The/A Watcher in the Woods

The Bette Davis movie is a foundational childhood memory for some people and a complete mystery to others. I’m one of the few to be midway between, remembering seeing the commercial as a kid but never actually the movie. I assumed that I wouldn’t like it, I think. Not because of its reputation as being bad but because I was never particularly into scary movies. And since then, it’s fallen into Disney’s memory hole—which we’ll be talking about next month in the annual Disney+ review, so watch this space—to the point where I was shocked to have found it on DVD a while back.

The book, by Florence Engel Randall, came out in 1976. It’s the story of Jan Carstairs. She and her family have moved from a larger city to a rural Massachusetts town because her father has gotten the job as head of the English department at a local college. Jan is fifteen. Fifty years ago, Karen Aylwood, age fifteen, vanished. Her mother was forced to sell the house and chose to in part because of what she felt from Jan. Jan is now feeling something that she realizes is the feelings of Whatever Is In The Woods. Her seven-year-old sister, Ellie, hears it, and she communicates in mirror writing. Jan believes they must solve the mystery and help Karen.

The Disney movie came out in 1980. It’s the story of Jan Curtis (Lynn-Holly Johnson). She and her family have moved from the US to a rural English town because her father (David McCallum) is going to be conducting an opera. Jan is seventeen. Thirty years ago, Karen Aylwood, age seventeen, vanished. Her mother (Bette Davis) was forced to rent out the main house and chose to in part because of what she felt from Jan. Jan is now seeing something that she realizes is Whoever Is In The Woods. Her eleven-year-old sister, Ellie (Kyle Richards), hears it, and there’s an instance of mirror writing. Jan believes they must solve the mystery and help Karen.

The Lifetime movie came out in 2017. It’s the story of Jan Carstairs (Tallulah Evans). She and her family have moved from the US to a rural Welsh town because her father (Rufus Wright) needs to do math. Jan is seventeen. Thirty years ago, Karen Aylwood, age seventeen, vanished. Her mother (Anjelica Huston) was forced to rent out the main house and chose to in part because of what she felt from Jan. Jan is vaguely aware of something that she realizes is Whoever Is In The Woods. Her eleven-year-old sister, Ellie (Dixie Egerickx), thinks Jan is trying to scare her and maybe mirror writing happens. Jan believes they must solve the mystery and help Karen.

You will note that the plot substantially changes with each adaptation. To the point that, frankly, without the middle iteration, you can barely see the connection between the first and third. When I initially reviewed the Davis version for Disney Byways, I observed that I found Jan the only character who was much more than a cipher, and that is definitely fixed by the book. As is the problem that Bette Davis didn’t have much to do and much to do with the plot. Sure, Mrs. Aylwood is gone for most of the book, but when she comes back, it’s actually an impressive and deeply moving ending. Bette Davis would’ve killed it.

I mean, okay, it fixed it at the expense of my really not liking Jan’s parents. They both have moments, but they’re also explicitly parentifying Jan. She’s responsible for Ellie to the point that her parents actually say one of the reasons they like the gap between the girls is that it means they can make Jan take care of Ellie. (Yes, I know that “fixing” it is “the way it was originally done,” but I did see the movie first so that’s how it works in my brain.) They let Ellie get away with murder and tell Jan that they should be able to expect more from her, and I know there’s an eight-year gap between the girls but it’s still pretty lousy for Jan. Who is also made responsible for her mother’s feelings a few times.

Likewise Mike/Mark Fleming (Benedict Taylor in the Disney and Nicholas Galitzine in the Lifetime, and, no, I don’t know why they changed his name) is just kind of there to be attractive to Jan and give her a little local information. In the original book, he’s allowed to have something of an internal life—more than Ellie has, really—and aspects of himself that have nothing to do with Jan.

And then there is Ellie, of course. Who I couldn’t stand in any version particularly. Ellie has been allowed, in the book, to remain completely self-centered, and in no version do I feel Jan is treated as well by her parents. Ellie’s the golden child and a royal pain. “Oh, this boy has invited you to go for a drive? I’m sure your sister would love that!” It remains true in the movie versions, and the most annoying thing is that the 2017 keeps it, doesn’t seem to notice, and expects that to just be how a substantially older sister is treated in regards to her substantially younger sister.

Which may be because, and I’m burying the lede, here, the Lifetime movie was directed by Melissa Joan Hart. Yes, Clarissa—or Sabrina, if you’re younger than I am. That’s Melissa Joan “I support gun control but vote Libertarian” Hart. Her religious beliefs may be the sort to assume that it’s the obligation of older girls to care for their younger siblings because it’s some sort of training. Also all of the night scenes were shot day-for-night, which her mom—they have a production company together—told her was cheaper but which they actually did because her mom was afraid of the dark woods. It’s kind of bonkers.

The Disney version was much more complicated in its backstory, featuring multiple endings, a pulled release for retooling, and enough confusion that it’s generally considered by a lot of people to just not have an ending. And you know, I do think they could’ve cut a lot of filler and made the plot, or at least the characterization, better. But if Disney’s not hiring me now, they surely weren’t when this movie was made. You know, when I was three. I was reading by then, but not well enough to read the book.

Also, the movie came out in the stretch where Disney was trying to appeal more to teenage boys, and they wouldn’t listen to three-year-old me or current me transported back in time about how to fix this movie. Especially since part of my fix would’ve been to develop Jan better as a person. She should be younger, and not blonde, and given an attempt at the internal life of the character. The book is actually quite good, and one of the things that’s good about it is Jan’s viewpoint. She’s alone with people who don’t really see her, and it lets her connect to things she might otherwise not.

The production of both movies seems to have been rather a lot. Screenwriter Scott Abbott is American and it shows; no one feels Welsh. The house is definitely not built in the 1340s; a house in Wales built in the 1340s wouldn’t look like that, and while I’m sure none of them know it I certainly do. Hart wanted to play Aylward in old age makeup and was talked out of it, which is interesting given Davis had wanted to play the younger version of her character and was talked out of that. Hart abandoned all the options for endings other than supernatural pretty much immediately.

Honestly, the book could stand an actually accurate adaptation at some point. It’s a third bite at the apple, true, and people will tell you we could maybe do something new instead. But it feels the way the Coens treated their version of True Grit, where they said it was a readaptation and not a remake, because they were hewing closer to the book than the John Wayne version did. It’s hard to get much further from the book than the Hart version and still have it even vaguely about it. Step one, don’t make it about a fourteenth century plague doctor in a sixteenth century plague doctor outfit.

For next month, I’ll be overcoming my intense dislike of The Three Stooges and taking a look at The Captain Hates the Sea!