The Watch

If a lot of you already know, "The Watch" was originally given the title, "Neighborhood Watch", but then the title was changed due to a controversy involving the shooting of Trayvon Martin by a member of a neighborhood watch group. Now, although I was really looking forward to see this movie, and although this movie's Rotten Tomatoes rating of 15% is quite not agreeable, "The Watch", although at it's consistent funny moments, isn't that perfect or quite memorable for an R-rated comedy. With an all-star cast, Ben Stiller delivers the same, usual, and uninspired performance as Evan, he's a kind and "by-the-book" nerd, working as a general manager for a local Costco, who then forms a neighborhood watch after his friend was murdered. He teams up Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, and Richard Ayoyade to help keep the neighborhood safe…or it's just a lame excuse to hang out with the guys! But then, an alien invasion starts to appear out of nowhere, and now it's up to the watch to keep everyone safe. Now, "The Watch" is not a terrible movie like everyone says it is, but it is a disappointing comedy that shares a few consistent laughs throughout. Even with a cool soundtrack and a likable cast, "The Watch" sadly doesn't live up to the hype for me! But, there are a few consistent moments, almost throughout the movie, that were undeniably funny, while some other moments either made me chuckle or cringe. Some members of the cast have their funny moments, especially Richard Ayoyade's scene-stealing performance. But overall, this movie just didn't quite impress me, and I really didn't get into the comedy in this one. As for the cast, each and every character is completely stereotypical, from Vaughn's man-child overprotective father, Hill's bad-ass speaking mamma's boy, Ayoyade's comic relief dude with a funny accent, and Stiller's awkward man with relationship problems involving having children. The plot holes are completely excruciating, the dialogue is badly forced, the pacing is a little too quick, the amount of "f-bombs" are considered unnecessary, and the whole alien subplot is a little too goofy. There's also a lot of predictable clichés from here and there, the action scenes are tensionless, and Will Forte delivers one of the most annoying performances in the history of film, as a bumbling cop against the watch. Everything was just all over the place, nothing really went appropriately planned here. Although "The Watch" is a disappointing paper-thin gimmick, it's still pretty entertaining for the most part, and again, I laughed at a couple of parts. But overall, "The Watch" is a forgettable and disappointing movie that still has it's moments. "The Watch", in my review, "occasionally funny, but sadly unimpressive".

We found this quite entertaining and the characters were good, but I have to ask who wrote the script - a bunch of schoolboys? Almost every gag was based on d*cks, c*m, big red b*lls, condoms and p*ss. Why? There are plenty of other ways of making gags funny, you know.

'The Watch' is An Interesting Sci-Fi Comedy, that makes good-use of its promising premise & its well-decorated star-cast. Its Fun!

'The Watch' Synopsis: Four men who form a neighborhood watch group as a way to get out of their day-to-day family routines find themselves defending the Earth from an alien invasion.

'The Watch' isn't flawless. It has its share of minuses. But, overall, this first of its kind Sci-Fi Comedy appeals, because it makes you laugh at the right places & the performances are commendable. Talking of minuses, the uneven second-hour acts as a deterrent.

Jared Stern, Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg's Screenplay has merit. However, the second-hour, certainly, could've been more persuasive. Akiva Schaffer's Direction is credible. Cinematography & Editing are mentionable. Graphics are pretty cool. The Aliens are pretty creepy to look at!

Performance-Wise: Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill & Richard Ayoade are the life of 'The Watch'. Stiller is highly efficient, while Vaughn continues to impress us with his impeccable comic-timing. Hill & Ayoade are equally effective, adding much more to their characters than offered. Also, the on-screen chemistry between the four of them, is interesting. Rosemarie DeWitt does her bit well. Will Forte is sincere.

On the whole, 'The Watch' does work, at most parts.

I really liked that the trailer did not reveal too much of the "story" behind this movie. But I still get if people are disappointed in this. It's hard as I have written before to get people behind a comedy. And comedies that go for the "R-rating" are even tougher to sell. I still thought this was funny and different from what I expected (although the German title did give away more of the central story than the mentioned trailer).

Ben Stiller plays it straight and you can see the morality that lies within the movie ... within the first 5 minutes of it. That doesn't take the fun out of it and the main 4 characters are having so much fun, it does translate on the screen. If you don't like the trailer though, do not watch the movie

Usually a movie that get really terrible reviews such as this film, The Watch would turn me away. But being a Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn fan, I had to watch this film and see if it's bad as critics and plain viewers made it seem. It's actually half-way decent and there are some pretty funny, though rather vulgar jokes. I really liked the film premise and the film had a chance to be comedy gold, but in the end despite being entertaining, the comedy felt forced at times and the vulgarity seems to go through the roof.

Akiva Schaffer's film is about a Costco night guard who was mysteriously murdered. In response to the murder, straight-laced Evan forms a neighborhood watch to track down the killer. But all he gets is three dimwits and together they discover the murderer may be.....extraterrestrial.

I find it unfortunate how the careers of Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn are steadily declining. They are both really funny men and while not at their best, they do have some genuine funny moments here. Jonah Hill is on a nice streak of late but I don't know if I would consider this film a setback for him or not. Finally, Richard Ayoade is pretty good even though did not expect much out of him.

Overall, the Watch is a good, but could have been a way better film. It has a nice, central premise and I liked the sci-fi element of the film. There are some interesting creature designs here, but I wouldn't call them original and I'll leave it to the viewers to see. I rate this film 7/10.