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For the TV series, see Watch, The (2021).
The Watch
The Watch (2012)
Credits
Title: The Watch
Director: Akiva Schaffer
Writers: Jared Stern; Seth Rogen; Evan Goldberg
Producers: Blondel Aidoo; Dan Levine; Monica Levinson; Shawn Levy; Billy Rosenberg
Composer: Christophe Beck
Cinematography: Barry Peterson
Editors: Dean Zimmerman
Production
Distributed by: Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Dune Entertainment
Released: July 27th, 2012
Rating: R
Running time: 102 min.
Country: USA
Language: English
Budget: $68,000,000
Gross: $34,350,553
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The Watch is an American comedy film with elements of science fiction. The movie was directed by Akiva Schaffer and written by Jared Stern, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. It was produced by Dune Entertainment and distributed theatrically by Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. It premiered in the United States and Canada on July 27th, 2012. The Watch stars Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill and Richard Ayoade as four members of the Glenview, Ohio Neighborhood Watch. Stiller's character, Evan - a prominent member of the community, forms the watch after his employee at Costco, Antonio Guzman, is found murdered and skinned. Evan begins a recruitment drive to help solve Antonio's murder, but the only people who arrive are Bob (the party guy), Franklin (the militant wannabe cop) and Jamarcus (nice guy who wants to get his balls sucked). Although Evan is the only member of the group who is completely committed towards protecting the community, the others find themselves becoming reluctant heroes when they discover that Glenview is Ground Zero for an alien invasion.

Plot[]

In the town of Glenview, Ohio, Evan Trautwig (Ben Stiller) is an active participant in the community and senior manager of the local Costco store. His life is disrupted when the store's night security guard is murdered. The local police have no leads, and show no interest in investigating further. Determined to find the killer and bring him to justice, Evan decides to form a neighborhood watch. However, he only manages to recruit Bob (Vince Vaughn), a construction worker and loving father; Franklin (Jonah Hill), a high school dropout who dreams of being a police officer but failed the written, physical, and mental-health tests; and Jamarcus (Richard Ayoade), a recent divorcé.

The watch members use the group as an excuse to drink and have fun (much to Evan's annoyance). While driving on patrol, they accidentally hit something. They discover a strange metallic orb that acts as a highly-destructive weapon, and deduce that it is of alien origin. Meanwhile, several more townspeople are mysteriously killed. The Watch responds to the murders and encounters an alien, which attacks them. Evan (apparently) kills it with a lawn gnome before the group returns with the creature to Bob's house. However, Evan had only knocked the creature out, and the creature regains consciousness and escapes, stealing the metallic orb and warning them that the aliens have already infiltrated the town. Evan theorizes that the aliens are stealing their victims' skin so that they can disguise themselves as humans, meaning anyone in Glenview could be an alien. Bob confides to Evan that he is worried about his daughter Chelsea (Erin Moriarty), and does not trust her boyfriend Jason (Nicholas Braun). Evan admits that he has been avoiding his wife Abby (Rosemarie DeWitt) because he is infertile, and revealing that to her may cause her to leave.

Evan suspects that one of his neighbors is an alien (due to his strange, stiff way of speaking and because he always seems to be watching him). As the watch scouts the neighbor's house, Bob learns that Chelsea is at an unsupervised party with Jason. Bob disobeys Evan's orders, and rushes to the party with Franklin. Bob prevents Jason from raping Chelsea, but Jason beats him until Franklin intervenes. Evan and Jamarcus investigate the odd neighbor alone, discovering that he (only) hosts orgies in his basement. When Bob returns, he and Evan argue over his putting his daughter above the watch. Bob is fired from the watch after saying Evan has no friends because he tries to control everything. Evan goes home and admits his infertility to Abby, who accepts the news and tells him they will work things out.

