The Watcher is a mystery thriller series released on Netflix on 13th October 2022. It is actually based on the true story of the infamous “Watcher” house in New Jersey. The series is created by Ryan Murphy & Ian Brennan along with executive producers Alexis Martin Woodall, Eric Kovtun, Bryan Unkeless and Eric Newman.
The cast of the series includes Naomi Watts as Nora Brannock, Bobby Cannavale as Dean Brannock, Jennifer Coolidge, Mia Farrow, Margo Martindale, Terry Kinney, Joe Mantello, Richard Kind, Noma Dumezweni, Christopher McDonald, Michael Nouri, Isabel Gravitt, Henry Hunter Hall and Luke David Blumm. There are 7 episodes in total with a runtime of about 45-52 minutes.
-The Watcher Review Does Not Contain Any Spoilers-
It is based on an as-yet-unsolved case about a real-life family who moved into 657 Boulevard in Westfield, New Jersey and began receiving threatening letters from a stalker. The story follows Dean and Nora Brannock, who just purchased their dream home in the idyllic suburb of Westfield, New Jersey, but after putting all of their savings into closing the deal they soon realize the neighbourhood is less than welcoming.
There’s a kooky older woman named Pearl and her brother Jasper Winslow, who sneaks into the Brannock’s house and hides in their dumbwaiter. There’s Karen Calhoun, the realtor and an old acquaintance of Nora’s, who makes them feel like they don’t really belong, and nosy neighbours Mitch and Mo, who don’t seem to understand property lines.
Their icy welcome quickly turns into a full-blown living hell when ominous letters from someone calling themself The Watcher start arriving, terrorizing the Brannocks to their breaking point as the neighbourhood’s sinister secrets come spilling out.
Although it’s inspired by the real story, you have to keep in mind that the events that occur in the series, might not be factually true. Most of the things have been changed to fit in the creator’s narrative and numerous details are exaggerated or added for dramatic value. But overall, it is one of the oddest stories that just leaves your mind-boggling.
First off in the series, even when the Brannocks were looking at the house, the odd behaviour of the neighbours and the mysterious people looking at the open house should have been their first red flag. But I guess, once you find a good deal, you can only see getting your hands on it before someone else takes it away from you.
In the real-life story, the family never really moved into the house, as they were too spooked by the threatening letters that they didn’t think twice about putting their kids in danger. However, in the series, the family does move in and lives there for, however, the short amount it might be and it plays out like a typical family drama with a conservative dad and a rebellious teenage daughter.
Moving forward, the question about who might be the so-called ‘watcher’ is really difficult to answer. Everyone looks like a suspect and every little action or word they say looks like they could be the one. It really baffles me why would someone be so obsessed with a house, unless they owned it and lost it due to some reason.
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Summing Up: The Watcher
Without a doubt, the series is an intriguing watch, but I am not sure if the added new elements were really needed in the story. The mystery of the stalker is enough to keep the story going without adding any murder or suicide in the picture, for more suspense. Also, I don’t really understand the need to show a rebellious teen daughter, seducing a 19-year-old guy and then connect it with John List’s murder case.
It only strays from the point and delves into the world of the conspiracy by hinting that the neighbours might be part of some blood-drinking cult or ridiculous preservation society, that decides what people should or shouldn’t do for their home interiors. In my opinion, the culprit has to be someone in really close proximity, who could watch the family day and night.
I really dont think anything would have happened even if the (real life) family decided to stay in the house, and whatever that happened with them comes from a place of jealousy. As that house was the biggest house on the boulevard and was like the main attraction of the area. Somebody must have wanted to buy the house and when they couldn’t, they spawned their anger in threatening letters.
Considering the size of the house, they must have assumed that the family must be rich, but in actuality, they had put in their everything to buy the house and only incurred losses since getting it. The identity of the culprit remains an unsolved mystery until now and like the obsessed owners of the house, we might never know who was behind it all.
The Watcher is currently streaming on Netflix.
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