Spoorloos (The Vanishing) poster & wallpaper
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Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu, Gene Bervoets, Johanna ter Steege, Gwen Eckhaus, Bernadette Lesache ... see more see more... , Tania Latarjet , Caroline Apperre , David Bayle , Mieke de Groote , Aziz Djahnit , Doumee , Pierre Forget , Ghislaine Gazaix , Lucille Glenn , Jean Grandeau , François Guizerix , Eric Jacquet , Robert Lucibello , Ian Magilton , Raphaeline , Didier Rousset , Roger Souza , Linda Wise , Faustine Wunsche

Based on Time Krabbe's The Golden Egg, The Vanishing is a deeply disturbing psychological thriller about a young man's search for his girlfriend after she disappears at a rest stop during a short trip... read more read more.... Over the course of three years, the man obsessively searches for her, using his spare time to put up posters and leave handbills, hoping that someone will give him a clue to the mystery surrounding her disappearance. The kidnapper, having watched the man for some time, is intrigued by his increasing obsession and finally contacts him. He then gives the man the opportunity to learn firsthand of his girlfriend's fate. The film, frightening and moving with a chilling conclusion, is a small masterpiece as director George Sluizer confronts and examines the true nature of evil and obsession. Sluizer remade The Vanishing in an American version four years after the release of the original Dutch film, inexplicably changing the shocking ending which gave the original film such power. ~ Linda Rasmussen, Rovi

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87% liked it

8,170 ratings

Critics

100% liked it

33 critics

R, 2 hr.

Directed by: George Sluizer

Release Date: October 27, 1988

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DVD Release Date: March 4, 1998

Stats: 799 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (799)

  • flixsterman
    May 23, 2011
    flixsterman
    Captivating and depressing saga about a man who loses his girlfriend to a sociopathic serial killer. This is a very good film that will stick with you in a very bad way.
  • fb619846742
    September 8, 2010
    fb619846742
    A brave, original thriller concerning an obsessed man (Gene Bervoets) desperate to discover how his girlfriend (Johanna ter Steege) disappeared three years ago when the two stopped at a local gas station. This is a film that spends ample time developing its characters and establi... read moreshing a dark, gloomy atmosphere in which to detail its story. It gets mostly everything right, including defying the stereotypical psychopathic character. Instead of sticking to the "loner, physically threatening" type that has been used countless times, director George Sluizer decides to create a new breed of villain, opting to show him as a family man who has no need to be doing what he's doing. The ending definitely has the ability to piss a lot of people off, but I found it to be a breath of fresh air that once again didn't decide to go the cliche route and instead elected to turn even more haunting and dark than I originally perceived.
  • webalina
    July 16, 2010
    webalina
    This film, other than laying out the basic premise, is hard to talk about because so much of it needs to be experienced to be effective. The story is thus -- a young Dutch man named Rex Hofman and his girlfriend Saskia Wagter are on a driving vacation in France. They make a stop ... read morefor gas and snacks, and when Saskia goes into the store for drinks, she disappears. Rex spends three years searching for her, and finally goes on television pleading for help. The apparent kidnapper contacts Rex and...that's all I can say without spoilers.

    It's not really clear which genre this film should go into. Mystery? Yeah. Love story. OK. Psychological study? Yep, that too. There are even some scenes that could be called blackly comic, such as when we see the kidnapper "practicing" the kidnapping -- timing all his steps, forgetting the banter he's going to use, and later when one of the women he approaches turns out to be a teacher of one of his children. She accuses him of picking up women for sex.

    One thing I particularly liked was how things don't happen how and when you think it's going to. There are several instances where I went "Oh, what's going to happen now is..." and then I would be completely off-base. Because of that, the tension really ramps up.

    There is a certain "timelessness" to the film, in that one is not aware of how much time has passed. In each sequence, somewhere there is a radio broadcasting the play-by-play for the Tour de France. Is it the same day, same week, same year? And there are flashbacks that you aren't aware of until after it's over -- no "doodly-doo, doodly-doo" screen fade to the flashback or close-ups of the flashback subject.

    Also, the admittedly sociopathic antagonist was creepily normal. He had a family who adored him, even to throwing him a birthday party at one point. You just know that they would have NEVER suspected he could be responsible for something so heinous. His reasoning for what he did with Saskia -- that he just wanted to see if he could do something completely and utterly evil -- was chilling. Actually, some of the action between Rex and the kidnapper would seem faintly ludicrous if looked at realistically -- what are the chances of it really happening? -- but for the purposes of the film, it seems completely logical.

    All the cast was good, but Johanna ter Steege was most memorable. She is beautiful in a girl next door sort of way, and all her emotions and movements seemed completely natural. You're actually concerned when she disappears, and you hope she is found in one piece. When Saskia's fate is finally revealed to Rex, it is a shocker! I had seen this film many years ago, and while I had lost the memory of the rest of the film, that scene tattooed itself onto my brain forever.

