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Released by: Twilight Time
Released on: October 14, 2014
Director: George Sluizer
Cast: Jeff Bridges, Kiefer Sutherland, Nancy Travis, Sandra Bullock, Maggie Linderman
Year: 1993
Purchase From Screen Archives
The Movie:
A chemistry teacher, Barney Cousins, meticulously plans the abduction of a woman, any woman. His repeated attempts fail until he strikes upon the ingenious idea of appearing helpless. Meanwhile, Jeff Harriman and his girlfriend Diane are traveling from Mt. St. Helens back to their home in Oregon. When they swing by a truck stop for drinks, Barney abducts Diane. Distraught, Jeff vows to find her, and even after meeting and falling in love with another woman, he continues his investigation, despite the stress it places on his new relationship. Appearing on television, he makes a plea to Diane's abductor, which Barney responds to. The chemistry teacher, who also happens to be a married father, offers to reveal just what happened to Diane, but with one proviso: to learn the truth, Jeff must agree to go through everything Diane went through. Desperately clinging to the notion that Diane might still be alive, Jeff agrees.
The Vanishing is an American remake of Spoorloos (1988), a Dutch film based on Tim Krabbé's novel The Golden Egg. That film was released in the United States to great critical acclaim in 1990, and almost immediately Hollywood producers wanted in on the action. Fox won the remake rights and sensibly hired George Sluizer, director of the original, to helm the new production. Unfortunately, that's where the similarities between the two films end. (Incidentally, Krabbé wrote the script for the Dutch version, whereas those honors went to actor Todd Graff for the remake.) While the original is a dark and somber affair and has one of the most frightening endings ever committed to film, the remake is bright and sunny, replete with a happy ending of the kind that won't leave you relaxed and hankering for a cigarette.
At approximately 109 minutes, the film is simply too long. Even worse, in order to make the new ending work, a subplot involving Jeff's new girlfriend had to be added. And even worse than that, the new subplot requires viewers to suspend disbelief five or six times too often, resulting in a film that is as inane and unbelievable as it is dull. None of this is the fault of the actors, of course. Kiefer Sutherland as Jeff, Nancy Travis as Jeff's girlfriend Rita, and Sandra Bullock as Jeff's missing girlfriend Diane give fairly realistic portrayals of people caught up in a maelstrom larger than themselves; the problem is that said maelstrom is preposterous. Headlining the cast is Jeff Bridges as the sociopathic Barney. The performance is certainly creepy, even if it typifies the kind of eccentric nuance that Bridges instills in most of his unconventional roles, including his portrayals of Starman (1984) and The Giver (2014). The film is at its best when Barney is onscreen, though, for what it's worth.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Twilight Time gives The Vanishing, turd that it is, a fine polishing. The company has released it in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio on Blu-ray, with an MPEG-4 AVC encode and 1080p resolution. Details are strong—particularly in day-lit exteriors, which make up most of the film's imagery—and colors are solid. If there's any complaint about the image, it's that the grain becomes all too apparent in the darker portions of the frame, and not just at night! As such, black levels could have used a little tweaking. Ultimately, however, that's a small complaint in an otherwise perfect visual presentation.
There are two audio options: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, both of them in the film's native English (as are the subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired). The film's sound mix was never especially robust, which leaves little for the 5.1 to work with. Still, both options are crystal clear.
The film also has a beautiful score by Jerry Goldsmith, which is presented on its own isolated track, a nice touch for fans of the Oscar-winning composer. When the film is played with the dialogue and sound effects on, the score melts into the background, effectively accentuating each scene without calling attention to itself. When played in isolation, viewers can appreciate just how powerful it really is. More interesting, however, may be the fact that a voice and a cough can be heard at the 11:09 and 11:14 minute marks, obviously parts of the original recording that were never caught and edited out!
As with the majority of Twilight Time's releases, other extras are sparse. Thankfully, the presentation also includes the film's original theatrical trailer, which is understandably less sharp than the film itself. The scene selection menu breaks the film into 12 chapters, most of them running approximately ten minutes in length. And, finally, there is a catalogue of TT's DVD and BD releases.
The Final Word:
The Vanishing is a disappointing remake of a great foreign film. Consistent and genuine performances from the leads cannot save a script that pisses away a brilliantly spooky premise. Twilight Time offers the film on BD with a detailed transfer, crisp sound, and the option of listening to Goldsmith's beautiful score in isolation. Fans of the film—there must be a few—who desire to own it in this format should pick it up immediately, as the release is limited to 3,000 units.
