Review for Missing

Missing

2009; Dir: Kim Sung-Hong

Film
You could be forgiven for looking at a horror release such as Missing, with it's cover artwork depicting a woman bound and in distress, and assume it's an American release. In actual fact, this Korean picture is very distinctly related to it's US counterparts. Following in the mould of countless horror films to have been made since Hostel (2005), Missing depicts the incidental disappearance of a girl, and her subsequent torture. Although, there was obviously much more to Eli Roth's opus than that, the result has been a wave or efforts that linger on the torture elements of the story, while returning to the time-tested exploitation tendency to feature attractive girls in the position of jeopardy. The best of these films have a spark of creativity, an original twist, but the worst, are simple torture for the sake of it…

Missing features a young, nubile actress, Hyun-ah, and a film director as they trek through the country, where Hyun-ah is unfortunate enough to land herself on a chicken farm populated by a weird, social outcast. The director is murdered, and she is imprisoned, subjected to fiendish behaviour of the oddball farmer, Pan-gon. At the same time, her sister is trying to track Hyun-ah down, hindered by comically inept cops along the way. The local people don't seem quite aware of Pan-gon's heinous interests, perceiving him as simply a recluse weirdo, thus hindering the search. Can Hyun-jung find her sister before it's too late?



Clearly then, nothing new to the horror genre. This sort of plot been a staple since The Texas Chainsaw Massacre revolutionized the genre in the mid-Seventies. However, recent times have seen a more visually grisly, detailed strand of such films to emerge. The ruthless Hostel obviously played a huge part in this, but French cinema has similarly concerned itself with such subjects in The Ordeal, and the gob-smacking Frontiers. While the French entries have been twisted, bizarre excursions, many American efforts have been altogether more pedestrian, focusing almost exclusively on the violence, lingering over scenes of torture with sadistic glee, as in the uneven Paradise Lost (2006), the vacant Captivity (2007) or the miserable, Thora Birch starring Train (2008).

The downside has been that differentiating between the quality efforts and the dire is not necessarily an easy task. Here, they've attempted to market the film as based on a "true-life" story, and included statistically information about Koreans going missing, 25% being found dead, 1% surviving, and the whereabouts of the rest remaining a mystery. That in itself is a terrifying thought, if misleading. The film certainly doesn't come across as one that is closely linked to real events, nor does it offer a wider context from which to relate to this statistics. Instead, such facts feel very tacked on. Shuttle
(2008) exceeded expectations by touching on the issue of human trafficking, albeit in a clumsy manner. But still, by the time we arrived at that point in the film, many observed that it turned into a watered down cousin of the jaw-dropping Martyrs (2008, Pascal Laugier). Like Missing, Shuttle lacked a commitment to the subject which it proclaimed to shine a light on, though at the very least, the earlier film made the social commentary a crucial plot development.

Missing is more predictable than it would lead you to believe, following the exact format one expects from a rural-psycho-torture flick, right down to the "unexpected" death of a character half-way through that sets a grim, downbeat tone for the remainder of the duration. In Missing, we also witness the traditional deranged, sub-hick instigator of the violence that one expects. However, with this piece, Missing distances itself from the family-orientated antics of it's ancestors, focusing instead on a lone killer, much like Wolf Creek. It's a formula that requires a compelling lead, and thankfully, Moon Sung-Keun is just about up to the task.



The beautiful Jeon Se-Hong would be a likeable, sympathetic victim, if given anything to do prior to her abduction, other than wander about in a short skirt. Unlike many Western efforts in the abduction/torture genre, she's not overtly obnoxious and irritating. However her dilemma occurs so swiftly, it's difficult to truly become invested in the situation. A rape scene should prove powerful stuff, but falls flat, whereas the odd moment of humour stands out far more. The film is bolstered by these instances of black comedy. A bizarre serenade performed by Pan-gon recalls a stunning musical outburst that occurred in 2006 French picture, The Ordeal. As a whole though, this effort does not come anywhere close to achieving the barmy terror of it's frog-legged companion. There simply isn't enough individuality or creativity here.



Comparisons can fairly be made to the likes of Wolf Creek, but for me, Missing is far flimsier in terms of story, marking it as a potential relative of Gurotesku (2009), without having been taken to such extremes. The aforementioned was banned in the UK due to it's unerring, focused depictions of sadistic torture, with no feasible narrative to "justify" such acts. Missing offers a plot by comparison, but really… it's not much. As such, it translates as rather a pedestrian imitation of the films that have clearly inspired it. In the post-Hostel world, I think something a little more is necessary in order to help this sort of release stand out from the pack. Missing is devoid of that.

Audio and Visual
Nothing spectacular, but the 1.78:1 transfer is sharp and clear, with nice contrasts. In terms of sound, the film delivers, without standing out. The Dolby Digital 5:1 and 2.0 tracks on offer respectably communicate a film that occasionally threatens to sound unique, but often falls into staples typical of the genre.

Extras
A pet peeve of mine is definitely in listing Dolby Digital Korean 2.0, and 5.1, with English Subtitles as extras. Having sound and audio is requirement, not a bonus! A Trailer gallery is included also, but that's a promotional tool, not a bonus feature. So disappointingly, there are no extras on this release bar one teaser, and the original trailer.

Conclusion
Far too Americanised, Missing fails to satisfy. It's not abysmal, or even poor. In fact, it's very well made, and despite what I've said about movies that depict torture, it's not especially gory. For the most part, graphic violent is implied, and aside from the rape scene early on, is of a rather inoffensive variety. A meat-grinding incident is likely to be the most shocking moment for many, but even that, doesn't dwell on the act as much as it could have. In that respect, the film is not mean-spirited enough to offend, but at the same time, has little genuine resonance. It's a decent enough entry, but falls into a limbo occupied by those without the resolute defiance to go all the way, and those that bother to delve into their subject matter into a more social relevant manner.