The Descent into B-Movie Territory: A Review of “Missing” (2023)
Will (Gerard Butler) accompanies his wife, Lisa (Jaime Alexander), on a visit to her parents. Their marriage is far from idyllic, plagued by disagreements, her infidelity, and an impending divorce. To make matters worse, Lisa vanishes without a trace at a gas station, disappearing into the convenience store for just a moment. Will’s composure quickly crumbles as he frantically calls the police before embarking on a desperate, solitary search for his missing wife. In this ordinary construction worker and family man, a sharp shooter and resilient soldier unexpectedly awakens, revealing a sinister undercurrent to the situation.
Gerard Butler as Will in “Missing”
Gerard Butler, the star of “300” and “Law Abiding Citizen,” seems to have made a deal with the devil, lending his talents to producers churning out low-budget action flicks. It’s a disheartening path for an actor who showed promise in the 2010s, but a deal is a deal. Bruce Willis and Liam Neeson have walked a similar road, their seemingly eternal contracts fueling a never-ending stream of similar films. Butler’s journey began more recently, but he fully embraced his macho persona, starring in a trilogy of action films about a special agent saving presidents and world leaders (“Olympus/London/Angel Has Fallen”). From there, he transitioned to playing gritty cops, submarine captains, and professional killers – a repertoire the Scottish actor can now claim. The only real variation in his recent roles seems to be the amount of facial hair he sports. It doesn’t take a genius to see the actor’s regression: from big-budget theatrical action to thrillers that barely make a blip on the radar. In this context, “Missing” feels like a point of no return, threatening to consign Butler to years of forgettable, made-for-TV movies. The press largely ignores Brian Goodman’s film, and if reviews do surface, they serve as mere platforms for eloquent criticism. The film’s release feels more like a medical intervention – a shot of adrenaline for a struggling box office.
Gerard Butler as Will in “Missing”
A Thriller with a Fatal Flaw
“Missing” is a thriller with a rare diagnosis, a lost cause even by the standards of low-budget filmmaking, where movies are cobbled together for a quick buck. First and foremost, the filmmakers lack the resources to even subtly manipulate the audience – a crucial element in this genre and the story’s premise. The hero’s wife disappears in a grocery store, and within minutes, the husband is on edge. Anything could have happened to Jaime Alexander’s character: she could have met a lover, fallen down a rabbit hole, or gotten lost in the gourmet food aisle. Or perhaps she’s orchestrating a cunning scheme like Amy Dunne in “Gone Girl” – after all, the marriage is on the rocks, and there’s always a reason to teach a husband a lesson. But no. Director Brian Goodman and screenwriter Marc Friedman take the path of least resistance, dropping the pretense of intrigue a mere half-hour before the finale. All the answers are spoon-fed, and the truth is readily available: the wife is caught up in criminal activity. However, how a former construction worker transforms into a crack shot capable of single-handedly taking down criminals is a question the script conveniently avoids. In “Taken,” Liam Neeson’s character had a plausible backstory – a retired operative whose dormant skills are reawakened. In “Missing,” hastily written and poorly conceived, the plot doesn’t bother with explanations – simple, complex, unexpected, or even stupid. Why bother adding unnecessary details when “good enough” will suffice?
Gerard Butler as Will in “Missing”
Butler’s Apathetic Performance
The filmmakers clearly banked on Butler’s emotional range, but the star of “300” has always been rather detached and apathetic (which is precisely what made his most successful performances, including King Leonidas’s stoicism, so effective). The best indicator of Will’s emotional state is the sweat-soaked shirt he valiantly wears for the entire hour and a half as he kicks suspects, runs from the police, and sneaks into a clandestine base. There’s a fleetingly ironic moment where Butler attempts to act, trying to charm a portly security guard, but even that is difficult to watch without pity and the nagging feeling that you’re being mocked. Otherwise, both Butler’s character and his wife are stuck in beta testing (there are also unconvincing flashbacks meant to illustrate the complexities of their marriage, but they come across as stock photos). The film lacks character development, coherent motivation, and any semblance of depth – it’s a raw, unfinished product left to rot in the editing room, its rendering deemed unworthy of attention. There are laughable scuffles – supposedly fights. There’s a disheartening CGI explosion that looks like something out of a video game from two decades ago. And there’s a “unique” color correction choice, resulting in a drab and lifeless image that’s hardly suitable for a theatrical viewing – something best left playing in the background.
“Missing” is a nail in the coffin of the action genre, already exhausted after the last thirty or forty years (“another generic American action movie” has become a full-fledged epithet). If there’s an abstract digital graveyard where streaming action films are buried, Brian Goodman’s film should join their ranks. Merciless in its cheapness, laughable in its acting, and released in an undercooked state, any future masculine performance by Butler will be met with great suspicion.