The Usual Suspects, Sixth Sense, The Others, Seven, Fight Club, Identity, Saw, I have seen them all, so there is no ending out there that is going to shock me. Right? And that too from a movie of the late 80s. Well Spoorloos challenged me, crumpled my belief and threw it in the waste bin. Spoorloos not only has one of the most shocking endings in the movie history but also a satisfying one.There are some spoilers ahead, so I must warn you that if you not seen or heard about this movie, then stop reading further and run down to your nearest DVD library or wherever you can locate this gem of a movie.
Spoorloos a.k.a. The Vanishing, directed by George Sluizer is a Dutch/French thriller based on the novel "The Golden Egg" by Tim Krabbe who has also written the screenplay for the movie. It begins with a young Dutch couple Rex and Saskia on their way to Tour De France. They halt near a gas station on the way and Saskia gets down to buy some refreshments. When Saskia doesn't return, Rex starts searching for her in vain for the next three years. The story then shifts to Raymond's perspective, who is a regular French guy with a wife and two kids and the one who has kidnapped Saskia. We are shown how Raymond prepares for the kidnap with some humorous unsuccessful attempts. After three years of Saskia's disappearance, Rex suddenly starts getting postcards from the kidnapper and he decides to launch a fresh search campaign. Raymond one day reveals himself to Rex and offers him to tell everything about Saskia provided he accompanies him to France. Rex's curiosity to know the whereabouts of Saskia makes him accept the deal and they both start for France. On the way to France, Raymond reveals more about his character and the motivation behind the kidnap.
Raymond's character is the biggest contributor to the success of the movie and Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu performs it with exceptional restraint. There are no over-the-top antics to portray himself as a psychotic sociopath. The shocking finale owes to the character's assurance of being a very regular person who might be incapable of such great evil. The story further strengthens that belief by showing him save a girl from drowning. My ignorance of the French cinema and its stars add to the suspense as well; I am watching only the the characters that the director and the writer intend me to see, eliminating any prejudices that the stars may otherwise provide. Gene Bervoets and Johanna ter Steege as the couple-next-door also deliver a sincere performance. Bervoets brings out the desperation of a lover, who hopes to find back his lady love one day, very effectively and manages to make our hearts go out to him.
Krabbe's superb screenplay with well etched characters and Sluizer's sincere approach towards the script makes Spoorloos an instant classic. Highly Recommended.
Spoorloos was remade in Hollywood as "The Vanishing" in 1993 which George Sluizer himself directed with Jeff Bridges, Keifer Sutherland and Sandra Bullock playing the main leads. But it was a critical disaster.
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