Nightwatch Review
by Jamie Peck (jpeck1 AT gl DOT umbc DOT edu)April 12th, 1998
NIGHTWATCH
Reviewed by Jamie Peck
------------------------------------------------------------------------Rating: **1/2 (out of ****)
Dimension / 1:45 / 1998 / R (language, violence, corpse nudity, elements
of necrophilia)
Cast: Ewan McGregor; Josh Brolin; Patricia Arquette; Nick Nolte; Lauren
Graham; Alix Koromzay; Brad Dourif; John C. Reilly
Director: Ole Bornedal
Screenplay: Ole Bornedal; Steven Soderbergh
------------------------------------------------------------------------After sitting on a shelf for well over a year, Ole Bornedal's "Nightwatch" is finally being released with little fanfare. Word had it
that Dimension Films, the movie's distributor, smelled a big dud and
waited until the competition was weak to see it open. But because
"Nightwatch" is actually a decent thriller, it's probably closer to the
truth to say that the studio was eager to see their film ride the
coattails of star Ewan McGregor -- soon to be seen as a young Ben Kenobi
in George Lucas' "Star Wars" prequels -- to a moderate, brisk payoff.
Either way, modern horror is in thanks to the "Scream" films, and
"Nightwatch" creates a suitably scary atmosphere that renders it
watchable even when the plot degenerates into a blood-soaked mess. An
eyeball here, a severed thumb there -- when everything turns gory, who
needs a coherent story?
In this reworking of Bornedal's Dutch "Nattevagten," McGregor plays
Martin Bells, a young law student strapped for cash and study time. A
job as the night watchman of the local morgue appears to give him the
solution to both of his problems -- until, that is, strange things begin
to happen. A serial killer is leaving his mark on the city, and his
victims' bodies appear to have a life of their own. Making matters worse
is a series of clues that leads the investigator (Nick Nolte) in charge
of the case to suspect that Martin is the mastermind behind the murders.
While Martin slowly realizes he's obviously the victim of a set-up,
distrust falls on all those around him. Is the real killer his tough-guy
best friend (Josh Brolin)? Is it the seemingly sinister mortician (Brad
Dourif) who keeps late hours? Does his dedicated girlfriend (Patricia
Arquette) know more than she lets on? Maybe, maybe not.
It's very easy to peg the identity of "Nightwatch"'s resident psycho, so
much that another character becomes a red herring to the obvious
extreme. (For the record, I had everything correctly figured out a
half-hour in, and I'm usually not that ahead of the ball.) This would
have been acceptable had the movie not run out of surprises at its
midpoint, but "Nightwatch" reveals too much too soon and grinds to a
halt thereafter. When the murderer explicitly makes himself known by
stepping out from behind a bathroom door, you think, "Yeah, and ... ?",
and anticipate a few more twists that are maddeningly never delivered.
When all is finally out in the open about the him and his past, ask
yourself how he got where he is now, or how he plans to get away with
what he does in the movie's climax. "Nightwatch"'s convoluted tale
sports a whole lotta holes -- it's definitely not for theatrical
nitpickers.
On the other hand, "Nightwatch" does offer some resilience. As far as
sheer, creepy ambience is concerned, the movie's got the most effective
feel since "Seven." The morgue is where most of "Nightwatch" unfolds,
and the film actually works the best when it lets McGregor roam its
eerily fluorescent-lit halls in nervous silence; some of these sequences
are so genuinely frightening that you wish they were put to use in a
better movie. The same goes for the camaraderie between the well-played
McGregor and Brolin characters -- they're constantly trying to one-up
each other with dares, practical jokes and other games. It's an
interesting friendship, one, of course, that will serve the serial
killer storyline before everything is over. The cast does fine work,
even when some players (particularly Arquette) are underused. These
strengths outweigh the flaws, but just barely. While "Nightwatch" may
end with a whimper, at least it starts out with a bang. ------------------------------------------------------------------------© 1998 Jamie Peck
E-mail: [email protected]
Visit the Reel Deal Online: http://www.gl.umbc.edu/~jpeck1/
"Suggestions, please, for the fourth movie in the series. How about
‘Look Who's Talking Back,' in which the audience gets its turn?" --
Roger Ebert on "Look Who's Talking Now"
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