--- title: "Missing" year: 2023 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/missing" fi1m_id: "missing" imdb_id: "tt10855768" tmdb_id: 768362 wikidata_id: "Q106444183" fi1m_score: 64 critics_score: 67 critics_reviews: 15 published: "2026-09-10" updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:08.719880+00:00" region: "NO" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Missing (2023) Directed by Nicholas D. Johnson, Will Merrick · 1h 51m · Medietilsynet 12 · Drama, Mystery, Thriller ## Identity Missing - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/missing - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** missing - **IMDb ID:** tt10855768 - **TMDB ID:** 768362 - **Wikidata ID:** Q106444183 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10855768/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/768362, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q106444183 **Fi1m score: 64** · Critics 67 from 15 reviews *In a sentence:* Everything the FBI does in a week, a teenager does in an afternoon with somebody else’s password > The screen-bound follow-up to *Searching* is quick, clever and, for an hour, properly tense. Then the twists arrive in a queue, and a story that ran on plausibility starts spending it. Storm Reid holds it together longer than the script deserves. ## Synopsis June (Storm Reid) sees her mother Grace (Nia Long) off to Colombia for a week’s holiday with her new boyfriend Kevin (Ken Leung), then goes to the airport to collect them and finds they were never on the flight. With the FBI’s Agent Park (Daniel Henney) moving at the speed of procedure, June starts her own search from her laptop: her mother’s accounts, Kevin’s history, hotel cameras, and Javi (Joaquim de Almeida), a stranger in Cartagena she hires through an app to knock on doors for her. The whole film plays out on screens, a stand-alone follow-up to *Searching* from directors Will Merrick and Nicholas D. Johnson. ## Review Will Merrick and Nicholas D. Johnson have made a thriller that takes place entirely on screens: a laptop, a phone, a doorbell camera, a hotel’s security feed. It is a stand-alone follow-up to *Searching* (2018), with a story by that film’s director, Aneesh Chaganty, and his producing partner Sev Ohanian. This time the searcher is a daughter. June (Storm Reid) waves her mother Grace (Nia Long) and Grace’s boyfriend Kevin (Ken Leung) off to Colombia for a week, spends the week as you would expect, and turns up at the airport to collect them. Nobody comes through the gate. For an hour *Missing* is a quick, clever, properly tense little film, and then it starts adding twists and does not know when to stop. That is the whole of our complaint, and it is a real one, because the film runs on plausibility and spends most of it in the last forty minutes. The format is the film, so the craft is where the credit goes. Steven Holleran is the cinematographer of a film with no camera in the usual sense; every image is something a device saw, and he has to make a FaceTime freeze or a grainy doorbell feed do the work a close-up would. Arielle Zakowski and Austin Keeling, the editors, have the harder job and do it well. Suspense here is a cursor hovering over a button, a password typed wrong twice, a text written and deleted, and they time those small movements like gags. Kelly Fallon’s production design is mostly June’s desktop, which is a mess, as it should be. Reid carries it. June is quick, rude to adults, a little too pleased with herself, and Reid plays all that without asking us to like her, which is why we do. She is better at this than the FBI, and the film knows that is ridiculous and lets Daniel Henney’s Agent Park be politely useless about it. The film’s warmest thread is Joaquim de Almeida as Javi, a man in Cartagena hired through an app for a few dollars an hour to go and look at a hotel. He does the looking on his phone, held out in front of him, and the two of them become something like friends across a bad connection. Amy Landecker, as Grace’s lawyer friend Heather, and Megan Suri, as June’s friend Veena, are useful and underused. We were tense at the airport, properly tense, watching passengers stream past a girl holding a sign, and we stayed tense through the first hour of digging. The film is sharp about how the internet actually works: the password reused across three accounts, the ex who still has access, the true-crime series playing in a corner of the screen about a case not unlike this one. Then, around the seventy-minute mark, the film reveals something, and then reveals something about the reveal, and then does it again. There was a moment in the last half hour, which we will not