The Vanished (2020) User Reviews

On The Fence

[momster64 · 7/10 · 21 August 2020]

I'm still not sure if I actually liked this movie or not.....there was so much going on, odd subplots, and unresolved non-issues that made it all confusing. For starters, it was at least 45 minutes too long, several times I thought it was gonna wrap up, then off they went again in a new direction. A lot of character behavior that didn't seem terribly believable; I found myself laughing at parts that weren't supposed to be funny. And they made darn sure you knew that EVERY minor character could be the "bad guy" by giving them all exaggerated creepy habits, tics, and secrets that were quite over the top.

It was plenty suspenseful in many places but at times again ventured into is-that-supposed-to-be-funny....?

I give it a resounding "meh".

Decent thriller debut

[gherahtraitte · 7/10 · 26 August 2020]

The most creepy part is to read reviews from people who actually watched 10 mins or who watched till the very end and still didn't get it. I wonder why do they have this urge to leave a comment the most?

I started to watch with absolutely no expectations but it turned out to be quite entertaining. There were few holes but all in all it's a pretty decent thriller with good twists. Good job!

Keep going and it almost works

[kjaney · 6/10 · 29 October 2020]

You will wonder what level of hell you've wandered into when you first start watching this. The acting is dire. The editing is terrible. There are so many utterly baffling decisions made that you will find it very hard to sympathise with anyone at all. But, hang on...the last 10 minutes suddenly makes it all (almost) worth it, and with the benefit of hindsight you'll find yourself going...ohhhh...NOW I see... 6 stars because it's actually not awful and the ending is actually quite surprising and a little heartbreaking.

Not bad!

[Draysan-Jennings · 6/10 · 25 August 2020]

This movie turned out to be fairly decent. Some of the acting wasn't the greatest, but I did enjoy the film. I've got to admit I didn't expect the twist in the end. Worth a watch.

The acting gets explained, sorta...

[zingmark-69698 · 6/10 · 31 August 2020]

Like everyone else I was about to close the movie down after ten minutes. The acting was horrendous and when I read the user reviews it didnt seem to get any better. But, thnx to some reviews stating it was worth the watch I pushed through and actually got stuck. The acting is over the top but after you´ve watched the whole movie and rewatch the first scenes, it makes more sence and actually fits. I cant say much more without spoiling.

The ending is what does the movie. If I had stoped watching after twenty minutes I would have given a one-star review but after seeing all of it I give it a six.

Its not a bad start for first time director but the writers and director made this one to hard on us. They should have realed in the acting so more of us saw the whole thing. They would have benefited greatly from that.

In short; Its a decent thriller with weird acting, that kinda gets explained, and a great ending. Actually worth a watch.

/MrZinz

Hard to Watch

[ignastio · 1/10 · 28 January 2021]

The acting is atrocious. The script is plastic. The dialogue will make you cringe.

Every single scene made me want to punch myself in the face.

The final twist, which you'll see coming from miles away, does explain the implausible actions of the characters, but doesn't make the acting any less painful to watch.

Everyone involved in making this film is a seasoned professional, but this is amateur hour. Absolutely dire.

Stick With It

[oaklep · 6/10 · 26 August 2020]

Okay, so there's a lot going on in this movie the plot rambles around a bit. The acting is only ok, with good turns from Jason Patric (Sheriff) and Thomas (Paul). It's hitchcockian in its style and the ending threw me BIG TIME (no spoilers). It's no classic and has more holes than Swiss cheese, but stick with this one and you'll be glad you did!

Pretty awful

[michael-t-mills · 4/10 · 22 August 2020]

Interesting premise. Terrible script. Horrible acting. I mean horrible. Every time someone speaks it reminds you how terrible the film is.

Anything you want to tell me?

[nogodnomasters · 7/10 · 24 August 2020]

A couple takes their 10-year-old daughter camping on Thanksgiving in a sparsely populated campground and no deer hunters. Within minutes the daughter disappears. there is an extensive manhunt. Is it the creepy groundskeeper? The rough landlord? The couple that wants a child? Or the escaped convict? Unable to find answers, our couple venture on their own investigation of self-destruction.

Interesting film. I didn't see it coming and I normally figure out this kind of twist. Decent acting.

