Spacek and Lemmon are fine as the missing man's wife and father, but what makes the film so overwhelming in places is its unending night-time imagery of a society coming apart at the seams.
Missing (1982)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:26
Fresh:25
Rotten:1
Average Rating:7.6/10
Consensus: Thanks in large part to strong performances by Sissy Spacek and Jack Lemmon, Missing is both a gripping character exploration and an effective political thriller.
Runtime: 2 hrs 3 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: Director Constantin Costa-Gavras made his English-language film debut with this political thriller, based on a true story. Although the nation depicted is never named directly, the action clearly... Director Constantin Costa-Gavras made his English-language film debut with this political thriller, based on a true story. Although the nation depicted is never named directly, the action clearly takes place in Chile after the military coup. "Missing" centers around the disappearance of Charles Horman, an American expatriate who lives with his wife Beth in South America. One night, armed soldiers enter their home and drag him away. In desperation, Beth decides to contact Charles's father, Ed, and ask for help. In contrast to his left-wing daughter-in-law, Ed is staunchly patriotic. But as he gets the runaround from both American and Chilean officials, Ed receives a cold, hard lesson in political reality... and learns some ugly truths about US involvement in Latin America. [More]
Starring: Jack Lemmon, Sissy Spacek, John Shea, Melanie Mayron
Starring: Jack Lemmon, Sissy Spacek, John Shea, Melanie Mayron
Director: Costa Gavras
Director: Costa Gavras
Reviews for Missing
Lemmon temporarily abandons the comic performances that made his name to deliver a tour-de-force of considerable power...
A story that could have made for a brisk jeremiad on 60 Minutes is stretched to 122 minutes of heroes fuming and villains purring their oleaginous apologies. Spacek and Lemmon, an appealing sweet-and-sour combo, sink in the swamp of good intentions.
Though Costa-Gavras clearly has a political axe to grind, he manages to do so without haranguing the viewer, keeping the film's focus on his characters and masterfully building tension as the story moves toward its stinging resolution.
Lemmon is superior as a man facing up to issues he never wanted to confront personally.
Lemmon and Spacek are the film's highlight... It's a winning formula, and it's too bad that there isn't more of it.
In Costa-Gavras's fact-inspired political melodrama, Jack Lemmon gives one of his strongest performances as a naive, conservative American who gets rude political awakening when his leftist son is executed with the tacit knowledge of the US government
Time has not only been kind to the film, but has, -- unfortunately -- made it relevant all over again.
This movie might have really been powerful, if it could have gotten out of its own way.
A gutsy, surprising piece of work, a bold political tract that doubles proficiently as an interpersonal drama.
Some tragic and disturbing films stick with you, long after you’ve seen them, filling you with dread and a wish that they don’t represent real life.
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