describe, when we laughed out loud at something meant to frighten us, and felt a bit sorry for a film that had been so careful up to then. Julian Scherle’s score does not help; it leans on every reveal to tell us how big it is, when the format’s whole strength is that a notification sound can do that on its own. The script by Merrick and Johnson is best when it is watching June think and worst when it is arranging the next surprise, and by the end it is doing almost nothing else. It also has something to say about our appetite for other people’s disasters, and says it once, well, and then several more times. *Searching* had one father, one daughter and one question, and it held its nerve. *Missing* has a better lead and twice as many twists, and the twists are the problem. There is a joke in it about the earlier film that made us grin, and then made us suspect the writers had noticed the comparison before we did. Watch it at home, on a laptop if you have one, where the screen in the film and the screen in your hands are the same size and the trick works best. It runs 111 minutes and carries a 15. Stop trusting it at the hour mark and you will have a good time. *Fi1m score 64, published 10 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics find Missing an entertaining thriller that stretches its own premise further than it should. The praise clusters in two places: Storm Reid, whose resourceful, extremely online teenager nearly every review singles out, and the screenlife format itself, with reviewers admiring how browser windows, FaceTime calls, Ring footage and smartwatches are turned into sources of suspense. The reservations cluster just as tightly. A large share of the reviews complain that the twists pile up until plausibility gives way, with Slant finding the final act unintentionally funny rather than tense, and IndieWire arguing the escalations never land emotionally. Several also feel it is glib about grief and intimate partner violence, and less fresh than its predecessor Searching. The spread is fairly wide, from Slant’s dismissal to Polygon’s outright enthusiasm, but no review is hostile; the disagreement is over how much nonsense a good ride can carry. ## Straight answers **Is Missing worth watching?** *Missing* is worth watching for anyone who enjoyed *Searching* and can forgive a thriller that piles on twists in its last forty minutes; we scored it 64. The first hour is quick, clever and properly tense, and Storm Reid holds it together longer than the script deserves. Stop trusting it at the hour mark and you will have a good time. **How long is Missing, and what is it rated?** *Missing* runs 1h 51m and is rated 12 by the Medietilsynet in Norway. It is a drama and mystery film. **Where can I watch Missing in Norway?** *Missing* is available to rent from Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV from kr 39.00. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service. **How violent or frightening is Missing, and is it suitable for children?** *Missing* carries a UK 15 certificate, so it is not for young children, but its unease comes from suspense rather than anything graphic. The tension is a cursor hovering over a button, a password typed wrong, a girl at an airport gate nobody comes through. Teenagers used to true-crime series will be fine; the squeamish have little to fear. **How does Missing compare to Locke?** *Missing* and [*Locke*](https://film.one/film/locke) are both confined thrillers, one played out on screens, the other inside a car during a night of phone calls, and *Locke* is the tighter of the two. Tom Hardy sustains one performance and one crisis; *Missing* has a fine lead in Storm Reid but keeps adding twists until plausibility runs out. Choose *Missing* for a puzzle, *Locke* for a performance. **What should I watch after Missing?** After *Missing*, try [*The Vanishing*](https://film.one/film/the-vanishing) (1988, Fi1m 88): Dutch missing-person film where the searching is the horror; do not see the remake. Then [*Locke*](https://film.one/film/locke) (2013, Fi1m 82): Tom Hardy, one car, one night of phone calls, and it holds; and [*Rear Window*](https://film.one/film/rear-window) (1954, Fi1m 94): The original screen thriller: a man, a window and neighbours who might be guilty. ### Reviews we read (20) - **The AV Club** (B): Storm Reid delivers a convincing performance as a teenager navigating crisis, enhanced by innovative screenlife cinematography using browsers, FaceTime, and apps. The film proves a worthy addition to the genre with a tight script and solid execution of its techno-thriller premise. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/missing-movie-review-storm-reid-1849985413) - **Los Angeles Times**, Katie Walsh (75/100, inferred): The suspenseful sequel follows digital breadcrumbs in a breakneck pace of shocking twists while reckoning with grief, loss, and intimate partner violence in a realistic way drawn from headlines and true-crime culture. It entertains but explores the terrors and triumphs of tech effectively. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2023-01-18/review-missing-turns-up-more-terrors-in-tech-and-true-crime) - **RogerEbert.com**, Christy Lemire (70/100, inferred): The film delivers a zippy screenlife thriller but includes too many twists that erode its realism and novelty compared to the predecessor. It effectively uses modern tech elements like Ring video and comments on true-crime obsession while celebrating technology's possibilities through Storm Reid's resourceful performance. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/missing-movie-review-2023) - **Little White Lies**, Alison Rumfitt (2/3/2): The critic finds the film an enjoyable but ultimately sour twisty thriller anchored by Storm Reid's performance. They single out the clever use of the screenlife format and social media elements for praise, while complaining about excessive twists and glib handling of serious subject matter. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/missing) - **Radio Times**, Dave Golder (3/5): The critic views it as an entertaining cyber-thriller with clever moments despite a ludicrous plot. They praise its compelling, humorous and immersive qualities while noting contrived storytelling and dated tactics in the climax. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-pgwb8g/missing/) - **The New York Times**, Amy Nicholson (60/100, inferred): The strenuous techno-thriller relies on a computer-screen gimmick for a teen's search for her missing mother, with relatable online sleuthing giving way to ludicrous twists that the lead parries confidently. It includes a meta-joke referencing the prior film in the series. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/19/movies/missing-review-moms-lost-in-the-matrix.html) - **IndieWire**, Vikram Murthi (C): The stand-alone sequel stretches its screenlife gimmick to bigger but dumber places, with logic-defying developments that undermine the story. It captures contemporary internet usage well in places but ultimately fails to ground its twists in emotional reality. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/2023/01/missing-review-searching-sequel-1234799942/) - **Variety**, Todd Gilchrist (55/100, inferred): The serviceable screenlife thriller has the lead actress excelling at being extremely online, with the directors nearly making the format cinematic despite its least visually interesting perspective. Improbable escalations and niggling questions limit its big-screen impact. [Read](https://variety.com/2023/film/reviews/missing-review-storm-reid-1235487348/) - **Slant Magazine** (2/4): The screenlife sequel becomes a gimmick as its convoluted mystery grows outlandish, losing the focused perspective that made the original effective. The barrage of red herrings and soapy twists makes the final act unintentionally funny rather than suspenseful. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/missing-review-storm-reid/) - **Empire**, John Nugent: The critic praises this screenlife thriller as gripping and emotionally richer than its predecessor Searching, highlighting Storm Reid's engaging performance as the tech-savvy daughter and the inventive format that still works as a conventional story. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/missing/) - **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw: The film is a smart but occasionally preposterous thriller that lacks the freshness of its predecessor Searching but rattles along energetically with inventive storytelling. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/apr/23/missing-review-smart-internet-thriller) - **The Hollywood Reporter**, Lovia Gyarkye: The film is a nerve-jangling thriller that effectively uses its screen-based format to tell a pulsating story about surveillance and technology. It stands out for speculating on society's relationship with apps and information while delivering an alarming narrative. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/missing-nia-long-storm-reid-1235297813/) - **The Times**, Tom Shone (★★★☆☆): The film cleverly uses phone and laptop interfaces to tell its story of a daughter searching for her missing mother, delivering a clickbaity but engaging tech-driven mystery. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/missing-and-the-best-films-this-week-reviewed-79rcsrkp2) - **Polygon**, Austen Goslin (90/100, inferred): The critic calls it 2023’s best mystery thriller for its fresh, confident take on screen-based storytelling and entertaining amateur detective work. They single out the creative, organic framing of shots through devices that builds genuine suspense without repetition. [Read](https://www.polygon.com/23727137/missing-review-hulu-streaming/) - **Deadline**, Pete Hammond (85/100, inferred): The critic calls it a highly entertaining thriller that improves on the original Searching with a different story and characters. They single out the visual style, crackerjack editing, plausibly crafted screenplay and fine acting for praise. [Read](https://deadline.com/2023/01/missing-review-followup-to-techno-thriller-searching-storm-reid-1235228549/) - **The Wrap** (80/100, inferred): The critic finds it enjoyable, serpentine, sly and nail-biting, a worthy stand-alone sequel. They single out the inventive use of 21st-century screenlife elements like livestreams, smartwatches and browser windows for creating suspense and tension. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/missing-movie-review-2023-storm-reid/) - **Collider**, Ross Bonaime (B): The critic praises the film's tense techno-mystery and clever use of the screen-life format for building suspense and exploring character depth through digital lives. They single out the expansive storytelling and strong lead performance by Storm Reid despite the format's limitations. [Read](https://collider.com/missing-review-storm-reid/) - **/Film**, Jeremy Mathai (7/10): The critic finds it a bold, twisting thriller that is entertaining and well-paced but lacks the emotional depth of the original and feels familiar. Praises the engaging plot and commentary on true-crime culture. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/1166698/missing-review-a-messier-familiar-but-thrilling-sequel-to-searching/) - **The Playlist**, Brianna Zigler (C+): The review criticizes the film for not authentically reproducing the screenlife format, feeling busy and pointless, and for being more a product of true-crime culture than a satire of it. Notes some entertainment in the plot but overall mixed to negative. [Read](https://theplaylist.net/missing-review-screenlife-sequel-to-the-thriller-searching-with-storm-reid-never-quite-connects-20230115/) - **Paste**, Jesse Hassenger (6.3): The review finds the film initially clever in its screen-life approach and meta nods to its predecessor but criticizes its later twists as cartoonish and its messaging as overly preachy. It singles out the erosion of plausibility and realism in the final stretch. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/storm-reid/missing-review-2023) ## Details - **Director:** Nicholas D. Johnson, Will Merrick - **Director:** Nicholas D. Johnson, Will Merrick - **Screenplay:** Nicholas D. Johnson, Will Merrick - **Story:** Aneesh Chaganty, Sev Ohanian - **Cinematography:** Steven Holleran - **Editor:** Arielle Zakowski, Austin Keeling - **Music:** Julian Scherle - **Production design:** Kelly Fallon - **Costume design:** Sona Rita Guekguezian - **Producer:** Sev Ohanian, Natalie Qasabian, Aneesh Chaganty - **Cast:** Storm Reid as June; Joaquim de Almeida as Javi; Ken Leung as Kevin; Amy Landecker as Heather; Daniel Henney as Agent Park; Nia Long as Grace; Megan Suri as Veena; Tim Griffin as James - **Runtime:** 1h 51m - **Certificate (Medietilsynet):** 12 - **Release (Norway):** 24 February 2023 - **Genres:** Drama, Mystery, Thriller - **Budget:** $7 million - **Box office:** $49 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seBixtcx19E ## Where to watch in Norway - Amazon Prime Video: rent kr 39.00, hd - Apple TV: rent kr 39.00, hd - Amazon Prime Video: buy kr 69.00, sd - Apple TV: buy kr 69.00, sd *Checked 2026-09-10.* Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RS, SE, SG, TH, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *Searching* (2018): The first one: a father, a laptop, one question, and the nerve to stay with it. - *Host* (2020): A séance on a video call, made in lockdown, and it does not waste a minute. - *The Vanishing* (1988), Fi1m 88: Dutch missing-person film where the searching is the horror; do not see the remake. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-vanishing.md) - *Locke* (2013), Fi1m 82: Tom Hardy, one car, one night of phone calls, and it holds. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/locke.md) - *Rear Window* (1954), Fi1m 94: The original screen thriller: a man, a window and neighbours who might be guilty. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/rear-window.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/missing