Film Reviews

The Basics

This is a short narrative film about a watchmaker in the 1990s, based on a true story. The watchmaker named Walter has a small shop, and one day a man comes in who needs his pocket watch repaired. Walter tells him to come back in three days to get it back. During this time, Walter associated parts of the watch with memories from his past when he was trained as a watchmaker by the Nazis during WWII. After three days, the man retrieves his watch and tells Walter a fact about himself, after which Walter needs no payment.

The Good News

The music score was a pleasant instrumental mix and evoked the mood of each setting well. The way “Watching Walter” was shot made the plot easy to follow, and also used interesting cinematography when the watches were in the frame. We both appreciated the real-world context at the end of the film.

Bad News

We had some mixed feelings about the pace; it felt a bit slow at times. Some of the stunts in the workshop came across as cheesy, and a close-up lingered just a bit too long. The actors really brought their energy, but it did feel quite performative at certain moments.

The Verdict

We would give this film an 8.5 out of 10 and recommend it to anyone who enjoys programs on World War II and is interested in clock mechanics. If you are an avid history buff, this is for you!