photography (DP) and a Director. Renowned DP Roger Deakins often discusses the nuances of cinematography and his responsibilities in the field. look up his videos.🐵🐒
I love your background setup. Is it a practical or a digital setup? Either the Myers peeking in the window and Freddy in the shadows really sets the mood.
I liked this movie overall despite its flaws but I also agree with Cody that this might as well have been a movie made by M. Night. The style of the movie and even the story is very much reminiscent to her father’s movies which is both a good and a bad thing. I also agree that Ishana needs to develop and create a movie that stands on its own and is different from her father’s. One thing that probably didn’t help is that M. Night produced this, so that probably also makes it even more difficult to figure out where M. Night’s influence ends and Ishana’s begins. Again, if this didn’t feel so much like a typical M. Night movie, I personally would have respected & appreciated what was being done here.
Loved it. It’s a critic’s nightmare and agree on Cody’s critiques. But I’m not a critical movie watcher. Just casual and I love this stuff. It’s not gonna win any awards lol or get a good meta critic score but it’s worth a watch If your a m night fan. On a critical level I thought sound design was brilliant actually
I don’t regret seeing it, but I completely agree with your review. My friend and I were kind of laughing afterward at some of the explanations the movie gave.
Yeah, same. I saw it in an empty theater all alone while I was on a business trip. Being alone made it spooky but it was nice being able to open my snackies and eat my popcorn as loud as I wanted. Overall, I was intrigued and invested and didn't feel I'd wasted my money. Would I ever watch it again? Nah.
Just finished watching The Watchers & while I was invested in the movie's premise & there were great performances from the cast, it also falls into the same pitfalls that her dad's past movies have fallen into, especially in the final 10 minutes of the movie. However, I still highly recommend that you go watch this movie, if nothing else then to see what Ishyana Night Shyamalan brings to this movie & what I hope she will continue to do in the future, because much like her father, Ishyana has my attention.
I haven’t seen this (or read the book) yet but listening to you talk about it, it made me think of the TV series FROM that has a season 3 coming out sometime in the nearish future. Have you seen that?
Honestly, if you still have any interest in The Watchers, I would recommend the book. It was pretty good. :) Let's just say that I was [hesitantly] excited for the movie and left the theater disappointed.
Nice review Cody. I’ll wait for Tubi! I think Brandon Cronenberg is a decent example of a director who, while following in his father’s footsteps, seems to be carving his own thing. Hopefully this director will find her style.
Wow. People have been really nice in their reviews. The movie was terrible. The problem with nepotism here is that she should have done a small indie film for her first couple. I'm sure most directors are bad at first. Going big budget / high profile on your first was an unnecessary mistake.
We can all agree that every single thing our imaginations could have possibly thought of where this premise was going to go was infinitely better than what we got
I really loved this movie, in fact I loved it so much that I gave it 5 stars on Letterboxd. I can understand that this movie isn’t for everyone, but man was I fully drawn into the concept of this film. My viewing experience at the cinema definitely helped with how much I enjoyed it, in an almost completely empty cinema. I would actually disagree with you in terms of this movie being too similar to M. Night’s movies. I thought this movie had its own distinct style. Yes, it did have some similarities to her father’s movies, but I think taking inspiration from your father makes perfect sense. Very excited to see what Ishana does next.
Raise your standards. Her dad did movies like signs and the sixth sense ... But then he did terrible ones like the happening and lady in the water, which were total turds.
@@andrewcruz3837 it wasn’t as good as I thought it would be. I feel like they should have completely took out the supernatural aspect of it with the dolls etc. and just kept Longlegs a deranged psychopath killer And there needed to be more scenes of Longlegs killing. The scenes he was in I actually really liked and they felt creepy. But yeah could’ve been better I give it like a 6.5 / 10
Longlegs was, ok. A solid 5.5/10. They chickened out on so many things especially the killings. Whole time movie was just building up to something without proper pay off
This should’ve been made into a show cause I read the book and I feel like the movie was so rushed and they changed a little bit of some things but that’s what always happens but no yea this movie did not happen the way it did in my head reading the book cause that book is scary as shit so very sad about the movie especially with that cast 🤩🤩 Yea I love the movie just for the cast but no I’ve never been so mad at a movie before so yea the book was 1000 times better then the movie so highly recommend if you like reading 😊
Anyone else feel like Dakota Fanning was a better actress when she was a child? I don’t think I’ve ever been impressed with a role she’s had as an adult.
@@Reshae It is and frankly the entire main cast family. I forget their name pisses me off. Every last one of them to some degree. The father is at the top of the list. Does something risky / reckless that could make his kids have 1 less parent. Then goes “i need to get to my family”. Dude did not think about them once before taking said risk. They’re family is annoying as fuck but decent horror show.
I just watched this last night and was excited for it. Your review is spot on. I agree 1000% with everything. I'm a logic guy that loves fantasy and horror movies. This breaks the logic chain big time. But, I'm still a supporter of Dakota Fanning.. I'm sure whatever her next project is will be good. Thanks for the honest review.
Man at the end of the film: ok I have this boat that if you just run and follow the birds during the daylight you’ll easily find it and escape unharmed… but I’m not gunna go for it and just warn you guys to go find it.
