This month Mill Creek Entertainment has re-released another pair of Universal thrillers on Blu-ray in a new double-feature release that includes The Watcher (2000) starring James Spader & Keanu Reeves, and The Skelton Key (2005) starring Kate Hudson.
The Watcher (2000)
Former FBI Agent Joel Campbell (James Spader) had been in charge of tracking elusive Los Angeles serial killer David Allen Griffin (Keanu Reeves) for three and a half years, but after a tragic accident related to the case led to the death of a woman he loved, Campbell quickly burned out. He moved to Chicago, where he collects disability, spends his days self-medicating for migraines, stress and other ailments, and sees therapist Dr. Polly Beilman twice a week to discuss his issues. However, Griffin misses the cat-and-mouse game with his old friend, and has followed Campbell to Chicago. Griffin’s M.O. is to stalk his potential victim for weeks, then secretly break into her apartment and wait for her to get home so he can surprise his victim, strangling her to death as he puts on some music to set the mood. Griffin’s latest victim is a young woman who lives in Campbell’s apartment. However, Campbell doesn’t notice Griffin’s calling card until it’s too late. Griffin tells Campbell that he will be sending him photos of each victim ahead of time, giving him 24 hours to find her before he promptly makes his kill at 9pm. And so the hunt is on, with Campbell back on the job, teaming with local FBI Agent Ibby (Ernie Hudson) and Chicago PD officers Hollis (Chris Ellis) and Mitch (Robert Cicchini), as they race against the clock to identify and find each new victim before it’s too late.
I’m not sure if I ever saw The Watcher before, but I quite enjoyed it, and it was easily my favorite of this double feature release. The film does an excellent job of building the tension as Campbell, the FBI and the cops try to solve the clues to identify each potential victim to stop their murder. It always keeps you guessing as to whether or not they will figure things out in time. The film also does a nice job of slowly revealing the backstory between Campbell and Griffin, leading up to their present day face off. James Spader’s performance successfully conveys the mental and physical toll the past four years have taken on Campbell as he has tried to stop this serial killer, experienced a great personal loss in the process, and now reluctantly finds himself drawn back into Griffin’s games. The only person Campbell really has in his new life in Chicago is his therapist, who sometimes feels more like a best friend than his doctor. Meanwhile, Keanu Reeves also gives a strong performance as this despicable villain who is able to turn on the charm to lure in his victims, before he transforms in a snap into the evil killer when it’s time to claim his victim. Griffin also has this interesting co-dependent relationship with Campbell, needing him to be a part of his kills, and so he’s constantly contacting Campbell to keep him engaged in this game.
If not for Campbell’s slightly outdated cell phone and the use of payphones, this film would feel somewhat timeless, like it could easily take place today (though Spader and Reeves look so much younger—it’s amazing the difference 20 years can make). Overall, I found The Watcher to be a very solid edge-of-your-seat thriller.
The picture and sound on this Blu-ray release are quite satisfying. Whenever the film portrays Griffin’s POV as he stalks his victims, it switches to a more blocky and less-detailed style that looks more like a video of a video playing on an old TV. This is likely the aesthetic the filmmakers were going for and not a lack of picture quality. The rest of the film looks quite good, with a nice clean and detailed picture, especially in close-ups of faces. However, in some of the darker nighttime scenes the picture does get slightly muddled. There are also some special effects in the final act that haven’t aged all that well. The audio track provides clear dialogue and a somewhat immersive soundtrack that brings the ambient sounds of the city to life as well as the whir of helicopters or cracks of thunder and pouring rain overhead. While Mill Creek’s Blu-ray re-release doesn’t contain any bonus material, the previous Universal Studios Blu-ray and HD DVD releases of The Watcher were also barebones, and only only included the film’s trailer.
The Skeleton Key (2005)
Caroline Ellis (Kate Hudson) has been working at a hospital as she tries to get her hours of experience needed for her nursing degree. However, she recently lost her father and seeing the way the institution has a general lack of care and compassion for its patients upsets her. So she answers an ad looking for a hospice nurse at a New Orleans plantation home. Her patient, Ben Devereaux (John Hurt), is an older man who suffered a stroke, is unable to speak, and only has about a month to live. His wife, Violet (Gena Rowlands), isn’t really won over by Caroline—she doesn’t like the fact that she’s not a true Southerner, having grown up in New Jersey. However, her estate lawyer (Peter Sarsgaard) assists in smoothing things over, helping Caroline get the job.