Guide: sex. near nudity. Don't recall any swearing.

Truly Awful

[dirtylilfunker · 1/10 · 30 August 2020]

The reason i gave it a shot was because of Jason Patric (Lost Boys, NARC, Sleepers). Very perplexed at why he took the role after watching it. The film is just awful, one of the worst i've seen in a long time and full of holes, for example why the police didn't search the campsite owners house or the other trailers; something that would've 100% been done in a missing child case. The acting is deplorable. I watched until the end out of sheer curiosity. The 'twist' if you can call it that, had little impact, given the film up to that point was dreary and an absolute chore to watch. It's the kind of film that kills careers. If i could give it -1 i would. If you know what a good film is, you'll definitely not enjoy this.

Once you get to the end you realize the acting here is great!

[OneAnjel · 9/10 · 19 January 2021]

I love a good mystery thriller and this one truly delivers in a way that is both unexpected and brilliant, pointing subtle fingers that make for a great puzzle, pulling out the tension at all the right moments, and popping out surprises that are jaw-dropping. That's my personal opinion, from someone who appreciates great mystery thrillers like Cape Fear, The 6th Sense, and Identity among others. Kudos to Peter Facinelli for a great film and to all the actors for tremendous acting. Worth the watch.

Worth a watch if you like mystery thrillers

[buffyfan713 · 7/10 · 29 August 2020]

I found this movie very interesting. I liked all the twists and turns, and the ending is very surprising and satiating. Sure there are several misdirects that other reviews site as plot holes. But if you think about it later each subplot has a thread tying it back to the main story of the missing daughter.

Worst acting I have seen in a movie

[clangdon12 · 1/10 · 22 January 2021]

This was on Netflix in the top ten movies of the week. They need to also state that is one of the worst movies made. The acting is consistent, consistently poor! Skip this movie.

Decent twist

[Saiph90 · 7/10 · 22 May 2021]

Enjoyed this film, lots of red herrings, I thought the acting was decent, beautiful scenery and a well thought out twist.

Good Twist

[lynansaysingle · 7/10 · 10 December 2020]

I read the mixed reviews and not sure what to make of it but I watched it anyway. It held my interest the whole movie. It was not predictable. I did have a few questions while watching it but the ending kinda explains it for me. Im not sure if I missed it but I dont know what happened to the female neighbour, is she dead or did she survive? I saw what happened to her husband when the boat tipped. Who killed the dog or is he imaginary? What's with the mention of the FBI if they're not even in the movie? I appreciate the mixture of weird characters to make the viewers guessing if they have anything to do with the disappearance of the young girl. Peter Faccinelli's role is almost useless as if he's just squeezed his character to be in the movie while directing it. The dialogues could have been improved as some are questionable. All in all I enjoyed the movie, I like being surprised with the twist.

Not worth sticking it out

[karaokebowl · 2/10 · 24 January 2021]

I watched it all the way through only because I came here and read that there was a twist at the end. It wasn't worth it.

Flawed, but still enjoyable, considering the newb filmmaker.

[Top_Dawg_Critic · 7/10 · 21 August 2020]

Actor turned newb writer and director Peter Facinelli, wore all three hats in this B-grade film, and although flawed, it was still enjoyable. New filmmakers have to start somewhere, right? This was his 3rd full length feature film, and I've seen much worse from seasoned filmmakers lately. My biggest issue was the terrible acting by Anne Heche and especially Thomas Jane and his changing weird voice, but some of that blame also falls on the inexperience of the newb director not directing his cast and scenes effectively. Overall though, the directing was fairly decent as was the camera work. The cinematography and score were on point. The writing did have some plot and technical issues, and the pacing needed to be faster and/or the films 115 min runtime edited or cut down to around 90 mins. But the overall story with its twists and turns and surprise ending was conceived very well - it was worth the slow pacing and long runtime. If you enjoy mystery thrillers with some scary moments, you will enjoy this one. Watching it a second time knowing the ending is like watching a different movie, which is well put together. Ignore the wannabe critics and their ridiculously low ratings... it's a solid and well deserved 7/10 from me.

Truly awful.

