Grade: C-
Synopsis: After taking a job as night watchman at a morgue, a law student (Ewan McGregor) finds himself a suspected of murder.
Nightwatch is a remake of writer/director Ole Bornedal’s 1994 Danish film Nattevagten that feels like a would-be Dario Argento film. Bornedal does a serviceable job, but doesn’t do enough to make Nightwatch stand out. There are hints of greatness here and there, such as the sequence where the retiring night watchman shows Ewan McGregor’s character the ropes, but for every step forward, there’s a step back, such as Bornedal’s inclusion of then-popular music, which only serves to date the film, and does nothing to heighten the suspense.
Nightwatch’s biggest sin, however, is that it puts all its cards on the table far too early. Most will likely discern the killer’s identity before the halfway point, and some will even do so before the opening credits are finished. Bornedal dangles various red herrings throughout the film, but they only serve to make the plot even more ridiculous.
These missteps are made all the more frustrating by the stacked cast. Ewan McGregor, Nick Nolte, Patricia Arquette, Josh Brolin and Lauren Graham all perform well, especially Brolin as McGregor’s character’s edgy best friend.
Bottom Line: I haven’t seen the original film, Nattevagten, but I imagine that either that or a Dario Argento film would be a better choice than this.
