The Vanishing (1993)
Average Rating: 4.9/10
Reviews Counted: 34
Fresh: 16 | Rotten: 18
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 4.4/10
Critic Reviews: 8
Fresh: 2 | Rotten: 6
No consensus yet.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.1/5
User Ratings: 15,100
Movie Info
George Sluizer's 1992 English-language remake of his 1988 Dutch thriller The Vanishing follows the same plot-line as the original film, yet with one important difference. The film details a young man's (Kiefer Sutherland) search for his girlfriend (Sandra Bullock), who disappeared at a gas station after the couple had a fight. Where the original film didn't reveal what happened to the girlfriend until late into the movie, the 1992 version opens with her kidnapper (Jeff Bridges) plotting his
Jun 1, 1993 Wide
Sep 7, 2004
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
Cast
-
Jeff Bridges
Barney -
Kiefer Sutherland
Jeff -
Nancy Travis
Rita -
Sandra Bullock
Diane -
Park Overall
Lynn -
Lisa Eichhorn
Helene -
Maggie Linderman
Denise -
George Hearn
Arthur Bernard -
Lynn Hamilton
Miss Carmichael -
Susan Barnes
Colleague -
David Bayle
Lemorne-Age 16 -
Aeryk Egan
Young Barney -
Frank Girardeau
Cop at Apartment -
Lucille Glenn
Gabrielle -
Kristopher Logan
Waiter -
Robert M. Martinez
Cafe Owner -
Raphaeline
Gisele Marzin -
Roger Souza
Manager -
Stephen Wesley Bridg...
TV Host -
George Catalano
Highway Cop -
Howard Matthew Johns...
DMV Guard -
Michael Herz & Llyod...
DMV Clerk -
Rich Hawkins
Stan
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The Vanishing Trailer & Photos
All Critics (34) | Top Critics (8) | Fresh (16) | Rotten (18) | DVD (5)
Schematic and unconvincing.
Top CriticMisjudged, compromised Hollywood remake.
The first movie was existential in its merciless unfolding. This one turns into a slasher movie with a cheap joke at the end.
Too much of what is good about the original The Vanishing has been eviscerated. If you want quality, see the Dutch version; this one is a pale imitation.
[Screenwriter Todd Graff] duplicates many of the original scenes (particularly the significant gas station ones), but does so mechanically. He jettisons most of the subtleties that made the first film so memorable.
A case study in how Hollywood can make a complete mess out of what was previously a marvelous film.
Sluizer's Hollywood remake of his own brilliant Spooloos is a lobotomised version of its chillier, more cerebral precursor.
...a thoroughly involving thriller that boasts a number of genuinely tense sequences...
Sutherland is the key to the proceedings and his intense, narrow-minded, obsessive search for his ex-girlfriend is what kept me going most of the way.
Often stands shoulder-to-shoulder with its forerunner--or is at the very least too provocative in its departures to dismiss out of hand
The original was horrifying.
Truly creepy, but not as good as the original.
Sluizer's Americanized remake of his own film is more commercial, but, to me, also more appealing.
The worst thing about this version of The Vanishing is the same thing that was best in the original -- the ending.
It doesn't defy rationality, but rather turns rationality itself into an instrument of horror.
The American remake of The Vanishing adds nothing but a happy ending to the original.
Where the original film was haunting and spooky and ultimately quite shocking, this version is more flat and matter-of-fact.
A good, psychological thriller that, I suspect, packs more of a wallop if you have not seen the original.
Audience Reviews for The Vanishing
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
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- Barney: I don't need a gun. Your obsession is my weapon.
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"Obsession is the Ultimate Weapon"
The Vanishing is miles from the amazing original and ends up only making me want to revisit Spoorloos. To be fair though, I didn't necessarily hate this movie until the ending. Sure it had it's problems throughout, but I pretty much expected that. The ending is sure to outrage anyone who has seen and loved the original. It's sad that, in remaking the film, they would decide to end it in the way they did. Obviously it was to appeal to a mass audience who loves a happy ending.
The cast has some pretty big names. Jeff Bridges, Keifer Sutherland and Sandra Bullock. None of them give very memorable performances and that disappoints me because I do normally enjoy watching all of them. None of them were quite as bad as Nancy Travis though. She was thoroughly unbelievable, just like the movie. Everything just seems off when compared to the original. I can see people who haven't seen Spoorloos liking this based on the fact that they have nothing to compare it to.
The Vanishing is a great example of a Hollywood team totally destroying everything that was great about the movie it is remaking. Sometimes American remakes can come through; for example Let Me In. The big difference that makes Let Me In a good remake compared to The Vanishing is that it is respectful to the original. The Vanishing changes to many key elements of the film to allow the main ideas to get across. Hopefully this at least has made a few people curious enough about the original, to find and watch it.