The Watchers is probably not a movie I would typically have gone to see in the theaters. Maybe I would have watched it at home eventually, but Albert asked my husband and I to go check out one of the new releases while he was away, so we did. The movie is based on the book The Watchers by A.M. Shine, and stars Dakota Fanning as Mina. It happens to be the directorial debut of M. Night Shamalyan’s daughter, Ishana Night Shamalyan, and there is no doubt that she was influenced by her father’s style. The movie is creepy, tense, and of course, contains twists.

While on her way to deliver a parrot to a customer, pet shop employee Mina gets stranded in a large, isolated forest in Ireland. She somehow finds her way to a very small, bunker-type house and meets three others who have also been stranded: Madeline (Olwen Fouéré), who acts as a leader for the group; Ciara (Georgina Campbell), whose partner had recently disappeared into the forest; and Daniel (Oliver Finnegan), who is impulsive and a bit odd. Madeline explains that every night the residents of the house must line up in front of the window and allow themselves to be watched by the Watchers, creatures who rule the forest and will kill anyone who is still out in the woods by nightfall. Over time, the Watchers become increasingly hostile toward the group, and the group is desperate for a way to escape the woods. 

I want to keep the summary vague since part of the charm of The Watchers is the mystery of it all. I will say that the movie does a great job creating and maintaining an eerie and uncomfortable atmosphere. There are a few jump scares, and the Watchers are definitely super cool looking, albeit horrifying. Unfortunately, a lot of the movie feels under-developed. The time in the bunker feels rushed, with most of the focus on the group’s time in the woods themselves. Mina’s backstory felt unfulfilled, as do most of the characters. And while the twists are fun, the resolution felt too simple. The movie also seemed to struggle a bit with direction. At first, it was moving toward a “reality TV, people-watching-people” theme, with thickly laid symbolism. Then, it seemed as though it was becoming a commentary on artificial intelligence (AI), which would have been very interesting. Unfortunately, it completely abandoned that theme and jumped into the fantasy realm. If you enjoy fantasy like my husband does, you’ll probably like it more than I did. 

So how can one view The Watchers through a Catholic lens? Well, the overall message seems to be one of forgiveness, both forgiving yourself and forgiving others. Unfortunately, I have to spoil the movie to delve into the theme, so everything beyond this is a spoiler.

Mina reveals early on in the movie that her mother died fifteen years ago. We later learn that Mina blames herself for causing the car accident that killed her mother. As a result, she becomes hardened, defiant, and isolated. Through Mina’s time in the woods, she realizes that she needs to forgive herself and reconnect with her sister. I really wish we saw more leading up to Mina’s revelation, as this could have been more powerful than it was. 

We also see forgiveness act as the device through which the resolution of The Watchers is brought about. It turns out that the Watchers are actually fairies who seek revenge on humans for their loss of wings and for being banished to life in underground tunnels. They also have the ability to shapeshift, hence why they “watch” humans, to become them. Mina discovers that her fearless leader in the bunker, Madeline, is actually a human-fairy hybrid. Mina talks Madeline out of killing her by appealing to her humanity. As Madeline releases her anger toward humans, she grows her wings back. Unfortunately, this all happens so fast that it feels empty, but the value of forgiveness cannot be understated. We, too, are called to forgive ourselves for our past sins that we have confessed and to forgive people who have hurt us. For some of us, those people may be our own family members. Forgiving people who don’t seem to “deserve” forgiveness can be extremely difficult, but carrying that hurt and resentment only delays our healing. We may find ourselves turning to sin to deal with our pain, like sex or substance use, as Mina did. However, the Lord does not want us to live a lonely, hurt-filled life. He calls us to live life abundantly. Forgiveness is essential for an abundant and fulfilling life, and Jesus models that forgiveness perfectly by taking on humanity and dying for our sins. It is worth noting, too, that forgiveness does not mean you need to invite the person who hurt you back into your life, but it does mean freeing yourself of any anger you hold toward them.

Overall, The Watchers is lacking in a lot of areas. I hear the book is really good, so if you like horror, you may want to check that out first.