Watched the movie today and I wasn‘t scared at all - topic wise I think ‚The Hallow‘ is a much better and scarier horror movie with less plot holes or ‚intended‘ twists and the lore suited better for this horror flick. Or Netflix ‚the Ritual’ did a better job on scary in-the-woods-no-way-out topic with an evil antagonist and the burden of guilt involved. I was confused that in „the watchers“ there was no twisted character dynamics in this situation locked in a rooms for some time and people usually develop a toxic behavior against one another even if they know each other but here they going along better than every other one at a Christmas dinner …
I found myself, wondering recorders of the way through the movie why the heck they look so clean while being stranded in the woods 😂 I thought the film was okay. It was a fun watch but definitely dragged at the and when they started trying a little too hard to explain what was going on. I thought the first part of the movie was really good.
Excuse me Cody, I'm not sure if you know this, but the movie is based on a novel by A.M. Shine. So I'm not sure if the film's problems were because of the screenwriting or because of its source material. Just thought I let you know.
@@Thomas_mw18I'm a huge fan of his early stuff. But lady in the water, the happening, are crap! Unbreakable was good but the two sequels got increasingly terrible. He lost his mojo. It is what it is.
I'm gonna go against the grain here. This was actually pretty interesting and had a plot that I couldn't guess. This wasn't so much horror...it was more of a Grimms' Fairy Tale.
Exactly! People hanging too much on her father as if its not common for children to take over their parents business. The story was great, unpredictable and can be a prequal and a sequal.
I ended up walking out of this movie at what I'm guessing was about halfway through. There are movies I've thought of walking out of before, but I had never actually done it. I just couldn't take it anymore. It sounds like it just kept getting worse.
Breaks my heart to hear this wasn’t very good. My hopes weren’t super high, but I was more optimistic than doubtful. Seeing Dakota Fanning again was what really sold me, she’s always been a fantastic actress so I’ll watch most anything she’s in just for her performance.
Dakotas character explaining things to the bird was painful. Very expository. The whole film was terrible. I had a Lot of questions but my main question was how does that bird have bird seeds everyday?? Thye are starving and she brought nothing in with her?
His wife is the producer and it does make sense if you know the allegory. Just like the 1980’s TV show V and the film “They Live” with Wrestler Rowdy Roddy Piper” and what it’s referencing is the Jewish Bankers and their agents planted amongst trying to imitate us very similarly so they can control society undetected. It’s consistent with all Shamalan films because M. Night Shamalan also created films with subversive religious undertones hitting Toluca like the after life and crop circles never giving the real explanation for what a crop circle is. In my videos the one titles “The Real Story Of Creation” I explain what they are, and it’s in the Jewish text “Sefer Zerzirah” while the Torah gives a Walt Disney story to the masses. Why would one religion have 2 completely different story of creation and the real story hidden from the world and even from initiates within our own religion? There is a huge financial motive.
The plot of The Watchers where the creatures mimic humans imperfectly, reminded me of modern AI. Just like these changelings, AI-generated images often have subtle inaccuracies, such as wrong numbers of fingers or asymmetrical faces. It’s unclear if that’s where the inspiration came from, but the movie’s concept felt like it would work better in short form, focusing more on immediate mystery and payoff rather than a lengthy buildup.
I thought this was one of the worst movies I’d ever seen, but 1) the tickets were free because my friend works at the theater and 2) I was sitting next to the girl I’m seeing while watching it, so I didn’t have an AWFUL time. Should’ve seen Garfield instead. I was far more interested at the thought of what you would have to say about it than I was interested by the film itself. I was right. Good review!
I think part of the problem is that this is impossible to judge on its own merit (both the film and the filmmaker) because of the direct ties to M Night. I have a similar issue with Brandon Cronenberg's films, everything is cribbed from his dad's work, down to the concepts/storylines/twists/characters.....
I absolutely loved this film. I gave it a 9/10 only because I didn’t understand the point of her remembering her mother’s death and not talking to her sister. What did it have to do with the plot?
When it comes to Nepotism, there is one good place to look to compare someone to, the world of pro wrestling, and Ric Flair, because the guy is the father of 2 kids who got involved in the business. Charlotte who is actually pretty talented in the ring, and might have made it in the business regardless of who her father is, and David who really had no business in the ring and was only there because his dad is The Nature Boy. This movie, sad to say sounds like it falls more into the David side than the Charlotte side. Hopefully she gets better, but not a good first outing. Anyways, thank you, Cody.
@@Lacey0312 not surprising, her dad hasn't made a good grade film or better in quite a long time, so people are gonna associate her work with his. Especially when the genre and style is beat for beat her dad's type of film.
The marketing was the problem here. This was not a horror film. Not even a thriller film. What this WAS was a dark fantasy film. Similar to something like Pan's Labyrinth. If you go into it thinking you're going to see a horror/thriller is exactly what kills it. If you walk in knowing you're seeing a dark fantasy film, it changes perspectives.
I stayed with the movie until the rug was pulled away ( literally) to reveal a trap door. They have been living there for months and months in this small building. In all that time and with little to do are we supposed to believe that no one ever moved the rug to see if there was anything underneath??
