Boy this came out of nowhere, right?
Seriously though, I didn't even see a trailer for this movie before every critic I follow was singing its praises, so naturally I went to see it the minute I could find a showing near me.
Let me just say, the lack of advertising for this movie is criminal, as it's the first thriller I've seen in ages that was legitimately thrilling.
As usual, minor spoiler warning is in effect, though I won't be discussing anything you can't get from the trailers.
The basics:
" Searching" stars John Cho as David Kim, a widower who has a somewhat somewhat strained relationship with his 16 year old daughter, Margot (Michelle La). When Margot goes missing, David is enlisted by the detective running her case to go through her laptop in order to aid in their search.
The details:
Searching's main gimmick is that it is told entirely through the lens of a computer, and I mean that quite literally. Every shot is seen on the screen of either a computer or a phone. We see the family's backstory told through digital photos, user profiles, Facebook, and emails, tense conversations take place over Skype calls and Facetime, and exposition is handled by security cameras and news reports shown on the screens. While this seems like the kind of shtick that would quickly become tiresome (and it absolutely would in less gifted hands), writer/director Aneesh Chaganty keeps us engaged by avoiding the cliche's of other tech centered movies; as opposed to using technology as a crutch or a cheap plot device, Searching uses every "face to face" conversation, every email, every background Youtube video, every un-typed punctuation mark to tell us more about the personality of these characters and how the world is reacting to their plight. It's so rare to see a movie about technology that not only seems to understand how it works (seriously, you'd think this would be more common), but also doesn't want to demonize it or scare the audience into avoiding social media/the internet in general.
I'm going to avoid talking about the plot as much as I can, as I highly recommend going into this movie knowing as little as possible and letting all of its twists and turns surprise you as much as they did me. It's been a long, long time since a movie kept me this close to the edge of my seat for as long as Searching did (I was borderline sweating during some moments).
As for the actors, I won't pretend that anyone will be getting Oscar nominations for this film; there are no long monologues or colorful characters. Instead, the actors play their parts so naturally that I regularly forgot I was even watching a movie. No one here is going over the top, they merely react to situations as humans would, which helps to keep the drama that much more grounded and relatable. In short, they do an excellent job.
Searching is one hell of a ride; a movie that plays with your expectations, that explores relationships in the digital age without damning technology, and uses that technology to create suspense that I haven't experienced from a non-horror film in years, bolstered by the actors very natural portrayal of their characters. Do not let this movie pass you buy.
I give Searching a 4.5 out of 5.
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