The Missing Person (2009)
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64% of critics liked it
(22 reviews) -
40% of users liked it
(6,667 ratings)
A sardonic, gin-soaked detective contends with an odd cast of characters while tailing a mysterious, middle-aged man traveling with a Mexican boy from Chicago to Los Angeles in writer/director Noah Buschel's twisting neo-noir mystery. John Rosow is a Chicago gumshoe whose skill for cracking a… More A sardonic, gin-soaked detective contends with an odd cast of characters while tailing a mysterious, middle-aged man traveling with a Mexican boy from Chicago to Los Angeles in writer/director Noah Buschel's twisting neo-noir mystery. John Rosow is a Chicago gumshoe whose skill for cracking a case often comes with a price; he has a penchant for getting in over his head, but he never loses his cool. Contacted by influential lawyer Drexler Hewitt and asked to shadow a man who is currently en route to Los Angeles with a young boy, Rosow collects his cash and instructions from Hewitt's gruff assistant, Miss Charley, and sets out on his latest assignment. Upon arriving in Santa Monica, however, Rosow is caught off guard when he learns that his objective has been updated. He is now to bring the man back to New York. For his efforts, Rosow will receive the tidy sum of half a million dollars. Later, as Rosow attempts to track down his target, a Segway-riding LAPD officer and a cab driver with extensive knowledge of the Catholic saints offer some helpful clues to the man's whereabouts as meddling FBI agents close in and a sensual femme fatale follows his every move. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Directed By
- Noah Buschel
- Written By
- Noah Buschel
- Genres
- Drama, Mystery & Suspense, Comedy
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Nov 20, 2009 Wide
- Studio
- Strand Releasing
Critic Reviews
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Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle
There's a pretty good film if you give writer-director Noah Buschel a chance. The 31-year-old crafts a convincing noir tale, with a sense of realism that makes the experience pleasingly voyeuristic.
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Tom Long, Detroit News
The real mystery here is how writer-director Noah Buschel talked recent supporting Oscar nominees Michael Shannon and Amy Ryan into doing this movie.
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Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
Buschel makes striking use of the Mike Hammer/Philip Marlowe tradition to tell a story of disorientation and loss in a post-9/11 world where the Twin Towers can go missing too.
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Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times
It's a great-looking movie, with an evocative use of music and, in rugged-yet-sensitive Michael Shannon, has an actor whose forceful, focused presence is the film's sturdy linchpin.
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Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times
Sluggish, stylized and frequently washed in a bilious green tint, The Missing Person is yet oddly irresistible, its omnipresent anxiety like a musical chord that neither rises nor falls.
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Cast
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Michael Shannon
as John Rosow
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Frank Wood
as Harold Fullmer
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Amy Ryan
as Miss Charley
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Linda Emond
as Mrs. Fullmer
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John Ventimiglia
as Hero
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Margaret Colin
as Lana
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Paul Sparks
as Gus Papitos
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Yul Vázquez
as Don Edgar
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Paul Adelstein
as Drexler Hewitt
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Kate Arrington
as Jane Rosow
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Anthony Esposito
as Javier
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Daniel Franzese
as Agent Craig
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Liza Weil
as Agent Chambers
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Merritt Wever
as Mabel
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Gary Wilmes
as L.A. Cop
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Rodrigo Lopresti
as L.A. Taxi Driver
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Joe Lovano
as Saxophone Player
