Stranded in the forest, a woman seeks shelter, only to find herself trapped with three strangers, watched by mysterious creatures every night. A film by Ishana Night Shyamalan, starring Dakota Fanning, Georgina Campbell, Oliver Finnegan, Alistair Brammer, John Lynch, and Olwen Fouéré.

There’s a forest in the west of Ireland that does not appear on any map. They say it draws in lost soul, like moths to a flame. No one can say exactly what lies inside. For those that wander in, never come back out.

John (Alistair Brammer) runs through the deep and misty forest, attempting to find a way out. He keeps checking his wristwatch. It’s 12:04pm. Upon reaching a sign that reads “POINT OF NO RETURN 108,” which he had just passed a moment ago, he becomes horrified. It dawns on him that the forest will not let him escape. He checks his watch again; it’s now 7:06pm. Panicked, John decides to climb a tree and hide. But as he grabs a branch, it breaks. John falls to the ground, breaking his legs and losing consciousness. When he wakes up, he sees a shadowy figure emerging from the mist. A mysterious creature hiding in the forest snatches and kills John.

Mina (Dakota Fanning) is an American immigrant who works in a pet shop in Galway. She seems to like art, as she is seen drawing pictures of customers in her notebook. She also has a habit of dressing up and going out to bars at night, pretending to be someone she’s not. One day, her boss asks her to deliver a precious golden conure to a zoo near Belfast. Mina promises to take the bird there tomorrow.

Galway is a city and county located in the western province of Connacht in Ireland. Galway has a rich history dating back to the 12th century, when the town was founded by the King of Connacht. It later came under Norman control and was ruled by 14 merchant families known as the “Tribes of Galway” during the Middle Ages. The city is home to many historic landmarks like the Spanish Arch, Lynch’s Castle, and the Collegiate Church of St. Nicholas, which date back to medieval times. The city is known for its vibrant arts, music, and food scenes, with Michelin-starred restaurants, traditional pubs, and lively street performers.

Mina stops at a gas station to refill her car. There, she receives a voicemail from her twin sister Lucy, who lives in the United States. In the voicemail, Lucy mentions Mina’s decision not to attend their mother’s memorial and expresses her worry. It’s been 15 years since their mom died in a tragic accident, but it seems Mina still blames herself for their mother’s death. As Mina continues driving to her destination, the camera pans out, revealing a bulletin board filled with numerous missing person posters.

Following the GPS navigation, which leads Mina deeper into a forest where the road gradually narrows, the phone’s screen flickers with strange, glitching pixels. The radio stutters with static noise before going silent altogether, and the car abruptly dies. It seems like this forest has an eerie way of rendering electronics useless. Stranded in the forest, Mina wanders around and finds a sign that reads “POINT OF NO RETURN 12.” Assuming someone must live nearby, she grabs her bag and the birdcage and sets off on foot to find help.

Mina walks in a straight line, shouting for help and explaining her car broke down. Finding no response, she turns back, hoping to return to the car. But as she retraces her steps, the car has disappeared. Lost deep in the forest, frustration gnaws at her. As night falls, the ground shudders violently, followed by the pounding of running feet. Following the pounding of running feet, Mina spots a shadowy human figure and finds an elderly woman standing in the forest. Before Mina can react, the elderly woman turns around and runs again. Fearing something moving in the shadows of the forest, Mina races in the same direction as the elderly woman. She discovers a manmade shelter in the middle of the woods. The elderly woman throws open the steel door and shouts, “If you care for your life, you’re going to have to run!” A horrifying shriek pierces the air as Mina sprints towards the shelter and scrambles inside just before the door clangs shut.

An elderly woman introduces herself as Madeline (Olwen Fouéré), ushering Ciara (Georgina Campbell) and Daniel (Oliver Finnegan) to meet Mina. Madeline explains that this place is called the Coop, and they are, like Mina, lost in the forest. Madeline then asks Mina to stand in front of a two-way mirror. She explains that the Watchers, whose appearance remains a mystery, will come to see all of them. She also assures Mina that she is safe because the Watchers cannot come inside. Ciara further explains that the Watchers come every night, just after sunset, and watch them from the other side of the mirror until the sun rises again.

