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Tien Miao, Yi-Ching Lu, Chang Chea, Tommy Lee Jones, Cate Blanchett ... see more see more... , Eric Schweig , Evan Rachel Wood , Jenna Boyd , Steve Reevis , Ray McKinnon , Val Kilmer , Aaron Eckhart , Simon Baker - III , Jay Tavare , Sergio Calderón , Clint Howard , Elisabeth Moss , Max Perlich , Eddie Fernandez , Rance Howard , Jerry King , Cliff Happy , Alvin William "Dutch" Lunak , Matthew E. Montoya , Brian Brown , Juddson Linn , Jason Rodriguez , Toby Holguin , Scarlett McAlister , David Midthunder , Ramon Frank , Deryle J. Lujan , Robert Harman , Joe Saenz , Gandi Shaw , Rod Rondeaux , Josephine Schwan , Alexandra Elich , Yolanda Nez , Heather Gulas , Aura Jensen-Curtis , Shelby Kocurek , Molly McAlister , Angelina C. Torres , Deborah Martinez , Arron Shiver , Paul Scallan , Jim Tarwater , David Garver , Clemente Spottedhorse , Rio Alexander , Samantha Brainard

In 1885 New Mexico, a frontier medicine woman forms an uneasy alliance with her estranged father when her daughter is kidnapped by an Apache brujo.

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52% liked it

48,083 ratings

Critics

58% liked it

169 critics

R, 1 hr. 22 min.

Directed by: Ron Howard

Release Date: November 26, 2003

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DVD Release Date: February 24, 2004

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Flixster Reviews (1,287)

  • clintervin
    May 25, 2012
    clintervin
    I am prompted to write this review because I've seen so many negative reviews of The Missing, while personally I enjoyed it and believe it can be defended as at least a good film. It's a modern western, a gripping, chilling adventure, in the vein of John Ford's The Searchers but ... read morenot so epic in scope or tone. The Missing is beautifully shot and brutal at times, a dark, supernatural spin on the western genre, non-traditional even more with a dominant heroine. This type of tale; white girls kidnapped by ruthless Indians prompting a desperate pursuit and siege, has been done before, but this take is fresh.

    I believe the cast to be excellent, and I appreciate director Ron Howard's approach to the characters. Cate Blanchett is the heroine, effective, tough, and believable. Tommy Lee Jones' character is less effective but no less interesting. He's colorful; he adds expertise, but his heavy baggage and decades-long neglect negate any real leadership potential. Blanchett is the dominant force, and the father-daughter dynamic back-story adds some depth.

    The Indian sorcerer character, played by Eric Schweig, is brutal and riveting. He's the most frightening character I remember since Hannibal Lecter. His performance is unforgettable, Oscar-caliber.

    The Missing isn't perfect, but it is an excellent addition to the modern western alongside: Unforgiven, 3:10 to Yuma, and Purgatory. This story has been criticized for being improbable and melodramatic, but from what I've read, Ron Howard insisted on authenticity throughout the film making process. Call the story unbelievable, so suspend a little disbelief here and go along for the ride. You'll enjoy it.
  • moonrivers
    February 24, 2012
    moonrivers
    Howard, a true workingman director, rises some to craft this in-love-with-Westerns Western wherein there's more afoot than simply the typical renegade "Injuns". For one thing Dad (Tommy Lee Jones, loving it) done gone native hisself on us. Blanchett (isn't she British or someth... read moreing? whateverrrr ... she's great), frontier healer, has her hands full trying to get her chile outta the hands of one whack Injun medicine man (ala the Duke's The Searchers).
  • 3niR
    January 18, 2012
    3niR
    I liked the story. But the ending was just sad.
  • blkbomb
    December 20, 2011
    blkbomb
    Samuel Jones: If I stay here very long, I might misbehave. Somebody might have to kill me. 

    "How far would you go, how much would you sacrifice to get back what you have lost?"

