Upon watching the trailer for Ishana Shyamalan's debut feature, The Watchers, one very specific question comes to mind: who exactly are the Watchers?
The new thriller, based on the novel by A.M. Shine, stars Dakota Fanning (The Equalizer 3), Georgina Campbell (Suspicion), Olwen Fouéré (The Tourist) and Oliver Finnegan (Outlander). The premise centers on four survivors who get lost in the woods in Ireland, only to be confined to a tiny room, where they are studied by a mysterious race of creatures known as the Watchers.
For those who have read the book, the movie is actually a fairly faithful adaptation of Shine's novel, down to the biggest twists. However, many who have seen the movie but not read the novel may be left wondering what exactly happened in the finale? To answer some of The Watchers' biggest questions, one must first know how the events unfold.
We'll dive into this now, so if you haven't seen the movie, and don't want to know what happens, then warning: HEAVY SPOILERS AHEAD!
The movie begins with a man following a trail to escape a forest, racing against time to do so, frightened of what may happen if he doesn't. He's unsuccessful and eventually attacked and killed by an unseen creature emitting inhuman growls. This man would eventually be revealed as John, the husband of Georgina Campbell's character, Ciara.
Following the introduction, the movie shifts its focus to Fanning's character, Mina. As a pet store employee tasked with delivering a rare bird to a small town in Ireland. On her way she gets lost in the similar part of the woods as John. After being hunted by an unseen creature, she's taken into a one-room shelter where she is rescued by Fouéré's character Madeline, where she also meets Ciara, and Finnegan's Daniel.
As days go by, the four of them try to concoct ways to see their unseen predators and escape from the woods. Finally, they discover a hatch that leads to an underground laboratory that was set up by a man known as "The Professor" (revealed to be a scientist named Kilmartin), whose video diaries reveal he was studying the creatures from this base he built in these woods.
Before his death, Kilmartin discovered a way out of the woods, following a flock of birds out of the thicket of trees and to a lake where he stored a rowboat. The team decide to follow Kilmartin's path. Mina, Madeline and Ciara are able to make it on to the boat and out of the woods. However, Daniel is lured back by a creature posing as John and is killed as the rest of the group escapes.
What are the Watchers
We discover from Kilmartin's videos that the demonic-looking Watchers are actually an ancient race of powerful changelings/faeries that existed for hundreds of years. They actually once had a thriving relationship with humans, as depicted by common Irish folklore. However, the relationship grew sour, and a war broke out. Eventually the humans emerged victorious, sealing up the changelings in an underground prison for hundreds of years. Those who were able to escape made a home for themselves in the woods, but were unable to leave it since they never discovered how to escape.
As changelings, they're able to shapeshift and take human form, but aren't entirely able to do so perfectly. Physical imperfections remain for most changelings. We do, however, discover via his video diaries that Kilmartin was able to capture one and kept it confined to the bunker he built to study. Unfortunately the changeling he captured escapes from its cage, and Kilmartin decides to dispatch of it and commit suicide as well. Through his last video, Mina and the team see Kilmartin disappear through the hatch door off camera, followed by the sound of two gunshots is heard.
What happens to Mina and the other survivors?
So Mina, Madeline and Ciara escape the woods and make it back to civilization. That's where one would think the story would end right? But it doesn't.
Upon hearing Kilmartin's dying wish for his research on changelings/fairies to be destroyed via his video diaries, Mina decides to go to Kilmartin's university and fulfill his request. Sorting through the contents of his research, she discovers Kilmartin was once married to a woman who died five years prior to his creation of the bunker and discovery of the Watchers; a woman who was completely identical to Madeline. Through this discovery, Mina deduces that the "Madeline" that escaped with her had been Kilmartin's changeling captive the whole time, having took the form of his deceased wife to trick Mina, Ciara and Daniel into working together to discover a way out of the woods.
With an actual changeling now unleashed in the world, Mina finds herself and Ciara in direct danger, believing Madeline will kill them both for knowing the truth about changelings, such as herself. In a panic, she runs to Ciara's home to warn her. Instead, she finds Madeline posing as Ciara. Once Mina discovers this is a changeling, a fight ensues between Mina and Madeline.
The fight soon ends once Madeline decides to give humanity a chance. She changes her mind thanks to Mina's desire to reconcile with her sister and forgive herself for the guilt of accidentally killing her mother. So from there Madeline unleashes her faerie wings and flies off.
With Ciara and Mina spared, Mina meets with her twin sister and her kids, finally ready to move on with her life. Meanwhile, outside the flat of Mina's sister, Madeline watches Mina through the disguise of an unsuspecting child.
What a twist!
The Watchers is now playing in movie theaters everywhere.
