The Vanishing (Spoorloos) (1988)
93%RT Audience Score: 88%
Awards & Nominations: 1 win & 5 nominations
A clinical, maddening descent into the mind of a serial killer and a slowly unraveling hero, culminating with one of the scariest endings of all time.
The Vanishing” is a movie that will make you question everything you thought you knew about love and relationships. It’s a thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. The direction is seamless, the acting is superb, and the story is hauntingly compelling. You’ll be left with chills down your spine and a newfound appreciation for the power of the human mind. So, grab some popcorn, turn off the lights, and get ready for a ride you won’t soon forget.
Production Company(ies)
Mad As Birds G-B A S E Head Gear Films,
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Killantringan Lighthouse, Portpatrick, United Kingdom
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for violence and language
Year of Release
2019
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:NA
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Language(s):English, Swedish
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Country of origin:United Kingdom
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Release date:Release Date (Streaming): Apr 1, 2014
Genre(s)
Mystery & thriller
Keyword(s)
Mystery, thriller, Dutch, George Sluizer, Anne Gordon, Gene Bervoets, Johanna Ter Steege, Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu, clinical, serial killer, hero, scary ending, critic reviews, Richard Brody, Christy Lemire, Michael Wilmington, Dave Kehr, Noel Murray, Mark Kermode, Nicholas Bell, Rob Aldam, Calum Marsh, David Parkinson, Stephen Hunter, Eric Melin, box office performance, budget, MPAA rating, Rex, Saskia, biking holiday, gas station, disappearance, obsession, chemistry teacher, Raymond, Lieneke, directed by George Sluizer, produced by Anne Gordon and George Sluizer, written by Tim Krabbé
Worldwide gross: $1,202,522
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $1,389,460
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,513
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 151,522
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Gene Bervoets – Rex Hofman
Johanna ter Steege – Saskia Wagter
Gwen Eckhaus – Lieneke
George Sluizer – Director
Anne Gordon – Producer
Director(s)
George Sluizer
Writer(s)
NA
Producer(s)
Anne Gordon, George Sluizer
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
1 win & 5 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (49) | Top Critics (10) | Fresh (48) | Rotten (1)
Sluizer isn’t among the more original stylists, but the literalness of his direction suffices to evoke the horrific and monstrous possibilities lurking behind the façades of ordinary life.
October 30, 2020
Richard Brody
New Yorker
TOP CRITIC
It’s an elegant, riveting piece of filmmaking.
August 20, 2018 | Rating: 3.5/4
Christy Lemire
ChristyLemire.com
TOP CRITIC
The appalling, horrific climax of The Vanishing will haunt your mind long after this film is over.
October 19, 2016
Michael Wilmington
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
It’s a film that functions on curiosity rather than real interest (given the fact that the characters are thinly drawn and largely unsympathetic), yet in the end punishes the audience for wanting to have its questions answered.
October 19, 2016 | Rating: 2/4
Dave Kehr
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
The explanation is so darkly compelling-and ultimately so chilling-that The Vanishing has earned its reputation as one of the scariest non-horror movies ever made.
October 27, 2014 | Rating: 4.5/5
Noel Murray
The Dissolve
TOP CRITIC
Sluizer’s direction is seamless throughout, effortlessly juggling domesticity and damnation as it ploughs inexorably towards an appaling dnouement.
January 26, 2006
Mark Kermode
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Kubrick considered Sluizer’s The Vanishing a truly terrifying film, and its power is in its unsettling simplicity as it explores the potency of its nightmare scenarios.
November 3, 2020 | Rating: 4/5
Nicholas Bell
IONCINEMA.com
..a wonderful thriller which deserves to find a new audience..
June 8, 2020
Rob Aldam
Backseat Mafia
The recognition disturbs and terrifies.
October 30, 2018
Calum Marsh
National Post
Sluizer inexorably and expertly draws us deeper into the mystery, exposing our own morbid curiosity in the process.
October 19, 2016 | Rating: 4/5
David Parkinson
Radio Times
The Vanishing is about the power of the mind to propel its subjects along unbelievable trajectories, into risks beyond knowing, in a quest for the most disturbing of knowledge.
October 19, 2016 | Rating: 3.5/4
Stephen Hunter
Baltimore Sun
Sluizer adapted the film, but he takes a more non-linear approach than the book, which heightens the story at strategic moments to build suspense.
November 22, 2014 | Rating: 4/5
Eric Melin
Scene-Stealers.com…
Plot
Based on the Flannan Isle mystery. A small relief boat approaches a tiny, isolated island where a lighthouse is located. They’re to replenish the stocks and replace the crew of 3. After they dock no one greets them. The winch is broken. The lamps are clean and refilled; the table’s laid for dinner. There’s an upturned chair, 2 sets of yellow oilskins are missing – the 3 men have vanished.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu, who plays the antagonist Raymond Lemorne, was a French actor and theater director known for his intense and complex performances.
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