Watcher At The Realm

Produced, written, and directed by Mike Andrews, Watcher At The Realm (yes, “at” not “of”) is a super-powered fantasy taking inspiration from anime and the Bible. It is also about the creation of itself, but more on that later. Micha’el has a dual role in this adaptation of his book as Michael and the Watcher. The Watcher serves as the narrator, threading the lives of the main characters together until all their stories intertwine.

“…evil forces aim to disrupt Michael’s plans and, as all humans are to do, even he is tempted…”

Michael is a video game designer, but the company he works for sucks. After leaving very late, he encounters Lady Wisdom (Shantilata Stone), who gives him the pluck to start his own business, Poly-Krafted (the very same company that produced this film). Brought into his orbit by Lady Wisdom, the Spirit of Dominion (Jeff Horner), and the Spirit of Perseverance (Kafi Payne) are the troubled Cornelius (Cornelius Andrews) and aspiring singer Toccara (Cari Alam), who has fallen on hard times after the passing of her father. Michael’s faith and guidance by the spirits allow him to empathize with these people and help push them through turbulent times. However, evil forces aim to disrupt Michael’s plans and, as all humans are to do, even he is tempted by a number of things to stray from his righteous path.

Watcher At The Realm is two movies in one. The first of them is mediocre, at best. Unfortunately, these would be the live-action bits. The acting ranges from decent to “please don’t quit your day job.” Stone and Horner are trying their hardest and are almost convincing as servants of the Almighty. Perhaps with a bit more rehearsal time, they could have shone. The exact opposite of that is Micha’el, who is monotone and wooden and often looks uncomfortable in front of the camera. Considering he is the lead, this hurts the live-action segments very much.