GONE (2012) - Movie Review

Director: Heitor Dhalia
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Jennifer Carpenter, Wes Bentley, Daniel Sunjata, Sebastian Stan, Nick Searcy, Emily Wickersham, Kate Moennig, Michael Pare
Genre: Action, Adventure, Mystery
Writer: Allison Burnett
Runtime: 94 min
Rated: Rated PG-13 for violence and terror, some sexual material, brief language and drug references
Buy This Movie: Blu-ray (Amazon), DVD (Amazon), Amazon Prime Video

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Synopsis:

Amanda Seyfried (In Time, Red Riding Hood) stars in this intense thriller about a desperate young woman who, after being ignored by the police, is forced to go on the hunt alone for a maniacal serial killer whom she believes has kidnapped her younger sister.

Review:

"Gone" is the typical early 2000s thriller, flashy and loud, but light on brains. It's also not as bad as critics would lead you to believe. Amanda Seyfried stars as the survivor of a serial killer, who lives in fear that the psychopath will return to finish the job. When her sister goes missing, she is convinced it's the same man, but the police are as useless as always in movies like this. Of course, they don't believe her, so she's forced to take matters into her own hands and save her sister.

The premise is primed for solid thrills, but the execution is a mixed bag, switching gears between silly and clever so often it's hard to even keep track. It's also lacking in the suspense department. Thankfully, Seyfried elevates the whole show with wide-eyed enthusiasm and becomes a badass revenge thriller heroine, despite the fact that her character lacks depth and nuance. The rest of the cast is filled with "I know him/her from something" actors that don't standout in any meaningful way.

The movie also looks and sounds great. Brazilian director Heitor Dhalia keeps things moving at a brisk pace and the visuals interesting with dynamic camerawork. Unfortunately, the script by Allison Burnett ("Autumn in New York", "Underworld: Awakening") is disappointingly derivative. I guess it's trying to say something about the way abused women are treated by society and law enforcement, but it pretty much takes a back seat to the PG-13 schlocky entertainment.

What the movie really lacks is a compelling villain. The entire movie is Seyfried hunting down a serial killer that nobody believes exist, and for some obscure reason the plot keeps his existence ambiguous, even though it's obvious this is the kind of movie that ends with a violent showdown. For a while I was actually convinced it would play out like a whodunnit, so I started sorting out the red herrings, only to discover during the third act climax that it was all just a redundant diversion. Without a larger antagonistic presence, the revenge side of the story doesn't get a truly satisfying ending.

Dhalia did not have a good time making this movie due to severe studio interference. Maybe there was potential for a better movie, maybe not. Regardless, it's still a fun little thriller, easily forgotten after it's done, but definitely not a horrible way to spend 90 minutes.

SCORE: 6/10