Well the old woman (forgot her name, was allready a watcher trapped in there. So i am sure she wanted to keep it secret as long as possible anyway. And the boy was not that smart to figure it out i guess. They feel safe enough until the glass cracks they panic and start to “think”😂
I actually liked/enjoyed this movie and so did the other 2 people I went to see this with.. 1 of them commented it felt much longer than 1 hour and 42 minutes which I agree is true but overall definitely liked this. 👍 my rating was 7/10 😊
It wasn’t bad. I got a little confused at the end on if the guys wife was a halfbreed or did the fairy just look like her 😵💫. But I agree the sound quality and scenery were good. I kinda want to visit Ireland now
I like seeing women behind the camera in charge. This is her first film and she’s young so there’s time to learn and grow. I don’t care if she does the same genre as her dad. There’s no reason that she shouldn’t if that is what she actually wants to do. With that being said, the movie was just okay. I agree the premise was great but it needed more back story. Maybe a glimpse into the lives of the people who were in the coop and how they came to be there would have made the viewer care more about them. There were three times in which I thought it was ending then there seemed to be a third act like 3 times.
Thanks for the review & since we have very similar tastes I'll pass on this one. Out to see "In a Violent Nature" tomorrow knowing what to expect without spoilers . . . well except the yoga kill being the best part or highlight.
I went into it with low expectations due to reviews, but I actually really enjoyed it. Not the same old recycled garbage that Hollywood loves churning out nowadays.
The only really good movie M. Knight movie was the Sixth Sense. Signs was passable. We just watched Trap with Josh Hartnet and in true M. Knight form IT SUCKED! I won’t waste my time with this movie.
I think the movie could have done without the ending twist but it wasn't as bad as people are making it out to be. Even a lot of what you mentioned doesn't require suspending belief. With the exception of not asking how the old lady knew the rules and actually driving into the scary woods, I could see people falling in line with the rest if that really happened.
Maybe mystery could've worked better. Like if they never even said or mentioned how the construction took place or how these watchers were here and why they were here. It could have made the story more intriguing and left you with that wtf thought process after watching the movie.
There were too many "evil forest" movies already, and the basic scenario of this movie especially made no sense. A young woman asked to deliver a bird for a pet shop having to drive through a strange unknown (dangerous?) forest and so got trapped in a place where monsters roamed around? It would make more sense if she was being set up, but it was not to be so. Still, the movie maintained the viewer's interest for the first half but then rapidly got bogged down and became boring. Numerous "rules" were mentioned, but they were there just to drive the plot, since these rules were broken without consequences. There were too many subplots and side-stories - the most obvious being the backstory involving Dakota's twin sister and mothers, which proved to be totally inconsequential. The movie should have ended after they escaped from the forest, but then needlessly added another "twist" involving the professor's wife. Yes, it tried too hard to be an M. Night movie, but not even nearly as good.
i saw it with my friend and it was ridiculously funny how little sense it all made, luckily it was a pretty empty showing so we didnt bother anyone with our jabs at the insane plot 😂 been watching reviews to make sure it wasnt just me
Just go ahead and watch it. It is nowhere near as bad as he’s making it out to be. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not Academy award-winning type, but it’s average to even better than average
I’ve been waiting for your review on this! I agree with everything you said. Overall, it was just a boring movie with too many scenes explaining things. I cared more about the bird surviving than any of the characters.
I actually liked this movie. But speaking of plotholes one GIGANTIC hole in a movie that everyone seems to love and I hated was late night with the devil. It's a tape that we are meant to believe we are watching of an old broadcast. However the scene we're everything goes nuts was hypnotism. IN FACT they PLAYED the scene back during this filming. HOW WERE WE ABLE TO SEE WHAT THE GUY SAW?!
The start of the movie was good and had that really creepy mysterious atmosphere, but when she meets the group of people I already could tell that there was something wrong with the old lady and she was keeping secrets… at that point it got all predictable and kinda boring cause the movie keeps going on even if you think it already ended.
“Daaad, can you help me finish this movie?? Daaaad!”
“Hold on honey let me just write up the plot twist real quick”
I wonder if making bad movies is a genetic trait they have.
"No I'm writing signs part 3
The plot twist I skipped over two, now eat your supper"
@@Fourtune1 but thor ragnarok was good right..
😂😂😂😂
The marketing was significantly better than the movie
Wonder why....
Strong disagree. The marketing made me think it was gonna be trash, but the movie I thought was actually average to better than average. And if you put this movie together with all of M night Shyamalan’s movies, it’s in the top half.
Damn. That's exactly what I knew but didn't want to read. 🥂
❤absolutamente
I mean, that’s how a shamaylan movie is?
Bad or not it’s good to see Dakota fanning back in a starring role. She was great as a child actor.
I love her.
If you want a good film with her as an adult check out Brimstone, that's where she shines imo.
She's in The Equalizer 3. And Ripley
Much better as a child actor. Meh as an adult.
Yes, BUT… she is STILL NOT able to utilize all of her skills here 😩🥺🥱
This film seemed like it was about to end 3 different times and every time I wished it already had
I agree with this... I would have been fine with her clearing out the professor's office and that's it.
Agreed! I imagined she'd see a glimpse of the "professor" when she went to clear out the office, and that would be the end, but no, it dragged and dragged and got worse and worse.
@@You-qt5dw why was the house so dark?! 😭 just like the beginning I couldn’t see a dang thing.
