The Watcher in the Woods (1980) Review

One of Disney’s biggest failures, this spooky thriller was aimed at teenagers and was supposed to herald a new era at the venerable movie studio. All the ingredients were there: a popular novel to adapt, the director of the Witch Mountain movies, a starlet coming off a huge hit, and Bette Davis to add gravitas. Ultimately, it failed to jell due to an uneven match of old Disney style and gothic horror. UPDATED October 2012 with new screen captures and massively rewritten text.

In 1980, Disney released an adaptation of Florence Randall’s popular teen novel, The Watcher in the Woods.  This movie was supposed their first PG film, but bad screenings led to protracted reshoots and eventually recuts of the ending. As a result, it came out in a limited release April of 1980, after the Autumn 1979 debut of The Black Hole. Even then, the studio decided to recut it.  While not a great movie, it has some redeeming points to it, mainly found in the alternate endings on the DVD releases.

I vaguely recall seeing the movie in the old Spring Grove Theater and being very disappointed in it.  In fact, this may have been the film that taught me to distrust movie adaptations of novels.  Having been weaned on old Hammer horror movies, there was nothing there to scare me.  However, viewing it as an adult, I can see plenty to creep out and scare kids (or sheltered adults) throughout the movie.  The director, John Hough, also directed one of my favorite scary movies, The Legend of Hell House, and I have to wonder what the movie would have been like made by another studio than Disney.

The movie opens with the classic horror movie trope of what I dub ‘stalker cam’ where the perspective is shown from the viewpoint of an unseen person.  Accompanying the sinister camera work is the sound of a music box playing, underlain by darker tones and an electronic wailing that sounds like sobs. The camera follows the Curtis family arriving at a rural English mansion and the atmosphere is immediately set up to be as disturbing as possible.  The oldest daughter, Jan (played by former ice skater Lynn-Holly Johnson) promptly runs into a strange breeze swirling through the fallen leaves of the adjoining forest. 

That weird moment passes and the family is watched by an old woman named Mrs. Aylwood, played by a very effective Bette Davis.  She is none too pleased to have a young family there, until she spies the very blond Jan and instantly changes her mind. Her obsession with Jan is unsettling right from the beginning.

The parents are forgettable, with the focus being on the two girls, Jan and Ellie (Kyle Richards), with the local adults playing important parts as the movie unspools. This is despite setting up the characters as having interesting careers. Paul Curtis (David McCallum) is an opera conductor while his wife, Helen (Carroll Baker), is a children’s author. With very little given to do, the two performers deliver pedestrian performances. Given the film’s short time of 83 minutes, perhaps more of them was left on the cutting room floor than in the movie.

Touring the house with the lady realtor reveals it to be a lovely old mansion that the family falls instantly in love with. Well, everyone but Jan who is uneasy. Weird things begin happening immediately, starting with a flash of blue light from the nearby woods that cracks the window pane of Jan’s bedroom. The crack is formed into a triangle, cutting her hand in the process. 

A delightfully creepy exchange follows as Mrs. Aylwood interrogates the teen about her personality. No teen likes to be put on the spot about who they are, especially by a stranger, but the girl gives an honest answer. Having passed whatever test the old woman had applied, Jan finds out later that approval for the family renting the place is due to her being liked by the widow.

Later when moving into the house, Jan is moves a mirror and discovers something odd. Her reflection nowhere to be seen. Talk about a teenage girl’s worst nightmare! A triangular crack suddenly appears in the mirror containing an eerie image of a blindfolded blond girl silently begging for help.  The mirror shatters and nobody in her family believes her story. One thing about Jan, she is honest. Too honest for her own good, it seems.

Things escalate from there, with her younger sister Ellie begins speaking strange things in her sleep with no memory of what was said.  Once again, the strange presence in the wind swirls outside parting the mist and tree branches.  Ellie is pulled in more as she begins going into trances while awake and writing things backwards.  Things like the name of Mrs. Aylwood’s daughter who apparently died almost thirty years before. It is her memory that haunts the area, tormenting Mrs. Aylwood… and others.

In the midst of all this, Jan somehow finds time to get a boyfriend in the form of a local farm boy named Mike (Benedict Taylor). It feels shoehorned in, but it has more to do with plot compression since it seems that more time elapses than is shown on screen. In fact, the entire move is vague about when things happen. This may have been deliberate, to add a dreamlike quality, but given all the editing issues it is hard to tell.

It takes awhile, but the woods finally become a major setting. Ellie’s running off unsupervised causes a panicked Jan to go into them for the first time. There someone, or something, follows her at a distance and she has to go in deep to find her little sister. Some of the best camera work in the movie is on display during the quest for Ellie, with the sunlight through the twisted trees adding some beauty to the proceedings.

An abandoned pond with a tree fallen into it gives Jan a place to stop and appreciate the scenery. Drifting through the air is a hummed tune, the same as the music box heard at the beginning of the movie. A ring of blue light in the water and another flash of light nearly kills Jan, dispelling any good atmosphere.

An apparent attack turns out to be a rescue and offers Jan a chance to get to know the spooky old woman next door. As more of Mrs. Aylwood is shown, she becomes more sympathetic and less frightening. In fact, Jan and the older woman quickly develop a curious bond of trust. It is a nice touch and certainly better than most films of the era pushing the “Generation Gap” at every turn.

As the past is revealed, Jan learns that 16 year old Karen Aylwood vanished in an abandoned chapel out in the woods during a mysterious fire thirty years ago. There were three other teens involved in some strange goings on, yet never have said what. Tragically, Karen’s mother was a witness to part of what happened, but arrived too late to save her daughter. Grief consumed her life and she has been unable to let go of her daughter’s memory.

Enough of the heavy emotional stuff, let’s have a dirt track motorcycle race! Seriously, that is what happens in a very abrupt change of settings. Of course, Mike the farm boy is also a racer, making him Mr. Cool and dangerously exciting. This was filmed at the end of the ‘70s after all. More weirdness happens and Jan narrowly avoids being killed again.

Being honest to a fault, she begins telling Mike everything that has happened and he is more than a little skeptical. But the fact his mother (Frances Cuka) was involved in the disappearance decades ago pulls him into Jan’s investigation. It does not hurt that Jan is very cute.

Gratuitous horse riding while the parents are away leads to some exciting, if nearly deadly, consequences for Ellie, proving Jan isn’t the only one in danger. That is one thing this movie is good at, making it feel like the characters are actually threatened with physical harm. In particular, the scenes that unfold once the horses bolt convey a rather immediate sense of mortality for the girls. That feeling deepens when Jan finds the burned out remains of the chapel where a glowing blue triangle of light leads her to a coffin.

Here is where the movie becomes too much for little kids, because the imagery gets very creepy. Ghostly girls in burnt out coffins were the kind of things that made kids lose sleep back then. Instead of glass cracking, we are treated to glass exploding in the chapel, with a very interesting bit where two pieced fall in a very calculated way. Clues are being given, but they have not been put together by Jan yet.

From there, a traditional ghost story unfolds. Or does it?  Is Karen still out there, since no body was ever found? Is she haunting the forest like her mother believes?  What are the flashes of blue light and why do circles and triangles keep appearing? What really happened between the teenagers all those years ago?

One thing is certain, whatever is out there won’t let them leave until it gets what it wants.

Thoughts

Since it is Halloween, I thought I’d do a scary movie review. Previously, I reviewed The Black Hole, Disney’s first attempt at a PG rated movie. While attempting to cash in on the sci-fi craze reborn thanks to Star Wars, it turned out to be more of a haunted house horror movie in many ways. So I find it interesting that Disney went with two productions based on chills to prove the company wasn’t just for kids anymore.

On paper this had to look like a slam dunk easy hit. The reality of the production turned out otherwise, however. The Watcher in the Woods was a colossal box office bomb. One major difficulty was that they ran out of money so that the visual effects weren’t completely finished. With the three attempts at an ending, the movie petered out in a confusing way, which helped nothing.

I have a strange fondness for the Disney experiments of the early 1980s and I cannot exactly say why, other than I am fascinated by attempts to stretch and grow by companies as well as people. Growing pains is a good description of the mostly mediocre products that came out of this period, but I still find myself liking them for trying so hard.

Fascinating contrasts resulted in this transition from the old Disney kids films to reaching out to older audiences.  The acting of the younger actors is as stiff and formulaic as one expects out of an older Disney production, but the older actors put their all into it.  This adds needed weight to the movie, especially with the themes of loss and guilt underlying the story.  Still, it is a film from a much more innocent era. These opposing intentions weaken the story and the end product shows it.

Lynn-Holly Johnson was coming off of a smash hit movie, Ice Castles, and while she is pretty to look at and gives her all in the movie, her acting skills were minimal. Fortunately, the script called for Jan to have a dreamy look a lot of the time and presented her as a nice, average girl. Her fundamental decency is central to the character's motivations, so it almost works.

Bette Davis stands out as the haunted and strange Mrs. Aylwood. In every scene she is in the actress radiates dignity and subtlety in a layered performance that make the old widow a believable character.

Content of the film is at the soft end of PG and only gets that rating due to the fact little kids will be scared by some of the scenes. There is no offensive language and it is very much an older Disney production in some ways. 

The movie is worth watching but don’t expect a masterpiece. I recommend it for tweens, young teenagers, and Disney aficionados. Horror movie completists will want to check it out too. It is probably the closest thing there is to a scary movie for the whole family, which makes it unique that way.

Technical

This review is of the Disney DVD, not the Anchor Bay version. That version is superior thanks to an audio commentary by director John Hough and a DTS audio track, but is out of print and going for a premium. I might pick up a used copy someday, but it isn’t a priority for me.

Video quality is grainy, showing dirt and wear. This is not a restored film by any means, though it is in anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen format. Colors appear muted while the contrast is not so great. Audio is good quality and remixed from stereo to Dolby 5.1 for the English track. Dolby Digital 2.0 is employed for the Spanish and French tracks. Subtitles in Spanish and French are provided, along with English for the Hearing Impaired.

Extras include two alternate endings including the original theatrical ending from the limited April, 1980 release. More on them in the spoilers section. Two theatrical trailers are on the DVD and are interesting only in that they portray the movie as a straight horror story with disclaimers that small children shouldn’t see it – despite Disney being proud of the movie!

BEWARE! HERE BE SPOILERS!!!

 

 

 

 

Jan continues to see Karen Aylwood (Katherine Levy), with a visit to a carnival completely unnerving the girl thanks to a hall of mirrors. While Mike may not believe her, he lends some support to the upset girl who now thinks Karen is trapped somewhere. Determined to find out what happened, she visits John Keller (Ian Bannon) who was the ring leader of the little group thirty years ago. He turns out to be a bitter and cold recluse who is very unhappy with her stirring up the past.

As intimidating as Keller is, Tom Colley (Richard Pasko in an excellent performance) scares the daylights out of her at a collapsed lodge he lives in. There she finds out he is actually a gentle simpleton devoted to rescuing wounded animals and the only anger in him is aimed at traps. Ah, traps! Jan does not hesitate to use that angle to pry more information out of the man.

With the new account of what happened to Karen in hand, she rushes off to tell Mrs. Aylwood. It turns out the old woman has her own methods of trying to get information, methods that involve using Ellie and an old music box of her daughter’s. That music box looks kind of familiar, doesn’t it? Nice way to tie into the mirrors motif.

The results do not make the grief stricken woman very happy. It gets worse after Mrs. Curtis walks in on what was happening.

Extremely angry and thinking that Mrs. Aylwood is manipulating her daughters, she forces them to leave with her in the car that night. A rickety old bridge and a car battery dying combine to set up an explosive stop to their fleeing. I swear every ‘70s film found a way to blow a car up. For that matter, so did TV series of that decade.

With whatever is watching them now appearing very impatient and hostile, Mrs. Curtis no longer can deny something supernatural is going on. Not that she can do much about it, because Ellie gets possessed yet again that night and starts writing backwards yet again, proving that public education was already failing back then. I kid, because I must or lose my sanity.

After Ellie accidently puts all the clues together for Jan in a way that only a teen novel could, it is off to the races because the eclipse is coming. Mrs. Aylwood tries to stop Jan now that she no longer believes the ghost of her daughter is what haunts the woods. Her concern is well acted by Davis and one of her better scenes.

And Ellie gets possessed, again. I always wondered what happened to the character later, since I figure she would be a basket case from all the mind control. But this is a Disney movie, so I should not worry. Having employed her new boyfriend to round up Colley and his mother, Jan browbeats Keller into recreating the séance at the chapel, this time with her substituting for Karen.

I don’t know about you, but this does not sound like a good idea. But then again, I’m not a teenage girl.

The séance starts and Ellie shows up sounding like something inhuman. The Watcher of the title reveals that it is an alien from another dimension and that it got switched with Karen during the eclipse thirty years ago. It is an awkward bunch of technobabble accompanied by very cheap looking effects even for its time. The alien appears like a flickering candle flame that morphs into a column of red light that attempts to snatch Jan away.

Cue the heroic boyfriend jumping through the circle to save her. Cut to the eclipse, that will make it coherent, right?

Cutting back from the eclipse, we see Karen standing where Jan had been and she removes her blindfold. Something is very off here – oh, that isn’t the same actress! More on that in a bit. Mrs. Aylwood shows up out of the blue to see her daughter and tearfully says, “Karen… You’re home” before embracing her. Not a word of dialogue out of Karen. Roll credits.

Yeah, that was a messy, rushed ending. It also wasn’t the original ending seen in early 1980 and was tacked on for the 1981 release, which is what this is. In fact, a different director was brought in to shoot the new ending, since Hough was no longer available.

The Watcher in the Woods is the opposite of The Black Hole in that it is a science fiction story masquerading as a horror movie. Decades ago, I remember stumbling on to the novel in the elementary school library while looking for science fiction to read. What I’d wanted was checked out, so I grabbed it thinking it would be a boring girl book. Instead, I found a story that really grabbed me and a fascinating ending, which sadly wasn’t faithfully reproduced in the movie adaptation.

Or so I thought. It turns out a more faithful version was shot and then cut due to hostile executive reaction after the initial release. An even longer and faithful version existed and never made it into any release. Thanks to Anchor Bay, both were found.

The director, John Hough, is on record that his final edit would have been a mix of the three endings.  It would be interesting to see this, but Disney nixed that when Anchor Bay wanted to do their DVD release as a two disc set. At least they allowed the original and alternate endings to be included.  I highly recommend watching them to get a better understanding as to what was really happening.  The thirteen minute alternate ending #2 in particular gives the older actors a chance to shine and explains much more. It also makes Jan’s actions far more heroic.

In all the endings, the ritual that caused Karen Aylwood to disappear is re-enacted with Jan taking her place. The presence in the woods is revealed to be an alien that switched place with Karen by accident during a solar eclipse.  But there are major differences in how the finale is portrayed.

Fortunately we get both on the DVD as extras.

Alternate Ending #1

In the six minute original edit, things take place as in the theatrical version, except Ellie is never possessed. The alien reveals itself as a nightmarish creature floating through the chapel, zapping the boyfriend with laser bolts from its eyes before taking Jan and disappearing. It is insect like, but also resembles a wraith with tattered “wings” that serve as arms. The design is ideal for giving little kids bad dreams and is a rather impressive piece of practical effects work.

Jan's mother runs in wanting to know where Karen is and the stunned group tell her she's gone, just like Karen. Then she goes to each adult demanding more information in a scene that just goes on far too long. It becomes comic rather than dramatic.

A blinding flash of light and Jan reappears with Karen next to her. Yes, the return is that abrupt and Karen takes awhile to remove her blindfold. This time it is the original actress and the performance she gives is hard to describe. For whatever reason, it was determined that she would have no lines and her acting is not up to conveying the emotions required. It is simply strange to behold and a bit painful.

The end shows Jan bringing Karen back to her mother with a short exposition as she explains things to Ellie. Notice how much younger and less sinister Bette Davis looks. She does not match how she appeared in the rest of the movie at all. Once again, the strange acting by Levy makes the whole thing awkward. I can see why Disney was not happy, but the changes they made were not really an improvement.

Alternate Ending #2

Shelved due to unfinished effects, this ending runs nearly 13 minutes long and is considerably more interesting than the other two. Bette Davis' best scene was in this, as Mrs. Aylwood tries to talk Jan out of repeating the séance since it is the Devil's work. The adult actors get a little more dialogue as well.  Oddly, the eclipse shots are completely different and I prefer these to what ended up in the movie.

 

There are some critical differences between this version and the others. One rather large change is that we are shown Ellie and her mother watching the eclipse from the mansion. Also important is that Mrs. Aylwood goes there to warn Mrs. Curtis that Jan is in danger. So that’s why she showed up at the chapel! It can be safely said that Carol Baker’s best work in the film is contained here.

After starting the séance, things progress like Alternate Ending #1, but the lead up to the alien Watcher showing up has more building shaking and debris falling. The ceremony dialogue is also longer and more complete.

Once snatched by the Watcher, Jan gets taken to the alien world/dimension where Karen is trapped. Even for its time, the effects were no great shakes, but they were unfinished from what I understand. To the designers credit, the world is alien looking indeed with plenty of pyramids to keep the triangle motif going.

The alien building looks like a cross between a flying saucer and a radio telescope, which is something of a let down. The interior would not have been out of place in an old Star Trek episode.

Released by the Watcher, Jan sees the trapped Karen frozen in a force field made of, you guessed it, triangles. Strangely, she is still ghostly.

There Jan pulls Karen free of her prison and they return to Earth. From what I remember of the book, this was a wonderfully touching moment. Here it falls a little flat since there hasn’t been as much character development of Jan to explain how emotionally connected to Karen she had become. They reappear in the chapel and the rest goes much like the original theatrical version, but with less exposition.

This ending gets closer to the book's ending but would be baffling to audiences in 1979, I suspect.

Personally, it is my favorite of the endings. Like Hough, I believe combining elements of all three would produce something better, but Disney will never allow that. I’m amazed that we have seen two DVD releases of the movie in the first place!

And if Ellie might have problems from being possessed, could you imagine the difficulties Karen would have adjusting to a world where everyone she knew was thirty years older?