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20th Century Fox
Not part of a collection.
Obsession is the ultimate weapon.
The boyfriend of an abducted woman never gives up the search as the abductor looks on.
Wuchak
Apr 27, 2021 · via TMDB
_**FREEWILL to kill – evil and good**_ Released in 1993 and directed by George Sluizer from a novel by Tim Krabbé, "The Vanishing" is a crime drama/mystery/horror about a man (Kiefer Sutherland) whose girlfriend goes missing during a trip in Washington State (Sandra Bullock) and he searches in vain for her for years. After he starts a relationship with a new girlfriend (Nancy Travis), the abductor (Jeff Bridges) finally contacts him. Will he find his former girlfriend? This is the second time the director shot this same story; the first time was the 1988 Euro film of the same name. The stories are identical except for the final acts and the fact that this newer version has a better character/part for the new girlfriend (Travis). Both films are worth catching, but I prefer this one for reasons explained below. Fans of the first movie object to the changes, arguing that the producers of this version were pandering to North American tastes. While this may be true, it's also likely that the director didn't want to make the same exact movie. After all, we already have the first version, why make an exact duplicate with different actors and locations? Besides, what's wrong with appreciating BOTH versions? My comments below reveal why Sluizer wanted to change things up a little with this version. Audiences may have rejected the film at the box office on the grounds that they weren't used to Bridges playing a contemptible villain or Sutherland playing the good guy, but they're both fine in these roles, particularly the former, who's great and fascinating to observe. One thing that keeps you watching during the drama of the first two acts is to find out what his motivations are. But, as hinted above, it's Travis who steals the show, at least as far as protagonists goes. Perhaps audiences didn't receive her or the movie well because her character's merely a waitress whose story arc doesn't end in a reversal of fortune, which is in contrast to the typical movie heroine. Who knows? I think she's awesome. In any case, if you like psychological drama/thrillers like "Fatal Attraction" (1987) and "Single White Female" (1992) you'll appreciate "The Vanishing." The movie runs 109 minutes and was shot mostly in Washington State, but also Cody Tunnel, Cody, Wyoming (the tunnel sequence) and La Canada and Long Beach, CA (the diner and pool hall scenes respectively). GRADE: B+ ***SPOILER ALERT*** (Don't read further unless you've watched the movie) While the first film could be interpreted as a commentary on nihilism, since the villain wins and the hero loses, it doesn't HAVE to be interpreted this way. After all, it's a simple fact of life that sometimes evil wins a battle now and then; and sometimes A LOT of them, but this doesn't mean evil wins the war, so to speak. If there's ultimate good then evil will eventually have its day of reckoning. In any event, the 1988 movie ends on a decidedly downbeat note. And this is why I appreciate this newer version: While it is also downbeat, and evil wins to a point, the changes in the final act show good triumphing over evil, not to mention perseverance over intellect and love over absence of love. The subtext is all about freewill – freewill to kill for no good reason and freewill to kill for good when absolutely necessary. The theme of the first movie is limited in that it drives home the first point whereas this version drives home both, and is the better for it.
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
Fandango At Home
Kiefer Sutherland
Jeff Harriman
Jeff Bridges
Barney Cousins
Nancy Travis
Rita Baker
Sandra Bullock
Diane Shaver
Park Overall
Lynn
Lisa Eichhorn
Helene Cousins
George Hearn
Arthur Bernard
Lynn Hamilton
Miss Carmichael
George Catalano
Highway Cop
Frank Girardeau
Cop at Apartment
Stephen Bridgewater
TV Host
Susan Barnes
Colleague
Jeannine Oppewall
Production Design
Peter Suschitzky
Director of Photography
Dan Kneece
Steadicam Operator
Gene Hartline
Stunts
Gilbert B. Combs
Stunts
Loyd Catlett
Stunts
Troy Gilbert
Stunts
George Sluizer
Director
Yudi Bennett
First Assistant Director
Risa Bramon Garcia
Casting
Todd Graff
Co-Producer
Pieter Jan Brugge
Executive Producer
Jerry Goldsmith
Conductor
Jerry Goldsmith
Original Music Composer
Tim Krabbé
Novel
Todd Graff
Screenplay
October Rhapsody
The Departed
Scarface
Heat
Ben-Hur
12 Angry Men
Twelve Monkeys
The Magnificent Seven
Ocean's Eleven
Pandora's Box
The Man Who Knew Too Much
Cape Fear
Last Holiday
Sadma
The Thirteenth Floor
The Silent Partner
Dawn of the Dead
The Lake House
Sitaare Zameen Par
Don
Vanilla Sky
City of Angels
Yolo
Final Cut
The Ring
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A Girl Called Rosemarie
Witness for the Prosecution
Heaven Can Wait
Vakeel Saab
Misunderstood
Too Busy to Work
The Phantom of the Opera
Shall We Dance?
(Nie)znajomi
The Racket
The 39 Steps
Sleuth
Halloween
Body Snatchers
Deva
Last Summer
Centauro
Nightwatch
The Invasion
Miami Vice
Shaft
Bloody Daddy
The Grudge
Poseidon
Don't Be Afraid of the Dark
The Big Sleep
Streetwalker
Reckless
The Island of Dr. Moreau
The Omen
The Quatermass Experiment
Sorority Row
The Grudge 2
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Aakasha Mittayee
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Drowning Mona
Zatoichi: The Last
Dominion: Prequel to The Exorcist
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The Fog
Anaamika
It's Alive
Creature from the Haunted Sea
Jekyll
It Happened in Paris
Sunset Boulevard
Hunting Season
Remember
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Barron's Cove
Malicious
Last Breath
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The Good Neighbor
The Pelican Brief
Beast
I Am All Girls
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The Last House on the Left
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A Crooked Somebody
Night Watch
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God Is a Bullet
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Marlowe
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Overdrive
Five Minutes of Heaven
Limbo
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Run
The Return
The Strangers: Chapter 2
Hypnotic
Seeking Justice
Shimmer Lake
Maniac Cop 2
The Locksmith
Hellion
The Quiller Memorandum
Poker Night
Phantom Halo
Murder in Three Acts
180
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The Ritual Killer
6 Below: Miracle on the Mountain
Nightman
Feb 5, 1993
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The Stranglers - Live '78, SF
1978
Saddle Leather Law
1944
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Battle your watched movies head-to-head
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Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
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2008 · 14 wins
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1978 · 13 wins
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2000 · 12 wins
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1981 · 11 wins
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