Film review: ‘MISSING’ by Nick Gardener from ‘Built For Speed’
Missing is a follow-up but not a direct sequel to 2018’s Searching in which a father desperately trawled through social media and other online resources to find his daughter after her disappearance. Remarkably, that film was composed entirely of images from screens, particularly the internet and social media pages at which the father was looking. Missing takes that concept even further with a more feverish journey through the online world and a more sinister thriller plot.
This film centres on tech and social media savvy 18-year-old June (Storm Reid) who is still grieving the loss of her father from years earlier and finding her ‘helicopter parent’ mother, Grace (Nia Long) much too intrusive as she tries to navigate young adulthood. When Grace and her new boyfriend Kevin (Ken Leung) fail to return from a holiday in Colombia, June starts to fear the worst. As language and red-tape difficulties make dealing with the Colombian police a problem, June decides to pursue Grace and Ken’s electronic trail. As she leapfrogs across social media and other websites, her investigation provides startling and disturbing revelations about her family which may be placing June herself in extreme danger.
As in Searching, the computerised investigation adds a fascinating new wrinkle to modern cinema. June’s extremely nimble and inventive way of clicking through a dizzying array of social media and other websites across a range of devices is a fascinating. The point-of-view approach effectively puts us in her shoes giving the film something close to an interactive quality. June’s dogged pursuit of her mother and her use of technology mostly seem credible although eyeballs will roll when she miraculously guesses passwords so that she can hack Grace and Ken’s email and other accounts. Not surprisingly, this film will prove a little confusing and disconcerting for luddites. Additionally concerning is that the film is to a large extent a clever excuse for a lot of product placement and probably a masterclass in cyber stalking.
By itself, the mystery thriller story here stands up; the basic premise and the multitude of twists generally work and the most threatening moments are genuinely tense. Also, despite being swathed in multiple screens, the characters still manage to forge a human connection with the audience. Storm Reid proves to be a likeable heroine and we care about June’s fate. The other characters also make at least some impression, particularly Joaquim de Almeida as Javier, an endearing Colombian local who assists June as a guide and translator over the web.
This film won’t be to all tastes, those who are tech-averse might prefer that it played out in a more conventional fashion. For those who enjoyed Searching, though, the computerised sleuthing will still be novel and Missing will probably prove tense and exciting viewing for most of its running time.
Nick’s rating: ***1/2
Genre: Drama/ Action.
Classification: M.
Director(s): Will Merrick & Nick Johnson.
Release date: 23rd Feb 2023..
Running time: 111 mins.
Reviewer: Nick Gardener can be heard on “Built For Speed” every Friday night from 8-10pm on 88.3 Southern FM.