@@Lacey0312 that would’ve been fine with me. They dragged it out so hard
It's called the watchers because I watched it 10 times 3 nights in a row 😆 🤣l😂 😴
Agreed on all fronts, the explanation for how the coop was built has particularly stuck with me for just how ridiculous it is and I have no idea how they expected people to just accept that
Yeah
It’s called suspended disbelief. They had to set up the story/scenario, so they did. Be grateful
@@austins.2495 Every story has to be set up, that doesn’t excuse the set up making no sense. “Be grateful” that I got a movie I didn’t enjoy? You know it’s ok to dislike movies right? I’m sure it’s happened to you before, it’s fine.
I'm glad that the twist wasn't that it was all a reality show because that would have been soooooo obvious..
i didn’t think of that being the answer at all while i was watching that but i think that would’ve actually been cooler
The fact that they were called watchers, were all in a room together without knowing each other, ans most of all that they themselves were watching a reality show and it panned back to this so many times.
@@skybln3163 guys, it would have been a corny mishmash of The Village and The Truman Show lol.
That is actually exactly what I thought the twist would be 😂
What was the twist ?
Totally agree! They lost me at how not distressed they were being basically held captives and don’t even get me started in the married one and her nonchalant attitude. I mean have it make sense!
Yeah, the movie really flubbed the characters and their emotional states. In the book: Madeline is a no nonsense b*tch, strict, talks down to (or straight up yells at) Ciara and Daniel, seems to know more than she lets on, and she creates tension in the group because of her survivalist means. (She tells Mina to her face later that if she didn't make it to the door in time, she would have shut it in her face.)
Ciara is quiet and sweet, convinced that her husband was still alive and getting help, and after Madeline wins over the "open the door" debate, she becomes a depressed mess and angry at the others (because she truly believed it was who she thought it was outside).
Daniel was kind and sympathetic. Often put down the most by Madeline, even though he was always trying his best and also trying to keep Ciara's spirits up. Madeline's treatment of him brought back bad memories of his which eventually lead to him making a decision out of desperation.
There was a dynamic that felt organic and believable in the book. Didn't really feel any of that tension in the movie.
This seems like a situation where a father helps his kid out with their homework but ultimately ends up doing their homework for them.
Lmao great analogy
@@CodyLeachYT Thanks.
"i dont see a f**king washer machine" lololol I cackled
I bet you did
I was waiting for this review lollll. It’s such a strange movie that really doesn’t even try to be scary or tense. Like the entire premise of the creatures “watching” them is barely in the movie? And instead we get overly complex lore that includes fairies. Whole thing was so awkward
And don't forget the most important rule; Don't ever EVER say "I'll be right back" because you won't be back.
I'm really starting to get sick of directors and writers marketing strange and bizarre things and the explanation is, they just exist...
The creatures were forced into the forest and to take shelter underground and used to be like gods, and used to live with humans... they explained that in the movie... They didn't just 'exist'.
@@RealBradMiller those "creatures" just existed, that's my pet peeve. It reminds me of his movie old, the reason people were aging rapidly was because of the rock formations... Ok and?? These twists just seem so lacking imo. I didn't like the movie "us" but at least they gave us a believable explanation for the clones (ums government project) instead of "they just came about 1 day"
@@thedonald011 Us is better than The Watchers but that isn't saying much. That movie was a complete mess. Stunning any professional reviewer gave that a thumbs up. Actually Peele reminds me of M. Night. His early work (Get Out) was great but Us and Nope are just plain bad. He might end up a one hit wonder like M. Night.
@@greggibson33 100%
@@thedonald011 They are supposed to be like humans, dogs, cats, birds and other animals that nature just created them and its just simple like that.
The movie gave them a huge amount of backstory so i dont understand why you are complaining.
Complain about movies like Smile instead where the demon thing did not get any backstory at all during the entire movie.
She is following in her father's footsteps.
You need to remember that M Night didn't make his debut with the sixth sense, that was his second film after wide awake, so who knows...
🤣🤣
It’s a start.
Not the best start, but hope she grows & gets better than her father.🤔
@@KeeperProtector let's hope so she never gets her hands on a beloved animated cartoon, if so she will be superior to her dad
I will say it was somewhat close to the book. THe book had about 3 twists. HOWEVER she did change the 3rd act, and the characters lost a lot of their traits. The book Mina was very smart and NEVER went into one of the nests. I love the book, but the movie dropped for me.
Agreed. I really enjoyed the book! But the movie....well, it really fell short.
One thing I did really like was the casting of Madeline. She looked and sounded the part (imo), but a big coat replaced the grey shawl she always wore and they made her way nicer in the movie. :/
The Shyamalan’s are story tellers, not “horror filmmakers”. I’m grateful for whenever they come out with something new for us :)
I watched this through the lens of a fairytale or graphic novel and enjoyed it like that. I know you shouldn’t need to reframe a movie yourself but it helps me. Lot of frustrating elements for sure. She’s definitely a Shyamalan lol
I saw this yesterday and had almost the same thoughts as you Cody. Irish folklore like banshees and changelings are genuinely terrifying so I was intrigued but this was meh. Bold, but meh. The only word that rattled in my head regarding Dakotas performance was wooden and I truly don’t think she had a lot to work with the writing. Genuinely loved the creature design and I’m a sucker for a good fantasy tie in but they just ran through all possibly lore ideas in the third act. I had an idea how I wanted to see it end so let’s discuss Cody! Lol great review
This movie almost made me cry. It was that bad that I just wanted it to end, but every time I thought it was about to end, it just continues.😭
Cinematography is due to the DP not the director, so a movie can be shot gorgeously, but that is due to the cinematographers efficiency not the direction (In most cases anyway). also adaptation is due to the scrip writer, direction is reflected on the actors performances.
Ahh, I've been on many fim sets, and the look and blocking of shots is a marriage between director and DP. So, that's not totally true.
@@k-slay4407Which part is not totally true? Blocking refers to the movement of the talent relative to the camera and vice versa, and it has little to do with aesthetics or shot sizes. A DP is responsible for lens selection, camera operation, and lighting. So, I’m not sure which part is not totally true.
@AtlantaCinemaniacs Figure out what the word "marriage" means (and I don't mean the one with rings), and you'll understand. 😅
@@k-slay4407 Marriage is a partnership between two people, and it does not inherently define their roles within the relationship. Similarly, the collaboration between a Director of Photography (DP) and a director does not imply that their roles overlap.
You seem to be overlooking my points: Cinematography is the responsibility of the Cinematographer. Blocking refers to the movement of actors in relation to the camera and vice versa, and it has minimal connection to Cinematography. Additionally, adaptation is the domain of the scriptwriter, and direction is reflected in the actors’ performances.
I suggest you educate yourself on the distinct roles of a Director of Photography (DP) and a Director. Renowned DP Roger Deakins often discusses the nuances of cinematography and his responsibilities in the field. look up his videos.🐵🐒
@@k-slay4407 Marriage is a partnership between two people, and it does not inherently define their roles within the relationship. Similarly, the collaboration between a Director of Photography (DP) and a director does not imply that their roles overlap. You seem to be overlooking my points: Cinematography is the responsibility of the Cinematographer. Blocking refers to the movement of actors in relation to the camera and vice versa, and it has minimal connection to Cinematography. Additionally, adaptation is the domain of the scriptwriter, and direction is reflected in the actors’ performances. I suggest you educate yourself on the distinct roles of a Director of Photography (DP) and a Director. Renowned DP Roger Deakins often discusses the nuances of cinematography and his responsibilities in the field. look up his videos.🐵🐒
Saw a bunch of people walking into a showing last night as I resisted the urge to tell them to watch literally anything else
They should've seen Bad Boys lol.
@@OrthoLouOh geez it's THAT bad?!
I wish I would have seen Furiosa instead 🙂↕️
@@Terminal.Rainbows Nope, Bad Boys was awesome.
@@OrthoLou aye thank goodness, I thought you meant this was better than Bad Boys lol
I love your background setup. Is it a practical or a digital setup? Either the Myers peeking in the window and Freddy in the shadows really sets the mood.
I liked this movie overall despite its flaws but I also agree with Cody that this might as well have been a movie made by M. Night. The style of the movie and even the story is very much reminiscent to her father’s movies which is both a good and a bad thing.
I also agree that Ishana needs to develop and create a movie that stands on its own and is different from her father’s. One thing that probably didn’t help is that M. Night produced this, so that probably also makes it even more difficult to figure out where M. Night’s influence ends and Ishana’s begins. Again, if this didn’t feel so much like a typical M. Night movie, I personally would have respected & appreciated what was being done here.
I just watched this movie and then searched for reviews , personally I really enjoyed the movie, a escape , which is what movies are meant to be
the cinematography was absolutely beautiful, especially in a lot of the first act. Gotta start somewhere I suppose
This film has supposedly made $15M on a budget of $30 M, so it doesn’t appear we’ll be getting a sequel to answer more of our questions.
Loved it. It’s a critic’s nightmare and agree on Cody’s critiques. But I’m not a critical movie watcher. Just casual and I love this stuff. It’s not gonna win any awards lol or get a good meta critic score but it’s worth a watch If your a m night fan. On a critical level I thought sound design was brilliant actually
it's totally not worth the watch. Skip it
Clunky and not feasible at all. Concept might have been okay but the way it was executed was horrid.
@@Tbone.357 but you said it was worth the watch...what about your latest comment says "worth it"?
it’s always a good day when cody uploads
When the movie is 1hr 45 min long only and it feels like it's not ending and feels like 3 hours you know you've done something wrong.
I don’t regret seeing it, but I completely agree with your review. My friend and I were kind of laughing afterward at some of the explanations the movie gave.
Yeah, same. I saw it in an empty theater all alone while I was on a business trip. Being alone made it spooky but it was nice being able to open my snackies and eat my popcorn as loud as I wanted.
Overall, I was intrigued and invested and didn't feel I'd wasted my money. Would I ever watch it again? Nah.
Just finished watching The Watchers & while I was invested in the movie's premise & there were great performances from the cast, it also falls into the same pitfalls that her dad's past movies have fallen into, especially in the final 10 minutes of the movie. However, I still highly recommend that you go watch this movie, if nothing else then to see what Ishyana Night Shyamalan brings to this movie & what I hope she will continue to do in the future, because much like her father, Ishyana has my attention.
Like Father like daughter
@@BiGSmoke-.- Indeed
Only a great performance from Dakota and the older woman. The rest of the cast didn't give a good performance.
I haven’t seen this (or read the book) yet but listening to you talk about it, it made me think of the TV series FROM that has a season 3 coming out sometime in the nearish future. Have you seen that?
They seen the concept for that and made a shitty movie out of it .
Honestly, if you still have any interest in The Watchers, I would recommend the book. It was pretty good. :)
Let's just say that I was [hesitantly] excited for the movie and left the theater disappointed.
