The Watcher in the Woods [DVD]

Holy cow, it's Halloween---time to watch some scary movies! However, I don't care for hard-core horror, so I'm sticking to only very slightly spooky films. And so I've just viewed "Watcher in the Woods," an old favourite from 1980. This picture has a lot of nostalgic appeal for me; I remember there was quite a lot of press about it as it was being filmed, because this was the very first time the Disney studio seemed to be attempting to do a film a bit more "adult" in nature, as compared to their usual output. Unfortunately, the film doesn't quite succeed, but that doesn't mean it isn't worth watching. It's marvellously atmospheric and spooky---great cinematography, fantastic eerie locations, good scary music. The problem comes in the last five minutes, which are a let-down after all the build-up. To be frank, the ending simply doesn't make any sense. (Let me tell you, "magnetic pull of the eclipse" is an absolutely meaningless nonsense phrase--drives me crazy!) And in fact the finale was always the problem with this film. Upon its initial release, all the critics took note of the bizarre ending, and the film was immediately pulled for retooling. After some additional shooting and editing, the film was re-released a year later; there was an improvement, but ---eh---the ending was still kind of iffy and a bit disappointing. Still... I can overlook that problem, because I enjoyed the earlier portions of the film so much. The DVD of "Watcher in the Woods" contains three different endings, and frankly none of them really work. The best solution, I think, would be to edit together portions of all three, for a new composite conclusion. However, what it all comes down to is problems with the script---problems that were quite unnecessary, in my opinion. I've read the book upon which the screenplay was based, and the mystery makes perfect sense at the end of the novel---it's a pretty cool concept. I don't know why on earth the writers of the film couldn't have stayed closer to this logical way of summing up the plot, for goodness sake. The acting talent on display in this picture is decidedly mixed. Kyle Richards (sister of big 1970's child star Kim Richards, who worked on a number of well-remembered films and television series) is cute as a button, but kind of annoying. Now, I don't want to sound too mean-spirited, but Lynn-Holly Johnson unfortunately displays no acting talent whatsoever, in my opinion. She plays every scene in the last two-thirds of the picture in full-blown-hysteria mode; more than a little grating! (Diane Lane was considered for this role, but she either turned it down, or was unavailable at the time. It's kind of frustrating, thinking what a actress with Lane's skill could have done with the part.) Benedict Taylor, as the potential love interest, is blondly dreamy (heh) in a 1970's teen-girl-magazine pin-up fashion. But of course the real honours here go to Bette Davis, who puts all others in the shade. She doesn't have much to do in the film, but is effective in her few scenes. Just look at her in the last scene: with one look and three simple words (the last words spoken in the film) she shows just what a great actress is capable of ---I found this moment very moving. A critic at the time spoke of how she "made bricks without straw," meaning of course she rose far above the material she was given. This was the last theatrical feature she made, before she had the stroke which so drastically altered her speaking voice and appearance. So, the film has its problems, but I recommend it nonetheless, as a good spooky film for younger people. Heck, watching this at night, alone in a dark room, there are still moments that make me jump! Reading the comments about this film on the Internet Movie Database was fun; the comment you hear over and over is "This film scared the **** out of me when I was a kid!" Ha! Several people, in fact, said that to this day they will not sleep in a room containing a mirror because this film scared them so much when they were young. When looking for this film, definitely go for the Anchor Bay DVD release which contains supplemental material missing from the Disney release, including a commentary track from the director.