Keep Watching

Keep Watching is a chilling psychological thriller directed by Sean Carter and stars young powerhouses Bella Thorne and Chandler Riggs along with seasoned actors Ioan Gruffudd and Natalie Martinez. The movie was released in 2017 and uniquely uses the found footage style in a home invasion exercise which offers a hair-raising dash of voyeurism and stark terror.

In this horrifying thriller, Jaime (Bella Thorne) and her family find themselves the victims of a home invasion. Captured in their own home late one night, the family is ensnared in a deadly game where the grimly unsmiling sadists controlling the game have rigged the house with cameras that are monitored by a cloud of potential viewers on the internet. Riggs plays the brother to Thorne’s character, while Gruffudd and Martinez play the parents in this inescapably macabre environment.

The story begins innocently enough as the family return home after a brief vacation but soon turns chaotic as they realize they are not alone. Their joyous homecoming swiftly evolves into a nightmare. Before long, they are under the control of a group known as The Terror, an unknown assailant who has taken control of their home, turning it into a house of horrors. The use of an array of hidden and visible cameras within the house gives the film its intimate and hands-on style. The premise of internet viewers being able to watch the events as they unfold in real-time creates an unsettling atmosphere of voyeurism and calamity.

The sinister modus operandi of The Terror is unique: he does not straightforwardly assassinate his victims, but evokes fear and panic through torment, mentally playing with the victims, inducing terrible dread. This tangible fear that clings to each character is interwoven with the fear that every single movement, every breath, and every tear is broadcast to millions.

The script, written by Joseph Dembner, keeps the suspense alive throughout the movie and pushes the boundaries of the psychological thriller genre. The movie plays with the concept of a technologically driven society, examining its intrusion into our private lives, and its potential for cruelty. Framed in this light, Keep Watching poses a compelling question on our increasing dependence on technology: “How private is a private life?”

The performances in the movie are impressive, with Bella Thorne and Chandler Riggs portraying the terror-stricken siblings with convincing dread and desperation. Ioan Gruffudd, who plays the father, and Natalie Martinez, who stars as the stepmother, bring an added layer of complexity and fear to their characters. The cast manages to generate a sense of realism with their frantic efforts to escape from their captors. The tension and the high stakes game of life and death keep the viewer glued to the screen.

The detailed and insightful direction of Sean Carter stands out throughout the film, as he seamlessly toggles between the various camera angles and views. The director efficiently presents a scenario that is believable and terrifying at the same time, tapping into primal fears of being watched, invaded, and helpless. The movie is as much an exploration of fear and paranoia as it is a statement on society’s voyeuristic tendencies amplified by technology.

The cinematography, although limited by the found footage style, is cleverly used to amplify the claustrophobic atmosphere and the feeling of being constantly watched. Each angle and corner of the house becomes a potential sight of horror, escalating the suspense and fear.

Keep Watching is not just a movie; it is an unnerving experience that probes the darker side of technology and invades the comfort of our homes. It holds up a terrifying mirror to our society, reflecting our voyeuristic tendencies and the omnipresent nature of technology in a home invasion scenario which is as thrilling as it is terrifying. Combining elements of horror, suspense, and psychological thriller, Keep Watching manages to keep its audience captive and engaged, right till the very end.