Oh good. I've been waiting for this one!
Hello Cody, what is going to happen with the Carpenter review series?
That was the problem I had with Jordan Peele’s Us. The more I thought about it the less I liked it. It fell apart the more it explained itself.
Nice review Cody. I’ll wait for Tubi! I think Brandon Cronenberg is a decent example of a director who, while following in his father’s footsteps, seems to be carving his own thing. Hopefully this director will find her style.
So what you're saying is, Chris Stuckmann probably wont be reviewing this movie?
Ugh that video he made about Madame Web made absolutely no sense
@blizzard-storm97 He basically said, "Go watch the drinker if you want to hear a bunch of complaining.
I watched the Watchers today. It was an ok movie to me with an interesting premise. This was another good movie review Cody. ❤❤❤❤
Wow. People have been really nice in their reviews. The movie was terrible. The problem with nepotism here is that she should have done a small indie film for her first couple. I'm sure most directors are bad at first. Going big budget / high profile on your first was an unnecessary mistake.
We can all agree that every single thing our imaginations could have possibly thought of where this premise was going to go was infinitely better than what we got
Didn't even hear about this
I really loved this movie, in fact I loved it so much that I gave it 5 stars on Letterboxd. I can understand that this movie isn’t for everyone, but man was I fully drawn into the concept of this film. My viewing experience at the cinema definitely helped with how much I enjoyed it, in an almost completely empty cinema.
I would actually disagree with you in terms of this movie being too similar to M. Night’s movies. I thought this movie had its own distinct style. Yes, it did have some similarities to her father’s movies, but I think taking inspiration from your father makes perfect sense. Very excited to see what Ishana does next.
Raise your standards. Her dad did movies like signs and the sixth sense
... But then he did terrible ones like the happening and lady in the water, which were total turds.
That’s a shame.
Well at least we can all look forward to Longlegs. It’s gonna be good
Lmao how do you feel about longlegs now? That movie was 🗑️
@@andrewcruz3837 it wasn’t as good as I thought it would be. I feel like they should have completely took out the supernatural aspect of it with the dolls etc. and just kept Longlegs a deranged psychopath killer
And there needed to be more scenes of Longlegs killing. The scenes he was in I actually really liked and they felt creepy. But yeah could’ve been better
I give it like a 6.5 / 10
@@MasonicMafia 3/10
Longlegs was, ok. A solid 5.5/10. They chickened out on so many things especially the killings. Whole time movie was just building up to something without proper pay off
THE ENTIRE TIME THEY WERE STANDING ON A DOOR TO A BUNKER 😮
This should’ve been made into a show cause I read the book and I feel like the movie was so rushed and they changed a little bit of some things but that’s what always happens but no yea this movie did not happen the way it did in my head reading the book cause that book is scary as shit so very sad about the movie especially with that cast 🤩🤩 Yea I love the movie just for the cast but no I’ve never been so mad at a movie before so yea the book was 1000 times better then the movie so highly recommend if you like reading 😊
Anyone else feel like Dakota Fanning was a better actress when she was a child? I don’t think I’ve ever been impressed with a role she’s had as an adult.
You’d like this show called From its a horror tv series from same creators as lost. Slightly similar premise
It’s good, but the writing can be a bit tiresome at times.
@@Reshae It is and frankly the entire main cast family. I forget their name pisses me off. Every last one of them to some degree. The father is at the top of the list.
Does something risky / reckless that could make his kids have 1 less parent. Then goes “i need to get to my family”. Dude did not think about them once before taking said risk.
They’re family is annoying as fuck but decent horror show.
I just watched this last night and was excited for it. Your review is spot on. I agree 1000% with everything. I'm a logic guy that loves fantasy and horror movies. This breaks the logic chain big time. But, I'm still a supporter of Dakota Fanning.. I'm sure whatever her next project is will be good. Thanks for the honest review.
Man at the end of the film: ok I have this boat that if you just run and follow the birds during the daylight you’ll easily find it and escape unharmed… but I’m not gunna go for it and just warn you guys to go find it.
Watched the movie today and I wasn‘t scared at all - topic wise I think ‚The Hallow‘ is a much better and scarier horror movie with less plot holes or ‚intended‘ twists and the lore suited better for this horror flick. Or Netflix ‚the Ritual’ did a better job on scary in-the-woods-no-way-out topic with an evil antagonist and the burden of guilt involved. I was confused that in „the watchers“ there was no twisted character dynamics in this situation locked in a rooms for some time and people usually develop a toxic behavior against one another even if they know each other but here they going along better than every other one at a Christmas dinner …
I’m so torn on this movie I’m not sure if I like the twist that much but I like the build for the most part
Noone else noticed that there was no road where her car was parked? Shes literally driving through the woods on no path. Where they do that at?
I found myself, wondering recorders of the way through the movie why the heck they look so clean while being stranded in the woods 😂 I thought the film was okay. It was a fun watch but definitely dragged at the and when they started trying a little too hard to explain what was going on. I thought the first part of the movie was really good.
You thought they looked clean? 😅
Excuse me Cody, I'm not sure if you know this, but the movie is based on a novel by A.M. Shine. So I'm not sure if the film's problems were because of the screenwriting or because of its source material. Just thought I let you know.
I thought the same. Dakota’s character was emotional less. I didn’t buy intro her story.
