Neighborhood Watch: Promise That Fails To Get Off The Ground

Neighborhood Watch is the first feature from director Duncan Skiles since 2018’s highly underrated The Clovehitch Killer and sees the reteaming of The Boys stars Jack Quaid and Jeffrey Dean Morgan. The story centers around Simon McNally (Quaid), a mentally ill young man who thinks he witnessed an abduction of a woman and reports the crime to the police, only for them to refuse to believe him. As a result, the young man then reluctantly turns to his next door neighbor Ed Deerman (Morgan) for help to solve the case and find the victim at any cost necessary, before it is too late. While the film undoubtedly has a lot of talent assembled both in front of and behind the camera, this fact simply makes it even more of a shame that the final product would turn out to be so dull and forgettable to the point that it will surely slip under the radar for most audiences when all is set and done.

Though Neighborhood Watch is far from a bad film, it is also one that could have been so much more. Moving at such a glacial pace, that kind of pace can test the patience of audiences over the course of its short 93-minute runtime. Because of its largely uneventful and lethargic nature, this leads to several sections of the film becoming a bore to watch. Boasting a story ripe with potential, it is never quite as engaging or interesting as many would probably hope it to be considering the names involved while, for the most part, the film never takes off, gradually losing steam until well into its third act. Meanwhile, Malin Akerman, who plays Simon’s mother DeeDee, also reunites with fellow Watchmen and Rampage co-star Morgan, but is criminally wasted in a role where she is barely given anything to do, or at least until the third act, but that’s not saying much.

Inherently, when it comes to with any crime thrillers like this one, they should at least possess an aura of mystery, however, this was not the case here. Presenting the possible idea that the crisis at hand could have been in Simon’s head early on, the film fails to commit to that idea, rendering it a virtual impossibility by the end. Similarly, it somehow also decides to give Simon an inner voice, a choice that has proven effective across countless other films and series, it doesn’t work at all here and comes off as unnecessary. Every time it turns to Simon’s inner voice, it takes audiences out of the film, merely serving as a distraction from the actual plot. Topping things off, tonal issues cause it to devolve the longer it goes on, the more all over the place the tone becomes.

That being said, Neighborhood Watch does have some redeeming qualities to it that give it some watchability. Quaid and Morgan are two likeable and extremely talented actors, easily making them the best part of the film. It also shouldn’t come as a surprise that they have great chemistry, while Quaid, in particular, stretches himself as an actor by offering yet another side of him, something which he does well with. Featuring a darkly funny sense of humour, the great comedic timing of its leads make for some good laughs throughout. In spite of its issues, the film does find a way to pick up a bit for its final stretch, ending on a decent note. However, this sudden progress comes too little too late.

At the end of the day, Neighborhood Watch might be worthier as a streaming release. Otherwise, for fans of either one of its leads, or its director, while not their finest days at the office, may warrant a watch, even if its story leaves a lot to be desired.

Score: 45/100

*still courtesy of RLJE Films*

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Connor Carey

www.connorsmoviereviews.com/