Violet gives Caroline a skeleton key that will unlock any room in the 30+-room mansion. As she explores the old home, Caroline starts to notice some spooky things about the house, such as its odd lack of mirrors, and strange noises coming from the attic—the only place where her key doesn’t seem to work. Ben is also behaving strangely, and seems eager and desperate to leave the house. As Caroline learns more about the home’s dark history and sees Ben’s odd behavior around his wife, she begins to suspect that Violet is hiding something, and hasn’t been forthright about the circumstances surrounding Ben’s stroke. As she explores the attic she also learns of the previous residents’ connection to and practice of a dark magic called hoodoo. While she wants to just leave this strange and spooky house, she still regrets that she wasn’t there for her father when he was sick, and sees this has her chance to make things right by figuring out what’s really going on and helping Ben in a way she never got to help her father. However, she may be underestimating the dark powers that reside in this home.
If I had seen The Skeleton Key in the past, I didn’t really remember anything about the film. It starts off really strong, quickly setting up the spooky atmosphere, building the tension, and establishing that something isn’t quite right in this home. This continues in the second act as Caroline learns more about the home’s history, and starts to explore and investigate some of her theories. While there are some exciting and tense moments in this middle portion of the film, the movie drags a bit and gets a little repetitive at times—the filmmakers tend to over-explain the hoodoo concepts and the history of the previous residents of the home, reiterating the material over and over again as a way of saying “this will be important later”. However, the film closes out with a really exciting, action-packed, and twisty final act that is sure to surprise a lot of viewers. Overall it is a pretty solid supernatural thriller, with a really fun ending.
Kate Hudson gives a satisfying and engaging performance as this woman who truly cares about others and is trying to make up for failing her father in his time of need, and now finds herself in this terrifying, supernatural and spooky home. However, it felt like something was missing from her performance—it’s hard to explain, but that spark she usually has in her more rom-com style roles. The supporting cast is quite good. While he doesn’t really say anything, John Hurt is able to convey so much with just his facial expressions, and Gena Rowlands is excellent as this creepy older woman. You’re never really sure where she’s at—did she do something to her husband, or is she just a very odd and ornery woman?! Rounding out the cast are Peter Sarsgaard as the helpful lawyer and Joy Bryant as Caroline’s best friend Jill, both of whom Caroline bounces some of her crazy ideas and theories off of.
This Blu-ray release features a pretty solid picture that captures the creepy atmosphere of the home with a nice level of detail in surfaces and faces. Even in the darker scenes, the picture remains quite clean and pleasant. The audio track provides clear dialogue, showcases the music that often plays on record players throughout the home, and has an immersive feel as cracking thunder and pouring rain fills the air and adds to the spooky atmosphere. While Mill Creek’s release is barebones in regards to bonus material, Universal’s original Blu-ray & HD-DVD releases from 2010 included a director’s commentary and 21 minutes of deleted scenes, plus the original DVD release also included 16 minutes of featurettes. It’s a shame that none of that material was ported over to this release. But for those who don’t care about the bonus material, Mill Creek’s re-release is like getting two films for the price of one.
Both films reside on a single Blu-ray disc, which has a basic menu with subtitle on/off options and a play buttons for each of the two movies. There is no slipcover, digital copy or bonus material included with this release.
What’s Included:
Films:
- The Watcher (2000) (1:36:53)
- 1080p / Widescreen 1.85:1
- Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
- Subtitles: English SDH
- The Skeleton Key (2005) (1:43:51)
- 1080p / Widescreen 2.35:1
- Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
- Subtitles: English SDH
Extras:
-
This release contains no bonus material.
Final Thoughts:
Mill Creek has paired two action-packed thrillers for this latest Double Feature Blu-ray release. The Watcher is an exciting cat-and-mouse serial killer tale led by strong performances from James Spader & Keanu Reeves, while The Skeleton Key takes things into more of a spooky, supernatural realm with Kate Hudson. Both films have previously been released on Blu-ray, but Mill Creek’s re-release provides solid picture and sound in a more wallet- (and space-) friendly double feature package. The one downside is that none of the bonus material that had been included on the previous home media releases of The Skeleton Key has been ported over to this disc. That said, I think the release is worth pickup up if just for The Watcher alone… though you may not want to watch ‘er alone! 😉
