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The Missing, Ron Howard, Tommy Lee Jones, Val kilmer
Comment on this film on our "Hey, Hollywood!" forum
News Update:
12-01-2003: More reviews are finally beginning to surface, including some that are more positive than those that came prior to the film's release. However, for now it looks like THE MISSING is still meeting very mixed reviews within the critics' circle; those who appreciate the film like it in very different ways, for very different reasons.
Interestingly, as of 8 a.m. this morning, 58% of the national media reviews are positive, and nearly the same percentage of acceptance is reflected by our readers' votes as cast in the new November poll (at right).
On the downside, the film experienced a lukewarm three-day Thanksgiving weekend at the box office. According to studio projections of Sunday evening (which will be updated with actuals later this afternoon), the weekend box office gross only amounted to $11.7 millionranking at the Number 7 spot, just one slot below Billy Bob Thornton's crude holiday-trasher, BAD SANTA. (Who the heck would have ever guessed that?)
However, the projected Gross-to-date for THE MISSING (during it's first week of release) is estimated at $16.5 million which is a pretty good showing when compared to the $14 million first-week-run of OPEN RANGE. (That, in spite of the fact that Kevin Costner himself enganged in a strong media blitz that was backed up by a $20 million marketing budget a mere $2 million less than the film's production budget. So far, during its 15 week run, OPEN RANGE has been struggling for the last 5 weeks, incrementally attempting ever so slowly to bust out of the $58 million range.)
In comparison, the total box office gross for Clint Eastwood's UNFORGIVEN (1992) was $101.2 million.
11-21-2003: The Review Corral...what the early reviews are saying. [read more]
9-10-2003 - Revolution Studios has announced it has moved up the release date of Ron Howard's THE MISSING. The film will premier in Los Angeles and New York on November 19, 2003 (which will keep it fresh in the minds of Oscar voters), and will go into wide release on November 26th - just in time for the long Thanksgiving holiday.
PLOT:
Set in New Mexico in 1886, a father returns home to his family to try to make peace decades after abandoning them to go live with the Apaches, but finds that his wife is long since dead and his now-grown-up daughter, Maggie, has no forgiveness or affection to give him. However, Maggie must reunite with her long estranged father to track the mystical, psychopathic killer known as Chidin. Chidin, together with his brutal pack of army deserters, has kidnapped a collection of teenage girls, and has taken Maggie's daughter as his most recent prize.
Who's in it:
Academy Award-winner Tommy Lee Jones (The Fugitive), Academy Award-nominee Cate Blanchett (The Shipping News), Aaron Eckhart, Eric Schweig, Evan Rachel Wood, Val Kilmer, and Jenna Boyd.
Filming Location:
Greer Garson Studios, Sante Fe, New Mexico
Director: Ron Howard
Screenwriter: Ken Kaufman
Story Source: Thomas Eidson's novel "The Last Ride"
Film's Alternative Title: "The Last Ride"
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The Review Corral
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ReadTheWest.com's November 2003 advice:
Approach with caution. As confusing as the trailers may seem, this film truly is more weirdly mystical than western. Early reviews commonly tag the film as dark, brutal, uncomfortable to watch at times, and overly long. On the plus side, Tommy Lee Jones learned to speak some Apache, and Cate Blanchett's performance outshines all else.
"The performances contribute mightily in elevating the film to an estimable level. Blanchett is impressive as the principled, steely woman..."Variety
KUDOS TO VARIETY FOR RECOGNIZING THE TRUE POTENTIAL OF THE WESTERN GENRE:
"The approach once again proves that the western genre, in the broadest sense, remains fertile ground for dramatic, thematic and emotional exploration."Variety
"The Missing is challenging filmmaking that doesnt challenge the viewer. The result is [Ron] Howards least interesting movie in years.... [this film] will most be remembered for the window it gives into Howards dark side. The aftermath of the abduction is brutal. The savagery of the Apache toward their female captives is primal and masochistic."filmcritic.com
"Although Columbia Pictures' marketing has wisely been playing up the thriller element in its TV ads and Howard's name carries some well-deserved weight, The Missing still looks to be a tricky sell, especially if it can't bank on year-end critic kudos."Hollywood Reporter
Ron Howard's "...murky, thriller-tinged Western has the terrain down cold from the wide-open spaces to the rocky vistas but beneath all the requisite genre trappings there's a vast, empty gulch where the affecting dramatic element should have been found."gossipmagazine.com |
Results of the initial ReadTheWest.com movie poll, tallied prior to the release of the television trailers:
71% of our readers said they would see the film
25% said they would see it, but only because of who was in it
3% said they would wait and buy it when released on DVD
1% were not sure at that time if they would plan to see the film |
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