According to biblical and ancient Jewish literature, the Watchers were a group of angelic beings who descended from heaven, took human women as wives, and produced a race of giants called the Nephilim. In the Book of Enoch, two hundred Watchers, led by Shemihazah and Asael, make a pact to come down to earth, marry human women, and teach them forbidden knowledge. The Watchers are also believed to be the same beings referred to as “sons of God” in Genesis 6 who mated with “daughters of men”. Their union was seen as a transgression against God, as it blurred the boundaries between the divine and human realms. The Watchers were punished for their actions. According to Enoch, God condemned them to eternal imprisonment in the Abyss, a place of darkness and fire deep in the earth.

Determined, Mina makes another attempt to escape the forest the next morning, but her efforts are thwarted. Instead, Mina finds herself on a hilltop overlooking endless, forested mountains. Madeline retrieves Mina and explains that she’s not the first to attempt escape. They’ve all tried, and all failed. Madeline shows Mina the signpost with the words “POINT OF NO RETURN” and a number on it. She explains that these are landmarks positioned in an almost perfect circle around the forest. Each is about a half-day’s journey from the Coop, warning Mina to stay within the boundary so she can return by nightfall. Venturing across the line would be a terrible idea since the creatures will kill anyone caught outside the Coop during nighttime. When asked who made these signposts, Madeline replies that they were made by ‘The Professor’.

Back at the Coop, Ciara performs a dance, claiming the Watchers enjoy it. Meanwhile, Mina watches a DVD recording of reality TV show ‘Lair of Love, season 3’ on the only TV set. Flipping over the DVD package, she finds an embossed label that reads ‘PROPERTY OF PROF RK.’ This hints that he might be the one who built the Coop.”

In order to survive in the forest, each seems to have a designated daytime task. Daniel handles hunting, while Madeline keeps her own tasks vague. It’s likely she too searches for an escape. Ciara, skilled in herbalism, explains the properties of various plants to Mina as they walk. Mina learns that Ciara came to the forest with her husband John, who decided to leave six days ago to find help. Ciara then points out large burrows scattered throughout the forest. These holes connect underground like tunnels, she explains, serving as the Watchers’ daytime hiding spots since they fear sunlight.

That evening, Madeline tells Mina that there are a few rules she must follow if she wants to survive. Then, in a creepy harmonic tone, the three of them begin speaking the rules simultaneously: “Do not turn your back to the mirror. Do not open the door after dark. Do not go near the burrows. Always stay in the light.” Madeline further explains that it’s important to remember they are in the Watchers’ territory. The Watchers allow them to live as long as they follow these rules.

Written and directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan in her directorial debut, “The WATCHERS” stumbles in its execution. Adapted from the 2022 chilling horror novel of the same name by Irish author A.M. Shine, the film boasts an intriguing premise.

A.M. Shine is an acclaimed Irish horror author from the west of Ireland. At a young age, he discovered a passion for classic horror stories and later received a Masters in history. His writing is inspired by the themes of horror, history, and superstition. Shine’s earlier works were Gothic in style, influenced by authors like Edgar Allan Poe. As he focused on novels, he refined his craft as an author of Irish horror, with stories inspired by Ireland’s culture, landscape, and language, while still drawing from the Gothic tradition.

We follow our protagonist, delivered with a captivating performance by Georgina Campbell, as she unwittingly ventures into a seemingly enchanted forest and becomes hopelessly lost. The beauty of the forest, however, is marred by a lurking darkness. As night falls, the cinematography transforms, with the color grading taking on an unsettling tone, hinting at the presence of mysterious creatures that only emerge under the cloak of darkness. The danger is palpable – anyone caught outside after sundown meets a violent demise.

I love how the film takes a fresh spin on the Irish folklore, weaving a chilling mystery that keeps us in the dark about the evil, menacing creatures lurking in the enchanted forest as the story unfolds. In this film, the Watchers draw inspiration from the Irish folklore tradition of fairies and the Tuatha Dé Danann, a supernatural race believed to have inhabited Ireland before humans. In the Irish folklore, these fairies were said to steal human children, leaving behind changelings – their own offspring in disguise.

However, the film struggles with pacing. Repetitive scenes showcase the characters’ monotonous routines as they’re trapped within the forest, forced to return to the Coop before dusk. The script, while not entirely without merit, fails to fully develop the characters, leaving their relationships feeling hollow and failing to elicit much-needed emotional investment from the audience.

The dialogue, at times, feels heavy-handed, overexplaining plot points that could have been left for interpretation, leaving little room for the audience’s imagination. Campbell delivers great performances even though he has the least dialogue. The rest of the cast offer decent portrayals, perhaps limited by the material they were given.

The WATCHERS was theatrically released in the United States, United Kingdom and Ireland on 7 June 2024.