Directed by Chloe Okuno
Written by Chloe Okuno and Zack Ford
Starring Maika Monroe, Karl Glusman, Burn Gorman
MPAA Rating: Rated R for some bloody violence, language, and some sexual material/nudity
Runtime: 91 minutes
In select theaters June 3, VOD June 21

by Victoria Potenza, Staff Writer

The creative pairing of Chloe Okuno and Maika Monroe has had me excited about this film since it first started making the festival circuit a few months back. I have been a fan of Monroe for years with her roles in The Guest and It Follows and Okuno blew me away with her “Storm Drain” installment in V/H/S/94 (Hail Raatma!). I found that this creative duo did not disappoint. Watcher is a slow burn of a film that hit me on a very personal level. While this is overall a film about gaslighting and men not believing women, it is also a film about loneliness and how the people we love can often disappoint us even when they don’t mean to.

Watcher follows Julia (Maika Monroe) who follows her husband Francis (Karl Glusman) to Romania for a job opportunity. Julia is often left alone trying to acclimate to a country that is not her own. Soon they realize a serial killer is on the loose, someone who seems to be stalking lost, lonely women. After noticing a man staring at her across the street from her home, she begins to worry that this man might be the killer they are looking for, and that she might be his next target. With a husband who is resistant to believing her and who is too busy with his job to help her, Julia must figure out if her worst fears might be true. 

One of the first things that really struck me about the film was how through its dialogue and the body language of its actors, you immediately empathize with and experience the loneliness that Julia feels as soon as she gets to Romania. Her husband is from Romania and is able to speak the language. Oftentimes we hear him speaking the native tongue but we do not have subtitles to know what he is saying. We are forced into the same confusion and loneliness that Julia is as she is constantly boxed out to those around her. While he thinks he is protecting her by choosing what he wants to translate, really he is making her feel like she is excluded. Without the ability to speak their language, and no real friends, Francis is her only lifeline and even he does not try to make Julia feel like she is a part of the world he brought her into. It is heartbreaking to watch and an intriguing character drama, even without the additional serial killer storyline.

The drab color palette of Watcher enhances the feelings of loneliness and the unwelcoming climate of the world Julia is in. Everything about the film isolates her and makes it harder for her to be believed. She is an outsider, and in a way this makes her kindred with the serial killer. Both of them are voyeurs, because there is something about them that makes them different, and makes them unlike the rest of the people living their lives. The killer has his dark secrets and Julia can’t do much else but watch as she hopes to find a way into the world around her.

There are subtle differences in Maika Monroe’s performances, and she does a fantastic job of playing the outsider, and the gaslit woman. You want to believe her so badly. The stages her character goes through are stages that many women can relate to and appreciate. The struggle to be believed and heard, second guessing herself, and the fear that she is actually as crazy as everyone is making her out to be. Glusman (of Devs) is great at playing a husband who is sort-of-shitty, but nice in appearances. Finally, there is character actor Burn Gorman (The Dark Knight Rises) as the neighbor. He is great at playing creepy loner characters. There is one scene in particular with him and Monroe talking on a train that is truly sad and chilling. At times this is an understated slow burn, but its characters are fascinating to watch and spend time with. 

I know that I can certainly relate to the feelings of being watched, or worrying that someone might cause you harm. When I first moved to Philly I remember feeling lost and out of sorts and needed to rely on my gut to make it through situations I was uncertain about. Okuno does an incredible job of creating a lonely world with a character you feel for throughout her experience. While I do not want to give much away, I truly loved the major climax of the film. It is an anxiety- inducing and stressful ride, but Okuno knows exactly what she is doing and the film is incredibly satisfying. 

Okuno is a very talented up-and-coming director, and Maika Monroe is an actor that should be given the credit she is due. Support a fascinating female-led production, and check out Watcher when you can.