Ron Howard's THE MISSING
Movie review by Dennis D. McDonald
If you need a “western” fix (as I do occasionally) this one might do the trick.
It’s a bit of an odd film but the familiar story elements and characters are given enough of a unique twist so it seems a bit fresher than it really is.
![](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/52fbe871e4b060243dd758d6/t/5786898609e1c4bfec4d31a3/1448039772623/1000w/missing0.jpg)
We do get to see two professionals at work, Kate Blanchett and Tommy Lee Jones. They provide energy and gravitas in a tale that might have otherwise been a standard violence-spotted kidnapping and rescue mission.
Plus, there is one hell of a gunfight at the end that I’ll put right up there with the one in Kevin Costner’s OPEN RANGE. Recommended.
Added bonus: Val Kilmer pops up in a brief but significant cameo. You keep expecting him to come back later in the movie but [SPOILER ALERT] he never does.
![](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/52fbe871e4b060243dd758d6/t/5786898609e1c4bfec4d31a4/1448039832033/1000w/missing1.jpg)
Review copyright (c) 2015 by Dennis D. McDonald