The Watch Reviews

Don't expect big laughs and you'll get a somewhat entertaining premise.

Oh come on guys! Your talents are worth much more than what you put into this average at best movie....sigh.

If scientists could take time away from, you know, curing diseases, and craft the perfect blend of "meh" in a lab, I would be The Watch. It's not particularly offensive or terrible but it's certainly not good. The humor of boys misbehaving and talking tough doesn't ever seem to get further than the initial concept. The movie ends up becoming a more crass version of Ghostbusters, with an especially fascination for the male member. This is a very penis-obsessive movie. Usually guy-centric sex raunchy comedies will definitely feature strong discussion/comedy revolving around male genitalia, but this is one of the few movies where complete storylines hinge upon penises (weird imagery, I'll admit). Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, and Jonah Hill are more annoying than anything else. Poor Rosemarie DeWitt as the underwritten wife role in what is essentially a boys-behaving-badly movie (also her second 2012 movie where she's trying to get pregnant). When the movie goes full-force into action mode, it loses just about any semblance of comedy. I laughed about three times, and that was thanks to Richard Ayoade (TV's The IT Crowd) and, believe it or not, Will Forte (MacGruber). Sitting through 105 minutes with little laughs, irritating characters, and poorly conceived action in place of genuine comedic payoffs, well it's not exactly a recipe for a successful summer comedy. And yet, with all its obvious faults, I couldn't hate the movie as others have. It's certainly not likeable but it does go about its business with a certain swagger, albeit misguided. Cocky loudmouths failing at entertainment are still marginally better than artists who don't even try. It sounds like I'm reaching, and I am, but The Watch, certainly a bad comedy, may eventually be worth a watch when, you know, it's on TV and you can half-heartedly pay attention to it while you go about your day.

Nate's Grade: C-

Skip it. Not totally horrible but this movie seems to have been made for 13 year olds by 13 year olds. The kind of humor that works on the playground but not in the cinema. Just enough sex jokes and nudity to keep the 7th graders interested with a few explosions and gunfights added for good measure. I rented this movie because I am a fan of the seemingly stellar cast but Stiller, Vaughn, and Hill seem to just be rehashing characters from previous roles and the usually watchable Rosemarie Dewitt's talent is totally wasted here. Dumb and stupid, not in the good way. 2 Stars 1-14-13

Akiva Schaffer's mixture of sci-fi and comedy never blends well in The Watch.For a 95 minute story, there are very few laughs to be had, if any. The story feels like forever before it gets going and when it finally does, it dies down again. Fortunately, a plot twist and the final 20 minutes tend to pick things up a bit. Not a whole lot. Just a bit.The comedy is unfulfilling and unfunny, since so much of it is sexually oriented. The science fiction elements are good thanks to the creature and special effects. Unfortunately, it's hard to take serious with the way the film plays out.Ben Stiller is too serious for this comedy while Vince Vaughn and Jonah Hill are too comedic for the serious sci-fi. It's not that they delivered terrible performances, but once again the pieces just don't fall into place.The Watch is a film to not watch; move on to something else.

The Watch has received a lot of flack for being one of the unfunniest comedies of 2012. Although not the worst, I felt that this film was decent and it could have been much better. The worst part of this movie is, is that it had potential of being such a memorable comedy. As it is, it is a film that at times is pretty funny, but is limited with too many weak moments to make it stand out. Considering the cast at hand, you'd expect something very funny from start to finish. The jokes can give you a few chuckles, but the script could have used a bit more polishing. This is a mindless comedy, but could have been much better too. I've seen worst comedies than this, and for what it is, it is pretty entertaining. The film is a series of clichés, so don't expect anything original in terms of a good story. I thought this film was funny, but it wasn't the comedy I hoped it would be. Is it the worst comedy 2012? Definitely not, but it's far from the best as well. Considering some good comedic talent, this one could have been very funny, but at times the film is clumsy with its material and the filmmakers clearly can't seem to come up with great jokes. The funny bits here are good, but in the end, you realize that the Watch had the potential to be a great film, but in the end it simply is a decent one at best. Expect some laughs, but never anything too original or memorable in the long run. This is the type of film to view if you have nothing else better to watch.

Jamarcus: I have this one scenario in my mind. I kinda hope it plays out like this: young, sexy, Asian housewife, alone at night, frightened. A noise out by the trash cans. Best call the neighbourhood watch. I show up, look heroic, and then... get this - she sucks my balls.
Franklin: I'm also interested in that happening to me.

The Watch is a raunchy, somewhat funny film. It's not as funny as I was hoping it would be, but still funny enough. I think Richard, Vince, and Jonah were what made this. Ben was just there. Will Forte as Sergeant Bressman was really odd and funny. Billy Crudup did creepy quite well. He weirded me out. The movie is a lot of fun. But I wish there was more going on. It just needed some more funny action scenes. I like the whole bit with bob and his daughter. Franklin was my favorite. He's a little bit crazy. Not a bad comedy. I would watch it again."