Evan then receives an urgent visit from Jamarcus, who confesses that he is one of the aliens but has decided to side with humanity after experiencing human culture (and oral sex). He warns the group that the aliens are building a transmitter beneath the Costco store, which will summon their armada to destroy the Earth, and is expelled from the watch for his deception. Bob, Franklin, Evan and Abby arm themselves and infiltrate the Costco to destroy the transmitter. Bob encounters Jason who reveals that he is also an alien, and they fight. Evan and Franklin attempt to disable the transmitter, but are surrounded by aliens. Jamarcus arrives and saves the pair, revealing that the aliens' brains are located in their crotch; Bob kills Jason by ripping off his penis. Evan discovers that the transmitter is powered by the metallic orb and removes it, disabling the machine. More aliens arrive, forcing the group to flee. The watch uses the metallic orb to destroy the Costco building, killing all of the aliens inside.

In the epilogue, Evan and Abby rekindle their passion and adopt a daughter. Bob is closer to Chelsea and accepts her new boyfriend (who is intimidated by stories of how Bob killed Jason by "ripping his dick off"). Franklin is finally accepted by the Glenview Police Department, and Jamarcus continues participating in the secret neighborhood orgies. The group maintains the watch, continuing to protect Glenview from criminals (and aliens).

Cast[]

Incomplete

Actor Role
Ben Stiller Evan
Vince Vaughn Bob
Jonah Hill Franklin
Richard Ayoade Jamarcus
Rosemarie DeWitt Abby
Will Forte Sergeant Bressman
Mel Rodriguez Chucho
Doug Jones Hero alien
Erin Moriarty Chelsea
Nicholas Braun Jason
R. Lee Ermey Manfred
Joe Nunez Antonio Guzman
Liz Cackowski Carla
Johnny Pemberton Skater kid
Sharon Gee Mrs. Kim
Eric Goins Random jogger
Robert C. Sibley Retiree #1
Grace Fronebarger Retiree #2
Bonnie Silver Retiree #3
Jill Jane Clements City council woman
Paul Barlow, Jr. City council member
Thomas Elliott Male Hooters volunteer
Sean Goulding Costco employee
Amy Napier Viteri Reporter
Dax Flame Teenage announcer
Ryan Girard Paul's guest #1
Katie Kneeland Paul's guest #2
Ted Huckabee Orgy man #1
Jeremiah Williams Orgy man #2
Ethan Shapanka Orgy man #3
Marla Malcolm Orgy woman #1
Lindsey Coley Orgy woman #2
LaDonna Allison Orgy woman #3
Andy Samberg Casual wanker #1
Jorma Taccone Casual wanker #2
Akiva Schaffer Casual wanker #3
Cathy Shim Asian housewife
Carissa Capobianco Mandy
Kelsey Talley Twin
Melia Talley Twin
Patricia French Franklin's mom
Erinn Hayes Bob's wife
Zack Mines Prom date
Emilee Yuye Sikes Evan's daughter

Production & Release[]

  • The tagline for this film is, "Got protection?"
  • The film was originally going to be called Neighborhood Watch and there are even promotional posters for the movie bearing this title.
  • The film was shot in Marietta and Powder Springs, Georgia, with some scenes filmed in Atlanta.
  • The Watch grossed $12,750,297 over its opening weekend in the United States on 3,168 screens.

Cast & Crew[]

  • This is director Akiva Schaffer's first work in the science fiction genre. He is also known for directing the 2007 film Hot Rod and was executive producer on the 2010 action comedy MacGruber. Schaffer also makes a cameo appearance in this film as Casual Wanker #3.
  • Co-writer Seth Rogen is best known for his work in front of the camera (as well as in front of the microphone in some cases). He has appeared in films such as The 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked UP, Pineapple Express, Zack and Miri Make a Porno and The Green Hornet. He was also the voice of B.O.B. in the 2009 animated sci-fi/comedy Monsters vs. Aliens.
  • Comedian Andy Samberg, best known for his work on Saturday Night Live and Brooklyn Nine Nine makes a cameo appearance in this film as Casual Wanker #1.

Trivia[]

  • The vulnerable parts of the alien species in this film are their penises.
  • Evan attempts to establish a line of communication with an alien in the pushes by intoning sound effects similar to those used to communicate with the aliens in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, directed by Steven Spielberg. In the same scene, Evan tries to earn the creature's trust by plying him with bubble gum. This is reminiscent of Elliott's attempts to garner the trust of E.T. in E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, also directed by Spielberg.

Recommendations[]

External Links[]

References[]

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