    Ron Howard tries his hand at the Western genre, and fails miserably. The Missing has to be one of my ... read more least favorite Howard films I've seen to this point, along with The Da Vinci Code. Everything seems so out of place. Cate Blanchett is a great actress, but I think she is out of place in the film. Aaron Eckart only has a small part at the start of the movie, but he couldn't have been more out of place. The only person who was in their element at all is Tommy Lee Jones and he doesn't deliver one of his more memorable performances. While the actors are out of place, the most out of place person involved here is Ron Howard. He has no business making a movie like this. This isn't the type of movie he excels at. All he can do is borrow plot elements from classic Western films and try to tie them all into one.

    The Missing follows the journey of a woman healer, her daughter and her estranged father.  The woman has just had her eldest daughter taken by an Apache and she has to track them down before they make it to Mexico, where she will be sold. The film is neither exciting or thought provoking. It is a boring, overlong waste of talent. 

    I like Ron Howard most of the time(When he is bad, he is awful!) and I like all the actors involved here, but there is no way of describing how disappointed I was with this film. I wasn't expecting Stagecoach or anything, but I at least expected a decent Western. What I got was a sorry excuse for a Western from a director who sometimes makes horrible decisions. Howard is still an intelligent filmmaker, for the most part. This was just a bad career move.
  • LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    April 2, 2011
    LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    "How far would you go, how much would you sacrifice to get back what you have lost?"

    In 1885 New Mexico, a frontier medicine woman forms an uneasy alliance with her estranged father when her daughter is kidnapped by an Apache brujo.

    ... read morechoolbook">REVIEW
    "The Missing", a drama set in the late 1800's American South West, tells of the abduction of a girl by a bunch of Indians to be sold into slavery across the border in Mexico. The girl's grandfather (Jones), a European American who follows the Indian ways, and the girl's homesteading mother (Blanchett) set off to rescue the kidnapee. So begins a 2+ hour long film which portends hard-bitten authenticity but plays out as a run of the mill Western with the usual sterling performance by Blanchett and the usual good-but-not-great work by Jones. Artistically and technically just okay, this flick makes for an entertaining run-of-the-mill Western with lots of Indian talk, symbolism, shaman gobbledygook and some human issues which are rendered with marginal efficacy. Okay stuff for those in the mood for a somewhat long Western.
  • fb619846742
    February 24, 2011
    fb619846742
    One of the worst Westerns in recent memory, concerning a medicine woman (Cate Blancett) who loses her daughter to a ruthless, voodoo-obsessed Indian and his tribe, who desire to track down young girls and sell them into prostitution. With her estranged father (Tommy Lee Jones) ve... read morery much desiring to prove his worth to her as well, he elects to join her in her quest to find her daughter. Howard tries to implement plot points from the classic John Wayne film "The Searchers" as well as Clint Eastwood's gritty "Unforgiven", sadly it comes across as contrived and pathetic. Not only does this thing plod along as if it is in no hurry, the villain in the film is completely unbelievable and over-the-top. Howard's take on Indian culture is a tad offputting. There is also a "voodoo-off" scene between Jones and the villain which is just downright laughable. Throw in a predictable plot, even if how Jones and Blanchett are able to track the Indians is not well-explained, as well as characters you never really, truly care about, this movie is a dud. By far, Howard's worst film, and one that should be avoided at all costs.
  • imrealgod
    February 22, 2011
    imrealgod
    Oh crikey, how I wish I'd missed this one!!!
  • LWOODS04
    November 9, 2010
    LWOODS04
    Cast: Tommy Lee Jones, Cate Blanchett, Evan Rachel Wood, Simon Baker, Jenna Boyd, Aaron Eckhart, Eric Schweig, Val Kilmer, Jay Tavare, Clint Howard, Ray McKinnon, Elisabeth Moss

    Director: Ron Howard

    Summary: When Maggie Gilkeson's (Cate Blanchett) oldest daughter (Evan Rac... read morehel Wood) is abducted by a witch doctor turned bandit, Maggie enlists her estranged father's (Tommy Lee Jones) help to find her. But they soon discover that other girls have gone missing -- and that time's running out.