I admittedly have not watched very many panned movies over the years for good reason, but my fiancé wanted to see this and I fought to not waste our money on it in theaters and wait for DVD based on the horrendous reviews. I'm glad I won that battle because this is the worst movie I have seen in awhile. Awful raunchy and vulgar jokes at every turn, a nonsensical story that is only there to further serve the raunchiness, and the biggest problem: It wastes a fantastic cast. The only positive is the decent creature effects, but again they are wasted. I will admit that there's a lot more gory horror elements in this than I was expecting based on previews and it caught me off guard quite a bit. I'm sure mainstream audiences expecting a straight raunchy comedy like The Hangover will be incredibly turned off. I can't recommend this filth to anyone.

Oh, what a horrific waste of time. It looked generic, it smelled generic, but it wasn't generic, it was wasteful. You wouldn't think something that contains such a diverse and funny cast could be such a blatant cop out. It's not their fault, it really isn't, because though some of them have become complacent over the years (I'm looking at you Vince Vaughan) many of them do try to find really interesting and comedic projects. Though Vaughan may have chosen some stinkers in the past several years, he truly tries with the material he is given and same goes for Stiller, Hill, and Ayoade. The film itself was simply a vehicle, pitched by an executive that was written four years ago, and retooled by Seth Rogen and childhood friend Evan Goldberg. Though this comedic pairing usually does a great job with scripts, they were not the prime people for this project. This was already a colossal waste of time, and they couldn't do much with it except bring their usual brand of humor which simply failed. The concept of the film is that of a "Ghostbustery teen comedy," and instead of working well with that they tried to do what they do best, and that is to make vulgar, gross out humor consumable for audiences. The genre mashing is horrific, the humor makes no sense, and it possesses no tone, no viable characters, and nothing to make this any more significant or original than the rest of the schlock out there. People try to defend this massacre of cinema by boasting that the cast tried, and I will contest there is a general ease with their performances. Still, these are easy roles for each of them: Stiller as the naive do-gooder, Vaughan as the inappropriate clod, Hill as the repressed young person, and Ayoade as an oddball in a sea of reservationists with the same heart? They have been in films, on television, etc. etc. many times before, and it's awkwardly apparent they are all phoning it in. The plot is dumb, the ending is trivial, and overall, I felt sapped of energy by the end. Nothing was funny, nothing was worth salvaging, and people should simply stop defending trash.

I gotta say, you see a movie with Vince Vaughn, Ben Stiller, and Jonah Hill you think it would be awesome. Instead, you get "The Watch" a very uneven sci-fi/comedy/action movie that doesn't work. It's about four guys who form a neighborhood watch after a murder in their town. But they quickly find out it wasn't a person who did the murdering, it was an alien. So now they have to fight aliens to save their town. First the good, Vaughn is awesome and plays pretty much the same character he did in "Old School". Mouthy, quick witted, and just comes off as a cool jerk. Also, there is an awesome cameo by R. Lee Emry, which is the absolute highlight of the movie and makes it worth a watch. However, after the Emry scene it goes way downhill, and you will probably fall asleep(took me two nights to get through this). The first half of the movie is good and very funny. Then I don't know what happened but it just gets stupid and incoherent. It may work for some people and that's fine, but it didn't work for me. I was pretty disappointed.

Right I saw this on a long haul flight from Indonesia so forgive me if I possibly didn't look upon it too favourably haha. Oh have I just done the review? need I go on?

This is one of those films that is split, it starts off really well with Stiller doing what he does best which is a parody of sorts. The warm cozy suburban life of Stiller's character is both amusing and easily the best section of the whole film. Add to the fray the always funny and shameless Vaughn whose brash loud outbursts can be hilariously awkward to watch, a loose cannon of comedy.

Hill boosts the fun factor more with his slightly psychotic wildcard of a character that lives with his mother, nice twist. All together they are a great trio, not too original in creativity character wise as we've seen them do this before but fun none the less. The last dude played by Ayoade tends to stick out like a sore thumb really, I know that's the idea but he never really fits in, he's just...there. Never heard of the actor either, maybe they should of used Carell or Rogen.

So the early sequences which show the guys doing their regular stuff is cool, there is a nice eerie feel to it which kinda reminded me of 'The Burbs'. It all goes down hill once the alien factor turns up and pretty much ruins everything. We go from a kooky neighbourhood type flick to a daft 'MIB' type romp and it just doesn't fit right if you ask me.

The whole alien invasion thing isn't funny nor is it good enough to be classed as an 'action romp', its just weak. It could of been so much better if they used the creepy neighbour's route despite that being a rip of the film I mentioned. The film is also unnecessarily vulgar with a lot of swearing that just isn't needed, swearing won't make the film funnier guys. Even the films original poster looked like something from 'District 9'.

Effects are satisfactory with your stupid looking flashy CGI laser beams and plastic looking aliens with obligatory tentacles. Gets stupider towards the end as it completely turns into a different kind of beast...such a waste. Overall the flight didn't effect how disappointed I was with this, could of been so damn good.

