Directed by Kim Sung-Hong

Written by Kim Young-Ok

Starring Moon Sung-Guen, Choo Ja-Hyun,and Jeon Se-Heong

Running time 98 minutes

 

I am a big fan of Asian Cinema, well all foreign horror really, and had been hearing some interesting things about the film, Missing, recently so I decided to check it out for myself. Missing is a Korean film, based on the real life story of a 70 year Old fisherman in the South Jeolla Province of South Korea that killed 4 women over a short (months) period in 2007. Now I am not familiar with the actual case, so I have no idea how fictionalized this one is. That being said real life crimes do tend to add a level of interest for me in any genre, so right away this one had that nice little twist going for it, and made me all the more eager to watch, I can say after viewing this, the story is pretty believable, so I would guess the film isn't all that far removed form the actual case.

 

Missing is the story of one girls search for her sister, who seemingly disappeared from a small village she was visiting. Hyeon-Jeong goes to the village trying to piece together what has happened with her sister, Hyeon-A. She speaks with the local authorities who don't seem too concerned with her plight. Upon further sleuthing she comes across a local girl who thinks she remembers seeing Hyeon-A near the home of Pan-Gon. Hyeon-Jeong once again begs the local police for help, resulting in a visit to Pan-Gon's for a cursory search and questioning by the local authorities. They finish almost as quickly as they start with embarrassment at having even looking in the first place. As the authorities accompanied by Hyeon-Jeong pull away, we see Hyeon-A bound, mouth covered, hidden almost in plain sight, and realize she is about to meet a very grisly end.

 

Hyeon-Jeong's search defeated, she prepares to leave town fearing she will never know what has become of her sister. On her way out of the small community she runs back into Pan-Gon, literally! He mentions he forget to tell her and the authorities about a piece of jewelry he came across near his home, paving the way for our sweet surviving sister to come back to his farm once again. What fate will befall our poor Hyeon-Jeong? You'll just have to check it out for yourself to get that answer!

 

Missing is a "Need to Watch" film. Its easy to come to expect something in particular with Asian films as they tend to be a bit complicated, or they use the same types of effects from film to film because of the cultural background, or they are very over the top in everything from gore to weirdness, which on one hand is cool and a ton of fun, but can get a bit redundant. Missing is none of the above, the story is tight and understandable right from the get go. There's some great effects, and they are not implied. They follow through, which isn't always the case in the more serious horror films that come out of the area. The blood, gore and torture are well done and make complete sense within the context of the story. The performances given are good enough to have won a few awards for members of the cast as well! The film also received a cinematography awards along the line, which says much as Asian films have some of the best Cinematography in the world. Missing is definitely a film that is more than worth the time you invest in it!

 

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