Gritty performances and a great film. (Deathwatch (DVD))

Member Name: brooklyn77

Product:	Deathwatch (DVD)
Date:	21/07/03 (213 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great performances, Great filmography, Spinr tingling

Disadvantages: Script could be improved, Short, could be longer

I know what many of you are thinking; Deathwatch. Deathwatch? Deathwatch!!!
AAAAHHH !!! For goodness sake this film sounds cheesy as hell!!!! Well I suppose it does and to be honest the title has very little to do with anything in the film.

But let the faults and slander stop there please because you will not be disappointed by what this film has to offer.
Grit, atmosphere, frights, and good directing all mix well enough to make this film a worthwhile choice for a night in.

The film is about a group of British allies in world war 1 losing touch with their regiment and ending up coming across a deserted German trench. It is deserted apart from the rats, dead German bodies and, well, something else. The first clue comes in the form of the question: if the Germans are dead where are the allies? And If they killed each other, why?

That is the general theme to this Film. And nearly all the film is set in this trench. It might not make much of a movie you might think, and to be fair that could be a valid criticism however you need to take time to appreciate the suspense the director ensures comes across and the excellent filming and photography. It really does make for a gritty film and it all works out well.

There is something very sinister in the trenches that intends to knock off the troops one by one. Towards the end of the film there is only one survivor, a sixteen year old lad who has a heart of gold compared to the other hardened allied troops. But here is where I actually do get confused. At the end there is a man who has let the sixteen year old boy go. Then when more allied troops arrive the whole scenario looks like it is about to happen again. You see, this man lets only people with good hearts out of the trench.

But it makes more questions than answers (for me anyway) firstly who is the man? Is he the German that the boy saved? Or is he the Sergeant the boy tried to save? I think he was the German but w
hy is he now speaking English? Also If he lets good people go, why did he kill off the priest, what did he do wrong?

It is all rather odd and I hope someone can help answer those questions but I will watch it again.

However despite this you will actually like this film a lot, the characters are really well produced and this is so much the making of the film, without the characters the film would or at least could have died a horrible death (excuse the pun). You actually get to feel for the characters, so many horror films miss this by a mile ending up in you not caring who dies. For example you know the Captain is being a total fool but yet you know what he is doing makes sense and you end up feeling sorry for him. The filming makes you feel like you are there and it is hard and gritty which helps the atmosphere.

The ghostly happenings are often and more spine tingling than scary but that does not matter much because the film is so well made. The only criticism I have is that the film could have lasted a little longer to give the script time to pan out more. But that?s only a minor point.

The film is well worth seeing and I would recommend it. You wont dislike it but you may also not love it. It is one of those films that will certainly differ to peoples tastes. But really it wont be a waste of money to see it once. If your anything like me, you will want to see it again.

Film: Deathwatch
Rating: 15

Summary: