The feeling of “being watched” is one of our most basic fears. It is often attributed to an overactive imagination, ESP, or even a mental illness; but there's always the nagging possibility that this particular paranoia might not be quite so illogical.
For years, the unnamed main character of this film has been having dreams of an unknown person in her house, watching her. She often finds items in her house that appear to have been moved, but is becoming convinced that she is only imagining this, or just does not remember having moved them. She has been seeing a psychiatrist, and is excited about the progress she has been making in ridding herself of this paranoia.
Warning! Spoilers Ahead!
As one might have guessed, the supposed paranoia is in fact not a figment of this character's imagination. In the midst of a shot montage of talking to her doctor, there is an image of the main character, wearing a white robe, going up the stairs in her house. There is then a cut to the back of a female figure wearing the robe, but upon seeing this woman's face, it is not that of the main character, but instead a stranger. The next shot is that of the main character lying on the floor, her throat cut. Creepy!
As the film ends there, the open-ended nature also leaves room for the audience to ponder. The question then is whether this incident is just a figment of the main character's imagination and part of her paranoia or, what seems more likely, an actual event. It's great shock value – perfect to end on. It could be a bit confusing as there is never any mention of who this person could be. Even though she is supposed to be imaginary, its possible that the main character might have at least given her a name; even individuals who hear voices will sometimes have names for the imaginary friends who talk to them.
There is also no mention of the psychiatrist being a doctor; it is just implied as the conversation goes along, and then mentioned in the end credits. In addition, psychiatrists prescribe medication, and generally do not meet their patients for actual “therapy” sessions, but there is no mention of medication used by the main character. And if she was on medication that was working successfully, her supposed hallucinations should have stopped. Perhaps a nitpicky point, but one that could add further confusion to a movie that already messes with the audience's mind.
Another scene that was confusing – though understandably – was the introduction of the “imaginary friend” as a real person. The main character was shown walking upstairs wearing a white robe, then the next cut is of the “friend” wearing a similar robe. Because this person has dark hair, we assume that it is the main character. But even when seen from the front, she has a similar complexion and facial structure to the main character that for a moment I thought it was actually her. Seeing the other person's face is supposed to be a shocking moment, which it is, but could be more so if her face was even more distinctively different.