Look at her IMDB. Her dad handed her a directing career. No hard work.
And you would've done the same thing for your kid
Never seen a director/producer whatever be SO hit and miss in my life than M Night
He’s not hit and miss in a fans eyes. I mean yeah last air bender and after earth are awful but the rest are highly entertaining
@@Thomas_mw18 Old is awful
@@Trill_Tour cool concept and decent. I wouldn’t rewatch but good enough.
Yeah hard to think of another one. Maybe Brian De Palma
@@Thomas_mw18I'm a huge fan of his early stuff. But lady in the water, the happening, are crap!
Unbreakable was good but the two sequels got increasingly terrible. He lost his mojo. It is what it is.
Cody, when you started going into the plot holes I FELL OUT laughing! 😂
I'm gonna go against the grain here. This was actually pretty interesting and had a plot that I couldn't guess. This wasn't so much horror...it was more of a Grimms' Fairy Tale.
Exactly! People hanging too much on her father as if its not common for children to take over their parents business.
The story was great, unpredictable and can be a prequal and a sequal.
I actually loooved the movie 🤷🏻♀️
Great review, Cody
I have seen it today, was good imo only the ending was bad 7/10
Well, I'm reading the book while I wait for the movie to hit streaming.
Wait there’s a book
@@JRAYDABEASTit’s based off of the book with the same name
You know it's gonna be good when Cody starts with some shade 😂
I ended up walking out of this movie at what I'm guessing was about halfway through. There are movies I've thought of walking out of before, but I had never actually done it. I just couldn't take it anymore. It sounds like it just kept getting worse.
I walked out because someone farted loudly in the seat in front of me.
haha There were teens running up and down the isles and talking and playing music and honestly I didnt even blame them.
Breaks my heart to hear this wasn’t very good. My hopes weren’t super high, but I was more optimistic than doubtful. Seeing Dakota Fanning again was what really sold me, she’s always been a fantastic actress so I’ll watch most anything she’s in just for her performance.
Dakotas character explaining things to the bird was painful. Very expository. The whole film was terrible. I had a Lot of questions but my main question was how does that bird have bird seeds everyday?? Thye are starving and she brought nothing in with her?
Yeah, the rug/bunker...was a hard one to swallow.
I am so confused. she legit does not believe them to the point that she upsets the monsters so much they destroy the coop
Brilliant, this made me laugh 😂😅 think I'll just wait for it to come out on streaming so. Thanks 👍
His wife is the producer and it does make sense if you know the allegory.
Just like the 1980’s TV show V and the film “They Live” with Wrestler Rowdy Roddy Piper” and what it’s referencing is the Jewish Bankers and their agents planted amongst trying to imitate us very similarly so they can control society undetected. It’s consistent with all Shamalan films because M. Night Shamalan also created films with subversive religious undertones hitting Toluca like the after life and crop circles never giving the real explanation for what a crop circle is.
In my videos the one titles “The Real Story Of Creation” I explain what they are, and it’s in the Jewish text “Sefer Zerzirah” while the Torah gives a Walt Disney story to the masses. Why would one religion have 2 completely different story of creation and the real story hidden from the world and even from initiates within our own religion?
There is a huge financial motive.
The plot of The Watchers where the creatures mimic humans imperfectly, reminded me of modern AI. Just like these changelings, AI-generated images often have subtle inaccuracies, such as wrong numbers of fingers or asymmetrical faces. It’s unclear if that’s where the inspiration came from, but the movie’s concept felt like it would work better in short form, focusing more on immediate mystery and payoff rather than a lengthy buildup.
I thought this was one of the worst movies I’d ever seen, but 1) the tickets were free because my friend works at the theater and 2) I was sitting next to the girl I’m seeing while watching it, so I didn’t have an AWFUL time. Should’ve seen Garfield instead.
I was far more interested at the thought of what you would have to say about it than I was interested by the film itself. I was right. Good review!
You haven’t seen enough bad movies
@@vanessa0111 ok?
I think part of the problem is that this is impossible to judge on its own merit (both the film and the filmmaker) because of the direct ties to M Night.
I have a similar issue with Brandon Cronenberg's films, everything is cribbed from his dad's work, down to the concepts/storylines/twists/characters.....
I absolutely loved this film. I gave it a 9/10 only because I didn’t understand the point of her remembering her mother’s death and not talking to her sister. What did it have to do with the plot?
When it comes to Nepotism, there is one good place to look to compare someone to, the world of pro wrestling, and Ric Flair, because the guy is the father of 2 kids who got involved in the business. Charlotte who is actually pretty talented in the ring, and might have made it in the business regardless of who her father is, and David who really had no business in the ring and was only there because his dad is The Nature Boy. This movie, sad to say sounds like it falls more into the David side than the Charlotte side. Hopefully she gets better, but not a good first outing. Anyways, thank you, Cody.
“I don’t see a washing machine in this bunker” 😂 wow that makes me so mad that they couldn’t even make shit make sense yk like that’s so lazy
I wouldn't say late, your the only person I've seen review this movie.
I really thought I was going to see more reviews by UA-cam creators?? I am confused by the lack of response to this movie.
@@Lacey0312 not surprising, her dad hasn't made a good grade film or better in quite a long time, so people are gonna associate her work with his. Especially when the genre and style is beat for beat her dad's type of film.
