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The Vanishing is a remake of French director George Sluizer’s own 1988 Netherlands-released film Spoorloos. Sluizer helmed the American version himself, although many claim it’s been Hollywoodized to the point of silliness – indeed the cultural differences have forced the sincerity of the story to lean toward elements of comic relief and an overall lighter tone. But the acting, the plot and the characters are still genuine, marking The Vanishing as a first-rate psychological thriller with enough twists and turns to keep the viewer perpetually on the edge of their seat. It’s intelligent, disturbing and shocking, and exudes a clever originality that should thoroughly please anyone who hasn’t seen the original. The film opens with Barney Cousins (Jeff Bridges) carefully rehearsing a kidnapping routine in the seclusion of his vacation cabin in the woods. The very next scene shows him meeting his daughter at the subway, giving an alarming, disconcerting view of a clearly deranged man. He’s a chemistry teacher and has a wife and child, yet he scrutinizes over details on his premeditated kidnapping like a serial killer, even adopting a few tricks that would have made Buffalo Bill (from The Silence of the Lambs) proud. He checks his pulse to determine his level of calm for the big moment, as well as experimenting with the longevity of chloroform drugging. The first 12 minutes of screentime are devoted solely to establishing this villain. |
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Meanwhile, copywriter Jeff Harriman (Kiefer Sutherland) is traveling to Seattle through Mount St. Helens with his girlfriend Diane Shaver (Sandra Bullock). They stop at a gas station at a halfway point, where she hurries inside for refreshments while he waits in the parking lot. Minutes pass before he becomes concerned and finally wanders into the store to look for her. But she’s vanished into thin air without a trace – a few people saw her, but the uncooperative cops are convinced it’s a lover’s quarrel. Three years pass without any evidence or clues; Jeff won’t let go, however, obsessing over her disappearance, posting flyers and appearing on news stations to try and learn what happened. Even when he becomes romantically involved with Rita (Nancy Travis), he can’t stop his search, struggling to keep the fixation a secret, even when a publisher commissions him to pen a novel on the events of Diane’s unsolved departure. Just as Rita reaches the breaking point in trying to push beyond Jeff’s enigmatic past, and he counters with ceasing his perseverance, Barney reenters the picture, taunting Jeff with answers to his troubling questions. Not knowing is worse than discovering a horrible truth. Or is it? Not knowing is eating away at Jeff, until Barney presents a solution that could make him regret the all-consuming query. “Your obsession is my weapon,” states Barney, convinced that Jeff needs to find out what happened to Diane, even if it means putting his own life in danger. Bridges makes a memorable, superb psycho, demonstrating remorselessness, fortitude, an unnerving calm and a faint Dutch (or simpleton) accent. It’s a deadly cat-and-mouse game, matching wits and murderous conviction, featuring arachnophobia, claustrophobia, terror, suspense and unsettling weirdness. Unfortunately, anyone who has seen the original is likely to be displeased by the differences. - Mike Massie |
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