Review for Missing

Introduction

Cine Asia's first release of the year would be a horror movie! I have long claimed not to be a fan of the horror genre, although I'd be lying if I said that I haven't been entertained by the occasional creepfest. But I am not sufficiently well versed to be able to give these films a considered opinion. I have to take them at face value. I did think of passing Missing along to someone better suited to judging it, but a couple of things in the blurb caught my eye and jogged my memory. "Based on true events that shook a nation…" is the sort of tagline that many a slasher pic has had in the past, but the more detailed promotional, "154,000 people go missing in Korea every year. Of them 25% are found dead. Only 1% survives the ordeal. And the rest still remain… Missing" jolted my synapses with such violence that I practically had a nosebleed. The last time I read a line like that in a DVD blurb, I was reviewing Wolf Creek, an Australian slasher flick that gave the genre a kick up the arse, even if it didn't appeal to my personal movie preferences. I have to admit to a fair bit of curiosity about the Korean Wolf Creek.


A director takes an aspiring actress to the countryside to discuss a new role, and they stop off at a chicken farm to partake of the local delicacy, chicken soup. Unfortunately, the chicken farmer has taken a fancy to the young actress, and invites her to stay. Well, he tricks the director into doing some manual labour in exchange for the food, and while he is distracted, buries an axe in his head. Then he chloroforms the actress and locks her up in a dog kennel in a basement, but you could call that an invitation. It isn't long before his intentions for his 'guest' become clear. Meanwhile, the actress's sister has become concerned at her disappearance, and arrives in the local village to look for her. But the local police aren't all that helpful, even when all the evidence points to the chicken farmer. She'll have to take it upon herself to track her sister down, and time is running out.

The Disc

Missing gets a 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer. Do you remember Cine Asia's The Legend of Fong Sai Yuk last year? Missing is another one of those. The difference is that this is an NTSC-PAL conversion, although a surprising sharp and clear one. You only notice the blended frames when you freeze-frame. But what it shares with Fong Sai Yuk is a bizarre tendency to skip a frame every few seconds or so, giving the film a downright distracting jerkiness. It was at least half an hour before I tuned it out enough to appreciate the film. You get the choice of DD 5.1 and DD 2.0 Korean, while the subtitles are of the player forced variety. The only extras are the teaser and theatrical trailer in a trailer gallery, while Cine Asia have also included trailers for 12 other titles.

Conclusion

Missing is not my cup of tea. It's not my cup of tea at all. It's also no Wolf Creek, which rejuvenated a somewhat moribund genre, by dwelling on the characters and the build up to the story, and creating a memorable villain in the anti-Crocodile Dundee Mick Taylor. Missing is a lot more conventional Hollywood in style and tone, in that it gets straight to the action, eschewing any of that pointless characterisation rubbish, and it isn't long before the actress is caged and being humiliated by a leering, murderous chicken farmer. The farmer is a memorable enough character though, with enough personality and twisted charisma to light up the screen, and hold the viewer's attention. He also has a sadistic taste in Hawaiian shirts that by itself justifies the film's 18 rating.


These films usually have a purpose, a twisted vicarious charm to them, the sort of films that you watch with your legs crossed, wincing in empathy, peering through your fingers as the dark side of humanity inflicts all manner of humiliation, degradation, and violence on someone innocent and undeserving. We put up with it in the hope that at the end of the film, said sadist will get a truly deserved comeuppance at the hands of one of his would be victims. Missing almost follows the blueprint to the letter, thoroughly effective down to its performances, and it's gratuity of violence established through implication rather than obvious gore.


It does become a little predictable as a result though, and even though I usually go out of my way to avoid these films, I found little in Missing to differentiate it from other torture porn, slasher movies. I also found myself marvelling at the stupidity of the victims once more, which was nothing compared to the stupidity of the local police. There was one choice moment where it looked like the worm had turned, one of those cross your legs and wince moments, but found myself wondering why the worm that was turning didn't follow through to the logical conclusion.


Missing is predictable, and even though it's a Korean film, it is pretty identikit to Hollywood films of the same ilk. Which begs the question why you would want to see it. I have to say that I found Missing to have some deliciously dark, macabre humour to it that lifted it above the average. It has a tendency to take things in a sadistic, dark, and unsettling direction, take it to the edge of palatability, and then just nudge over the edge briefly, inserting a note of absurdity into the proceedings or the villain that elicited a few uncertain chuckles, before reining it back in again. Missing may not be the best of its genre, but if you like this sort of thing, you really ought to give it a try. As for me, I won't be eating chicken or eggs again until I have erased this film from my brain.