    I hear there is a remake of this film with Keifer Sutherland, but without revealing anything, it seems to me that this Dutch original is vastly superior. But of course that is a judgment call.
  • deano
    December 6, 2009
    deano
    This absolutely chilling Dutch film in the story is simple enough than the US remake. With very little violence and no gore, it was able to leave the viewer in a truly depressing state. Some people might call it boring but I found the slow and steady pace to work in favor of the ... read morecharacters, as the acting was top notch. So was the direction of the scenes, which were set up quite nicely. It was interesting to see such attention paid to both the victim and criminal's point of view.
  • rubystevens
    January 14, 2009
    rubystevens
    i saw the crap remake years ago but had mostly forgotten it, thankfully. not much to say about this that hasn't been said. it's a really excellent thriller with fantastic suspense right up until the knockout ending. i like how the villain is introduced early and allowed to bui... read moreld character.
  • arashxak
    October 2, 2008
    arashxak
    A well-made intense thriller although the main character's obsession is somehow unconvincing
  • pier007
    September 16, 2008
    pier007
    Anguishing psychological thriller with a very believable display of a contained sociopath and his modus operandi.
    It is in the vein of the 'my wife vanished and I don't have a clue of her whereabouts' theme displayed in other interesting movies like Frantic or Breakdown.
    Everythi... read moreng looks so verisimilar that the agony, uncertainty and eeriness seem to be endless.
  • ceWEBrity
    November 15, 2007
    ceWEBrity
    There are a few interesting ideas sprinkled throughout The Vanishing; it is a soundly-crafted and even film. Thus, the problem with it isn't a weak link, but merely a lack of power. The movie doesn't have enough for you to get behind, with its threadbare plot and simple character... read mores.

    The ending, which is what launched The Vanishing into such prestigious quarters twenty years ago, is still a neat way to bring the movie to a close - but it doesn't salvage the affair completely. The movie simply doesn't accomplish enough to weather the test of time. It is competent, but not outstanding.
  • McKittrick
    October 21, 2007
    McKittrick
    A film that will linger in your subconscious long after you think you have forgotten it. An ending so dark and terrifying, it will give you nightmares for ever! Curiosity killed the cat indeed... literally.
    PLEASE ignore the remake! Never has the argument against remakes been so ... read morethoroughly proved
  • kenstachnik
    June 20, 2007
    kenstachnik
    Fantasically creepy...AVOID THE AMERICAN REMAKE LIKE A YAHOO SERIOUS MOVIE!!!

View All Spoorloos (The Vanishing) Reviews

Critic Reviews

Janet Maslin
May 20, 2003
Janet Maslin, New York Times

Mr. Sluizer, whose direction has the spooky precision of nonfiction crime writing and whose matter-of-factness makes the characters seem quite real, builds a disturbing horror story from seemingly mod... Full Review

Hal Hinson
January 1, 2000
Hal Hinson, Washington Post

A brilliantly crafted intellectual thriller with a spring like a trap. It carries you down with it. Full Review

Desson Thomson
January 1, 2000
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

Director George Sluizer unfolds his story with non-hysterical -- but nonetheless unnerving -- precision. Vanishing is refreshingly free of manipulative scenes involving running bath water, jagged-edge... Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The movie advances in a tantalizing fashion, supplying information obliquely, suggesting as much as it tells, and everything leads up to a climax that is as horrifying as it is probably inevitable. Full Review

Rob Gonsalves
October 8, 2009
Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com

Worthy of Hitchcock. Full Review

January 26, 2006
Time Out

Sluizer's direction is seamless throughout, effortlessly juggling domesticity and damnation as it ploughs inexorably towards an appaling dénouement. Full Review

Cole Smithey
October 10, 2005
Cole Smithey, ColeSmithey.com

Exquisitely creepy.

Gabe Leibowitz
September 21, 2005
Gabe Leibowitz, eCinemaCenter.com

Somewhat erie and efficient, but never really gets under your skin.

Jon Niccum
June 17, 2005
Jon Niccum, Lawrence Journal-World

A masterpiece of psychological horror

Jeffrey M. Anderson
November 1, 2004
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

Brilliant, unforgettable Dutch/French suspense flick. Full Review

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    • Rex Hofman: Sometimes I imagine she's alive. Somewhere far away. She's very happy. And then, I have to make a choice. Either I let her go on living and never know, or I let her die and find out what happened. So... I let her die.
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Spoorloos (The Vanishing) Trivia

  • The Vanishing (1993) was a remake of the film Spoorloos (1988). IN which country was Spoorloos filmed?  Answer »
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