    My Thoughts: "I found it to be OK. I am not to keen on westerns or movie's of that nature. But it has some great actor's in this film so I thought why not? It felt much more like a suspenseful thriller then some western. But the story is a bit long. The chase seems to go on and on with nothing much going on. The performances are great, the chemistry between the two leads is very good, but it just felt like something was missing from the film. So it's just an OK film for me."
  • matertenebraum
    August 6, 2010
    matertenebraum
    I don't understand why so many people seem to dislike this film. It has an awful lot going for it, a superb cast, gripping story line , much accuracy, excellent direction and cinematography,superb scenery, not to mention the darker side of Native American beliefs. *****POSSIBLE S... read morePOILER.... Tommy Lee Jones was superb as Cate Blanchets estranged father, and the fact that it was hinted that Lilli, the 'missing' daughter was concieved in less than ideal circumstances was, I think pivotal to the animosity Blanchets character felt toward her father, the fact that he was not there to protect her when she needed him. The fact that Jones was not expecting to be forgiven, but had in fact turned up when he did as the result of being bitten by a rattlesnake and as part of his 'cure', suggested by a medicine man, was that he should not eat rabbit for a year and go look after his family, shows that he had turned up for purely selfish reasons, much the same motivation as to why he left in the first place. **********The complex and compelling characters are acted superbly by a first class cast, without exception, and the deep and more sinister back ground of the brujo man gives this an element not often seen in a film of this genre. I love Westerns, though this film is much more, it is a superb study of human interaction, in a difficult and brutal era in the history of the American people. Ron Howard is to be congratulated for giving the depth to these characters that so many classic westerns dont.
  • garyX
    June 6, 2010
    garyX
    When the daughter of a frontierswoman is kidnapped by slave traders, she enlists the help of her estranged father to track them down. The Missing starts well enough with the usual striking panoramas and spit and dust grittiness of the post Leone western and a stand out cast fill ... read morethe screen with their formidable presence. Unfortunately Ron Howard's soulless direction means that the plot stutters and stalls from one clod hopping set piece to another as the long, drawn out chase leads to a smattering of nearly-but-not-quite action sequences that never really have a chance to get going, while the girls scream and get themselves into trouble at regular intervals to provide some inadequate "suspense". The occasional brushes with native American voodoo just seem out of place and vaguely absurd and the whole thing just seems a lot less than the sum of its parts. The presence of Blanchett, Jones and Eckhart mean that there is usually someone on screen worth watching, but as a whole it's really rather dull.

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Critic Reviews

Peter Travers
December 12, 2003
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Even Cate Blanchett can't save this misbegotten horse opera.

Andrew Sarris
December 10, 2003
Andrew Sarris, New York Observer

Mr. Howard keeps the emotional temperature of the family reunion as chilly as possible, but it's clear that the father-daughter relationship is the core of the drama, and the rest is all time-consumin... Full Review

Rex Reed
December 4, 2003
Rex Reed, New York Observer

The rawest, scariest, most nerve-rattling saddlebags-and- sagebrush saga since Robert Mulligan's The Stalking Moon.

Richard Roeper
December 1, 2003
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper

... a strange and haunting hybrid that's part Western, part supernatural thriller. Full Review

Charles Taylor
November 29, 2003
Charles Taylor, Salon.com

The Missing is holiday entertainment for anyone who likes either a dollop of feminist uplift or family values (or both!) with their bloodletting. Full Review

Bill Muller
November 28, 2003
Bill Muller, Arizona Republic

There's a pretty good Western hidden somewhere amid the extraneous scenes, unnecessary characters and adoring shots of the New Mexico wilderness, but Howard didn't have the heart to cut his movie.

Desson Thomson
November 26, 2003
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

In The Missing, Ron Howard somehow makes a great movie and an awful movie, all at the same time.

Ann Hornaday
November 26, 2003
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post

The Missing hews in every way to the conventions of its genre.

Mike Clark
November 26, 2003
Mike Clark, USA Today

An admirably solid effort. Full Review

Geoff Pevere
November 26, 2003
Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star

At once racially fearful, and anxiously apologetic, patriarchal and post-feminist, pacifist and trigger-happy -- The Missing is engaged in one big, long desert showdown with itself. Full Review

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