As Domasla said, (an)sehen/(an)schauen is general verb, or aufpassen when it means 'to be careful'
But for some specific actions there are specific structures such as einen Film sehen, or for Tv there is direct verb 'fernsehen'. (Ich sehe fern=I'm watching Tv)
So its better to learn these structures as they are used. It doesnt always help to look for a specific verb between languages, because each language has its own logic. So the usages can be different.