The Watcher

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The Watcher

R

2000

1h 37m

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

11%

Tomatometer

90 Reviews

28%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

The Watcher is an exciting psychological thriller that takes a unique look into the minds of both a serial killer and the man who must, reluctantly, pursue him. In an almost Hitchcockian way, the film quickly introduces us to the killer, David Allen Griffin, played by Keanu Reeves, who for many years, preyed on lonely young women in the Los Angeles area. The story is set up to create a taut cat-and-mouse game between Griffin and FBI agent Joel Campbell.

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Critics Consensus

The Watcher has Keanu Reeves cast against type, but the movie is short on thrills, suspense, and believability.

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Dec 29, 2010

2/5

Tired plot and disastrous casting.

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Nick Schager

Lessons of Darkness

May 4, 2005

D

One of the lamest serial killer thrillers of the post-Silence of the Lambs era.

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Liam Lacey

Globe and Mail

Apr 25, 2003

2/4

You can't buy Keanu as a sadist, but you do worry about the guys who wrote the screenplay.

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Chuck Klosterman

Akron Beacon Journal

Oct 28, 2023

1.5/4

What's ultimately most frustrating about The Watcher is the way it takes a scenario that's genuinely frightening and makes it seem implausible.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Sep 17, 2021

1.5/4

Watching a miscast Keanu Reeves portray a brilliant serial killer is akin to watching a month-old kitten try to navigate its way across a junkyard guarded by a half-dozen pit bulls -- it ain't a pretty sight.

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Nick Rogers

Midwest Film Journal

Oct 8, 2020

1/5

Had Keanu Reeves gotten litigious, everyone would still remember the lawsuit. No one is still talking about "The Watcher." Well, almost no one. Instead, the stream remained serene. The air remained pure. The breeze, like the man, remained cool.

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Robert P

@Superbad Sep 15, 2026

The Watcher = a *1.5* Star Movie

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B P

@Bradster69 Sep 6, 2026

Not Bad, but Not My Favorite

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Jason W

@Thejasonwatts Dec 26, 2025

Lots of good names in this, but some of the execution was lackluster. Had a hard time keeping attention, it was a little dry. Seemed like a longer episode of csi or something like that. Meh.

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Jonathan F

@Arcradia Nov 14, 2025

It seems very unpopular as a Psychological Thriller Yet Keanu Reeves went on to do the John Wick movies in years to come. I certainly see why he went to make them movies this being the John Wick earlier years if you like. Personally this is and has been one of my favourite Keanu Reeves movies and has been for a long time a lot of cat & mouse between James Spader & Keanu Reeves. Hence why I without doubt awarded this movie with a well deserved five stars plenty of action twist and turns in the movie to keep you fully entertained though out the movie there is no way this movie is as bad as some reviews say.

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AJ C

@RT83183339 Feb 17, 2025

This film provides plenty of non Matrix slow mo Keanu Reeves, combined with A LOT of dissolving transitions and deliberate unfocussed shots as well as shaky cam. Sadly by this stage of the late 90s early 00s the Cat & Mouse style thriller had been done far better- see Copy Cat or Kiss the Girls. Due to the behind the scenes drama linked to the film it is apparent that Reeves is phoning in his performance and it is very evident throughout. Ernie Hudson and Marisa Tomei are great as always but are given very little to do. James Spader is competent and - other than in their first meeting- his chemistry with Chris Ellis is great. In fact if the film took itself less seriously or was about a less serious topic then Chris Ellis' performance could have been outstanding. Lesson to learn from this film- Always cut a hostage free before chasing a villain.

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Lolitskaden1 T

@RT45623068 Jan 11, 2025

This movie was so bad it was funny. if you’re looking for something serious to watch this isn’t it, on the other hand if your looking to laugh at a corny movie with bad cgi I’d say this is pretty good.

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Joe Charbanic

Director

James Spader

Campbell

Keanu Reeves

Griffin

Ernie Hudson

FBI Director

Chris Ellis

Hollis

Robert Cicchini

Mitch

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Synopsis

The Watcher is an exciting psychological thriller that takes a unique look into the minds of both a serial killer and the man who must, reluctantly, pursue him. In an almost Hitchcockian way, the film quickly introduces us to the killer, David Allen Griffin, played by Keanu Reeves, who for many years, preyed on lonely young women in the Los Angeles area. The story is set up to create a taut cat-and-mouse game between Griffin and FBI agent Joel Campbell.

Director: Joe Charbanic
Producer: Christopher Eberts, Elliott Lewitt, Nile Niami, Jeff Rice
Screenwriter: Darcy Meyers, David Elliot, David Elliot, Clay Ayers
Distributor: MCA/Universal Pictures [us]
Production Co: Interlight, Universal Pictures
Rating: R (Violence|Language)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 8, 2000, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 12, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $28.9M
Runtime: 1h 37m
Sound Mix: SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS, Surround, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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