Ryan Murphy, who also made the recent smash hits “American Horror Story” and “Dahmer,” is the show’s creator and director, so I had no qualms about diving into “The Watcher” right away.
Imagine buying the home of your dreams, only to start receiving strange and threatening messages after you move in, claiming that someone is “always monitoring” you and your family. You’ll find yourself drawn into an interesting whirlpool of dread, wrath, anxiety, and contempt as you watch the 2022 series on Netflix. Because none of its characters are endearing, you will find that it soon begins to have an effect on your mental capabilities. The characters’ continual knee-jerk responses to everything, as well as the story twists, are over the top and unnecessarily overdone.
Westfield, New Jersey, an hour outside of Manhattan, seems like a good fit for the Brannock family. With their combined resources, they are just able to buy the sprawling house and the necessary repairs to make it suitable for their requirements. Due to his thriving ceramics business, Dean (Bobby Cannavale) is able to spend more time with Nora (a miscast Naomi Watts) on their daily commute. However, the neighbours are weird and unwelcoming, and you need their permission to make any changes to the ancient home’s protected status. The Bannock family has trouble getting along with the committee’s leader, Pearl (the eccentric Mia Farrow), and her brother, Jasper (Terry Kinney). A foreboding letter comes, and then another.
There is a great deal of the hilarity and outlandishness that characterises all of Murphy’s works in The Watcher. All of the supporting cast members are over-the-top caricatures, and the story seems wrong in fundamental ways. Any sane person would not purchase a home of this magnitude without first determining whether or not the surrounding area is desirable. This is a genuine incident, however, so you might argue that some individuals would buy ridiculous things solely to impress others.
The Watcher show’s art direction is superb. Even though the home itself is stunning, the way it was filmed gave off a chilling, eerie vibe. The inside of the home is never completely shown to us. Each time a character moves into one of these acute angles, you should be on guard for anything sinister to be hidden there. Something unpleasant may be waiting on the other side, so you have to be prepared. It’s not just these two spots; the remainder of the area is rich in character, too. It’s an aesthetically pleasing mess of decay.
The Watcher isn’t without flaws, but it’s still a fascinating and exciting show from Ryan Murphy. The element of surprise will appeal to a wide audience, who will have hours of fun puzzling over the solution. The season runs for just seven episodes, ensuring that it won’t drag on for too long. It’s great for a weekend of nonstop viewing.
Check out The Watcher only on Netflix right now!