The marketing was the problem here. This was not a horror film. Not even a thriller film. What this WAS was a dark fantasy film. Similar to something like Pan's Labyrinth. If you go into it thinking you're going to see a horror/thriller is exactly what kills it. If you walk in knowing you're seeing a dark fantasy film, it changes perspectives.
I stayed with the movie until the rug was pulled away ( literally) to reveal a trap door. They have been living there for months and months in this small building. In all that time and with little to do are we supposed to believe that no one ever moved the rug to see if there was anything underneath??
Well the old woman (forgot her name, was allready a watcher trapped in there. So i am sure she wanted to keep it secret as long as possible anyway. And the boy was not that smart to figure it out i guess. They feel safe enough until the glass cracks they panic and start to “think”😂
I actually liked/enjoyed this movie and so did the other 2 people I went to see this with.. 1 of them commented it felt much longer than 1 hour and 42 minutes which I agree is true but overall definitely liked this. 👍 my rating was 7/10 😊
It wasn’t bad. I got a little confused at the end on if the guys wife was a halfbreed or did the fairy just look like her 😵💫. But I agree the sound quality and scenery were good. I kinda want to visit Ireland now
Did you see the third-act twist coming?
Bruce Willis was a ghost as well.
@@A_UA-cam_Commenter Wrong movie, commenter.
To be honest this movie seems like a terrible version of the TV show "from" that show is actually amazing
I like seeing women behind the camera in charge. This is her first film and she’s young so there’s time to learn and grow. I don’t care if she does the same genre as her dad. There’s no reason that she shouldn’t if that is what she actually wants to do. With that being said, the movie was just okay. I agree the premise was great but it needed more back story. Maybe a glimpse into the lives of the people who were in the coop and how they came to be there would have made the viewer care more about them. There were three times in which I thought it was ending then there seemed to be a third act like 3 times.
Thanks for the review & since we have very similar tastes I'll pass on this one. Out to see "In a Violent Nature" tomorrow knowing what to expect without spoilers . . . well except the yoga kill being the best part or highlight.
This was a really fantastic movie especially The first half it has a really amazing atmosphere 🤷♂️
I went into it with low expectations due to reviews, but I actually really enjoyed it. Not the same old recycled garbage that Hollywood loves churning out nowadays.
The only really good movie M. Knight movie was the Sixth Sense. Signs was passable. We just watched Trap with Josh Hartnet and in true M. Knight form IT SUCKED! I won’t waste my time with this movie.
I think the movie could have done without the ending twist but it wasn't as bad as people are making it out to be. Even a lot of what you mentioned doesn't require suspending belief. With the exception of not asking how the old lady knew the rules and actually driving into the scary woods, I could see people falling in line with the rest if that really happened.
Maybe mystery could've worked better. Like if they never even said or mentioned how the construction took place or how these watchers were here and why they were here. It could have made the story more intriguing and left you with that wtf thought process after watching the movie.
There were too many "evil forest" movies already, and the basic scenario of this movie especially made no sense. A young woman asked to deliver a bird for a pet shop having to drive through a strange unknown (dangerous?) forest and so got trapped in a place where monsters roamed around? It would make more sense if she was being set up, but it was not to be so. Still, the movie maintained the viewer's interest for the first half but then rapidly got bogged down and became boring. Numerous "rules" were mentioned, but they were there just to drive the plot, since these rules were broken without consequences. There were too many subplots and side-stories - the most obvious being the backstory involving Dakota's twin sister and mothers, which proved to be totally inconsequential. The movie should have ended after they escaped from the forest, but then needlessly added another "twist" involving the professor's wife. Yes, it tried too hard to be an M. Night movie, but not even nearly as good.
Where'd you get that shirt? Toxic Avenger is the shit
Weird edit choice at 14:01: ''Who the fuck do you think is just hanging out in the woods??'' .....''Then she comes across this group of people...'' 😅
i saw it with my friend and it was ridiculously funny how little sense it all made, luckily it was a pretty empty showing so we didnt bother anyone with our jabs at the insane plot 😂 been watching reviews to make sure it wasnt just me
I was at the screening where talked and talked. Pretty much my favorite movie
Oh nooooo, I was so looking forward to this. I'm going to skip any spoilers because I still want to see it, but I think I'll be waiting for streaming.
Just go ahead and watch it. It is nowhere near as bad as he’s making it out to be. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not Academy award-winning type, but it’s average to even better than average
Go see it its pretty okay
Absolutely agree 💯 with your review 😘👌
I’ve been waiting for your review on this! I agree with everything you said. Overall, it was just a boring movie with too many scenes explaining things. I cared more about the bird surviving than any of the characters.
I actually liked this movie.
But speaking of plotholes one GIGANTIC hole in a movie that everyone seems to love and I hated was late night with the devil. It's a tape that we are meant to believe we are watching of an old broadcast. However the scene we're everything goes nuts was hypnotism. IN FACT they PLAYED the scene back during this filming. HOW WERE WE ABLE TO SEE WHAT THE GUY SAW?!
i guess, the audience is supposed to be hypnotized as well 🤷🏼
The start of the movie was good and had that really creepy mysterious atmosphere, but when she meets the group of people I already could tell that there was something wrong with the old lady and she was keeping secrets… at that point it got all predictable and kinda boring cause the movie keeps going on even if you think it already ended.
I didn't know Ireland had forest?