[jfrober · 1/10 · 21 August 2020]

I don't blame the actors. The screenplay and director are solely responsible for this garbage. Hard to believe just how bad it is. The one star is for the scenery.

A Different Kind of Story

[Freedom060286 · 6/10 · 21 August 2020]

This is a very strange story, with plenty of suspense and an element of horror.

The Anne Heche character is very unlikable and isn't easy to watch by times, but in the end I realized she was the right person for the role.

The story is well-written and keeps you guessing until the end.

Just stupid.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 4/10 · 25 February 2021]

I watched this movie, and after the first twenty minutes, I thought we were in for an incredible, slick thriller, but unfortunately, it turns into one of the most stupid films I've ever had to sit through.

Why do film makers always have to take things to the extreme, why do they always have to go way overboard, and present you with a series of events that simply would never happen, ever.

The parents are just the most odious set of people ever, all of their actions just don't make any sense. Once again we have the guns, they sure do love the guns.

I thought the outcome was absurd, in sure all background checks would have been carried out, but not here..... The Police are clearly intended to be a little dim.

You'll need a hundred bottles of beer to get through this.

Absolutely terrible, 4/10.

Ignore the bad reviews

[HSkite · 9/10 · 22 August 2020]

Original,creepy and excellent credible acting from Heche and Jane with an solid storyline and a twist in the ending I did not see coming.A 9 out of 10 from me

It held my attention!

[ReliableReview · 6/10 · 25 August 2020]

It was not too bad and certainly held my attention as it tries to solve a missing daughter story. I was hoping it might be like Taken but it's mostly a psychological drama similar to Prisoners but not nearly as good. But still it was tense suspenseful watch with twists and turns. But the unreliable narrator storytelling has been done before but still never gets old.

What joke

[celtic451-228-782719 · 1/10 · 23 January 2021]

I always give 1 star to any movie that uses the cheap plot technique of "It was all just a dream." I hate that kind of cop out plot "twist". There were so may bad logic events in this it made the movie a joke. For example in one scene Anne closely leans over a sleeping camper to get his gun. No one would be that stupid to do that. If you were going to take someone else's gun you would approach from the other side. Then they start killing people while looking for their daughter? And they weren't even looking that hard for her. Over all just a goofy unrealistic and bad acting movie.

Was gonna give it a 4 for the acting of Thomas Jane and Anne Heche...but the plot twist at the end bumped it up to a 6 for me!

[handymandy78 · 6/10 · 23 January 2021]

This movie has some pretty terrible acting by the two lead characters and a few unbelievable moments in the storyline.... A few times I thought "these two are crazy... Parents of a missing child would never do this." But by the end it all made sense... they were crazy! The plot twist at the end really did save the movie from being a total stinker, which is kind of unfortunate, because the right actors and a few tweaks to the story could have really pulled this off. It's a great concept for a storyline. Jason Patric was good though, as was Peter Facinelli in the small acting role. Hope he gets a little better at writing and directing, but promising start!

A good thriller with a very interesting twist...

[paul_haakonsen · 7/10 · 16 November 2020]

I knew I was sitting down for a thriller when I sat down to watch the 2020 movie "Hour of Lead" (aka "The Vanished"), and I knew that it had Thomas Jane and Anne Heche on the cast list. And that is essentially all I knew about the movie when I decided to watch it.

However, I must say that writer and director Peter Facinelli definitely managed to come up with a movie that was quite entertaining. And the storyline was very compelling and drew me in right away. I will admit that the movie wasn't as predictable as many thrillers tend to be, and the twists to the storyline were quite interesting and nicely executed.

The storyline was good, and it was a nicely told storyline from writer and director Peter Facinelli. It was definitely a very entertaining story and one that brings the audience right in there with the grieving parents.

"Hour of Lead" has some good performances from Thomas Jane and Anne Heche. But it also have a memorable performance by Jason Patric. All in all, the acting in the movie was good, and people were doing great jobs in bringing their characters to life on the screen.

Normally I don't watch a lot of thrillers, but "Hour of Lead" is definitely well worth the time, money and effort. So if you get the chance to watch it, I can strongly recommend that you do so.

My rating of "Hour of Lead" (or "The Vanished") is a strong seven out of ten stars.