The watcher

Movie
German title	The watcher
Original title	The watcher
Country of production	United States
original language	English
Publishing year	2000
length	97 minutes
Age rating	FSK 16
Rod
Director	Joe Charbanic
script	David Elliot , ; Clay Ayers
production	Christopher Eberts , ; Elliott Lewitt , ; Jeff Rice , ; Nile Niami
music	Marco Beltrami
camera	Michael Chapman
cut	Richard North
occupation
	James Spader : Joel Campbell; Keanu Reeves : David Allen Griffin; Marisa Tomei : Dr. Polly Beilman; Ernie Hudson : Ibby; Chris Ellis : Hollis; Robert Cicchini : Mitch; Yvonne Niami : Lisa; Jenny McShane : Diana; Gina Alexander : Sharon; Rebekah Louise Smith : Ellie; Joseph Sikora : Skater;

The Watcher is a 2000 thriller directed by Joe Charbanic.

action

FBI agent Campbell hunted a serial killer in Los Angeles for several years without success . Then he moved to Chicago in the hope of nothing more to do with the case. But he was wrong. When he returns to his apartment one day, he meets the police on the stairwell who are investigating a murder. The case doesn't interest him at first, but when he opens a letter from FedEx , he finds himself in the middle. Because the envelope contains a photo that shows the victim on the morning of the day of the murder.

At that moment, Campbell knows that Griffin, the Los Angeles serial killer, has followed him. In Chicago, the perpetrator known as “The Watcher” is once again performing his bizarre ritual : he observes his next victim and photographs it. He sends the photos to Campbell and threatens to kill the young woman exactly 24 hours later.

When Campbell receives new photos, he alerts his colleagues in Chicago and takes over the management of the case. The police are using news programs and leaflets to try to find the woman she calls Jane Doe . After enlarging the photo, Campbell discovers a reflection on the glasses that shows some mirrored letters. Finally he discovers the writing in the window of a photo shop in a shopping mall, but the police are late. "The Watcher" struck again and murdered its victim with a piano string .

The next photo is not long in coming. This time it shows a homeless person who can be quickly identified by her mother. The investigators can track her down with the help of the coffee mug shown. A friend leads her into the abandoned building where the girl is staying. There Campbell meets the murderer. The subsequent chase ends on the grounds of a gas station. The police actually caught the perpetrator, but he recognizes where he is and throws a burning lighter on the floor. Three police officers die in the flames and "The Watcher" escapes again.

The next photo shows Campbell's dead friend, with which "The Watcher" lures Campbell to the cemetery. The murderer stands next to the grave of Campbell's friend and brings back bad memories. When they last met in Los Angeles, Campbell got to the scene in time before "The Watcher" could murder the woman. However, she then died tied up in her burning apartment while Campbell was chasing "The Watcher". This trauma haunts the FBI agent to this day and that is why he is under psychological treatment. Now Griffin tells him that the psychologist Dr. Polly Beilman is said to be his next victim. Because the killer visited her in the meantime and later stole the tapes of Campbell's conversations from her office.

He especially wants to stage this murder. He drives Campbell to an abandoned building. They talk about the fact that they need each other and that the life of one is irrevocably linked to that of the other. While driving, Campbell manages to establish a telephone connection to his colleagues with his cell phone without being noticed and thus to draw their attention to the situation. Griffin has set up a scene on an upper floor of the building that is reminiscent of the situation in Los Angeles. Polly sits tied up in the middle between burning candles and highly explosive gasoline cans. After Griffin has tormented Campbell with the unpleasant memories for some time, the FBI agent can overwhelm the perpetrator with a rifle that he found in the room. However, a candle tips over and ignites the gasoline that has been poured out. Campbell and Polly can jump through the window and into the river below just in time for the explosion and save themselves while "The Watcher" dies.

useful information

The rights to the film are owned by Universal and the company reportedly paid $ 5 million for it. Originally the film was supposed to have the title Driven , but since an action film by and with Sylvester Stallone was planned under this name at Warner Bros., it was decided to change the film title.

The film is budgeted at $ 30 million. This contrasts with revenues of around 47 million US dollars. 19.2% of this was recorded on the opening weekend.

The film was shot between October and December 1999 in Chicago and in the suburb of Oak Park .

criticism

"A thriller that once again plays out the complex relationship between a murderer and his pursuer, whereby he does not gain independence and does not develop his principally attractive options consistently enough."

- Lexicon of international film

British film critic Peter Bradshaw says Reeves is the total miscast in the role of the serial killer.