The Watcher (2000/I)

Director:

Joe Charbanic

Writers (WGA):

Darcy Meyers (story) and
David Elliot (story) ...

Release Date:

8 September 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Don't go home alone.

Plot:

David Allen Griffin is a cool killer- time and time again, he chooses a female victim, studies her for...

Plot Keywords:

Serial Killer | Stalking By Night | Fast Motion Sequence | Police Chase | Cemetery

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

James Spader	...	Campbell
Marisa Tomei	...	Polly
Keanu Reeves	...	Griffin
Ernie Hudson	...	Ibby
Chris Ellis	...	Hollis
Robert Cicchini	...	Mitch
Yvonne Niami	...	Lisa
Jenny McShane	...	Diana (as Jennifer McShane)
Gina Alexander	...	Sharon
Rebekah Louise Smith	...	Ellie (as Rebakah Louise Smith)
Joseph Sikora	...	Skater (as Joe Sikora)
Jill Peterson	...	Jessica (as Jillian Peterson)
Michele DiMaso	...	Rachel (as Michelle Dimaso)
Andrew Rothenberg	...	Jack Fray
David Pasquesi	...	Norton

Also Known As:

Driven (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and language.

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Philippines:PG-13 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Chile:18 | Finland:K-15 | France:U | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 | Peru:18 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Interlight

Trivia:

Third-billed Keanu Reeves gave his verbal agreement to director Joe Charbanic several years before production started, after reading his original script. With his involvement, the filmakers were later able to attract a bigger cast and budget than originally envisioned, and Reeves' part (originally meant as little more than a cameo) was substantially rewritten to feature him more prominently. Reportedly Keanu Reeves, who would be paid scale while his costars James Spader and Marisa Tomei would get $1,000,000 paychecks tried to drop out of the film but eventually changed his mind (apparently influenced by the legal precedent of the Kim Basinger/Boxing Helena (1993) debacle). He eventually agreed to do the picture and abstain from bad mouthing it in interviews on the condition that his involvment in the film be downplayed in all promotional material for the film, including trailers.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Griffen shoots Campbell in the knee. Later, we see him with a bandage on the knee but completely over his pants. Decidedly not standard first aid procedure.

Quotes:

David Allen Griffin: [to Dr. Polly Beilman] Do you think... some of your patients might pay to come see you because... you're very pretty.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Not Another Teen Movie (2001)

Soundtrack:

6 UNDERGROUND

Not Predictable

Really enjoyed this movie. It is not in the least bit predictable, as so many thrillers seem to be. Fast paced & lots of action. Kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through. Many threads are woven throughout and they tie up towards the end of the movie so that most of our questions are answered.

Casting is great. Spader, our hero, is far from perfect & his obsession with catching 'his' man has had a disasterous affect on his life. He is a complex character who is introducted to us in stages- as the story unravels so does his life.

Reeves surprises in his portrayal of a psycho serial killer. He plays this guy with an eerie realism that see him really well cast here. We hear so many poor reviews of this guy's acting but I can't figure it. He is really believable in this role and shows once again that he can take any character and 'become' him; whether it is Neo in the Matrix or the lovable Ted from Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.

We enter the world of the serial killer & get to see his version of our reality. We follow the agent in a chase against time to stop the madness.

This movie is not run of mill. It is different & provocative. I highly recommend it.