Do you count yourself among those who saw the trailer for this and thought "Dude, that looks so generic, I think I'll just wait for the rental release"? Well, you and me both. I knew I'd probably see it sooner or later though, as virtually everything that involves the combination of aliens and comedy is too appealing as a concept not to be watched.

This is no new Paul or Galaxy Quest, however. More like an American take on Attack the Block, but without the niftiness and innovation. That isn't to say I didn't enjoy it, because overall, it's reasonably fun. It just isn't the type of sci-fi romp that leaves a desire for repeated viewings. Ergo, my early predictions proved rather accurate.

The whole escapade takes off when CostCo manager Evan - that's right: expect no subtlety as far as what financed this film - is faced with the gruesome death of a colleague who is mysteriously offed during his night shift. Spooked by the event, Evan decides to put together a neighborhood watch, rallying up some local enthusiasts for the cause (read: vigilante-aspiring nitwits), who - as you may surely imagine - are in it for all the wrong reasons.

Patrolling the vicinity, acting all gangsta with their newfound pseudo-authority, they come upon the discovery that malevolent extra-terrestials have infiltrated their suburban community. Now they must save the world from a pending invasion, all the while juggling some family issues that show signs of apparent contrivance. Squeezed in by formula, not so much by ambition. In fact, it's but a foot note in a movie that prides itself more in its penis gags.

Ben Stiller gives the standard issue, phoned-in performance. Jonah Hill (whom I'm normally a fan of) is mostly just weird, having put on a few pounds again since his role in 21 Jump Street. And Vince Vaughn, well, he doesn't look like he got any sleep before the shooting of this either. New to the posse is comedy actor Richard Ayoade, who makes his Hollywood debut here as Jamarcus. American audiences are probably unfamiliar with him, but those who have seen the British sitcom "The IT Crowd" know what a hilarious guy he is. Sadly though, due to the second-rate writing, he didn't really get to show what he's made of here.

That, in turn, leads me to the next point. I didn't expect this film to have engaging dialogue, but with a script penned by Seth Rogen and Evan "Superbad" Goldberg, you'd think it'd be a little funnier. The cast really seems to enjoy themselves, but it seldom made me laugh or even snicker. If Michael Bay had a private library (not likely, but assume he does for the sake of argument), this is surely inspired from his manual of "Alien invasion comedies for dummies".

Aside from the distinct impressions of a hack job, at least it never bored me though. Very uneven and pedestrian, but the chemistry between the cast made it all worthwhile. So with Ted being the best comedy of the year so far and That's My Boy being the worst, The Watch stations itself as somewhat of a middle feature. Out of the "suck zone" but not in the "wow section" either. Unless Vince Vaughn peeing in a soda can constitutes hilarity to you. Then you're probably going to have a blast with this.

Got Protection?

Good fun movie! The script was pretty much Men In Black but for a slightly older audience; there was a lot more comedic gore and vulgarity here but it worked well. The jokes were really funny, the various sequences worked well and the film genuinely made me laugh. Overall, 'The Watch' is really funny and may signify the revival of Hollywood comedy that '21 Jump Street' hinted towards. I really hope more films as funny as this come out because this has shown that it is still possible to make hilarious pictures.

Four everyday suburban guys come together as an excuse to escape their humdrum lives one night a week. But when they accidentally discover that their town has become overrun with aliens posing as ordinary suburbanites, they have no choice but to save their neighborhood - and the world - from total extermination.

funny shit!

No idea what people's problem is with this film. I found it to be most entertaining as Stiller and Co. take on the role of Neighbourhood Watch in order to protect their small town. I mostly enjoyed it because the actors played very slightly different characters. Vaughan wasn't a slimy letch, but an overprotective father who was killing everyone else with kindness. Hill was a slightly disturbed outcast, and Stiller was genuinely concerned for his environment and wasn't a screw up. Ayoade worked well as the weird addition to the group. Great to see some practical effects given a lot of room to breathe life into the film. Funny lines, lots of great chemistry between the leads, and a story that was more engaging to me as opposed to the similarly themed Attack The Block.

An uncomfortable and painfully unfunny comedy. I will give it credit to one or two appropriate quips.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from "The Watch" other than it was a comedy. I actually enjoyed it and went along for the ride with no judgement. Depends on your humor, but if you want a good laugh, I say go for it.

'The Watch' is full of comic powerhouses, so it had to fulfill a lot of expectations for me. It didn't entirely disappoint. I loved all the actors and their banter, with Hill and Ayoade being particular stand-outs. Director Akiva Shaefer was also able to slip in a few fun action sequences in between all the raunchy comedy, which made the film more interesting. 'The Watch' gets off to a slow start, but it really picks up and provides plenty of laughs along the way...as long you're okay with plenty of penis jokes.

In a year of mostly mediocre comedies comes.....a mediocre comedy. How this movie barely made me chuckle, let alone laugh, is shocking considering the talent involved. The four leads have good chemistry and the design of the aliens is decent, but ''The Watch'' wastes the talent of the stars and features jokes I could see coming for a mile away.