Written and directed by Tim Kasher, Caleb is a metal head loner who becomes obsessed with his new coworker, Krista. He begins invading every aspect of Krista’s life. As his infatuation escalates from inappropriate to criminal, we’re left asking who is really watching whom. Starring: Zachary Ray Sherman, Gracie Gillam, Olivia Luccardi, Steve Berg, Catie Zaleski, Ruth Rath, Isaiah Radke and Paige Nola.
Going into Who’s Watching you might ask: why would I want to watch a film where the lead is a creepy, deranged stalker with no redeemable qualities? And it is a very reasonable question, but it’s not possible to answer that without spoiling the film, so you just have to watch it to find out. There’s a lot of films out there that might have you initially raging at them, only to discover its true motives down the line and hugely enjoy it, this will be one of those films for a lot of people. Which is absolutely the point, you should question everything, don’t simply accept what you’re given as the entire story.
Discovering Zachary Ray Sherman’s Caleb is like stumbling upon the son of Buffalo Bill, except instead of a moth-loving, skin-wearing murderer, he’s your traditional messed up, predator, pervert incel. He hits that creepy vibe strong and immediately; there’s no escaping the discomfort he brings to the table when Tim Kasher is so succinctly giving you Who’s Watching through Caleb’s perspective. Again, this might be where you begin to become suspicious or are even put off by it, but stick with it and you will be rewarded.
Also, you don’t have to wait too long to Olivia Luccardi to show up, and that’s a reward in itself. The personality she brings to the table is excellent and she elevates Who’s Watching as soon as she appears on screen with her confidence and the way that she challenges Caleb. It’s a terrific performance and it only gets stronger as time goes on.
Kasher’s directorial style adds an excellent grungy note, he appreciates, and makes very good use of, that old-school trashy 1980s atmosphere. It’s intentionally messy and chaotic, and manages to blend in some great found footage notes without moving fully into that territory. It’s very in your face and unapologetic, Kasher really commits to the sleaziness and perversion, using a distasteful tone to his advantage without Who’s Watching becoming truly distasteful, which is actually quite impressive.
Who’s Watching is unexpected and unapologetic. The style is nicely reminiscent of old-school trashy horror, which fans will love. It has an interesting take on perspective, as well as highlighting the real risk of stalking and home invasion for women, without feeling like it’s cheaply using the topics for the plot, which Tim Kasher certainly deserves credit for. Zachary Ray Sherman and Olivia Luccardi are both excellent in very different ways, creating highly memorable characters. You may not like where it’s initially going but stick with it, and you will find a great piece of creepy, grimy, entertaining horror.
