There are no big twists, last-minute rescues, or Hollywood reveals in The Vanishing; even the suspense builds slowly. However, there is a palpable sense of unease from the outset, creating an utterly terrifying story rooted in one inescapable fact: these events could happen to anyone, anywhere and at any time.
Described by Stanley Kubrick as “the most terrifying film he had ever seen”, George Sluizer’s The Vanishing is one of the greatest thrillers ever made. Sluizer’s story slowly builds its visceral terror as we meet Rex (Gène Bervoets) and Saskia (Johanna ter Steege), a Dutch couple travelling through France. When Saskia suddenly disappears at a busy petrol station without any explanation, The Vanishing takes a horrific turn as Rex frantically searches for her. This search continues for years, consuming Rex’s life until Raymond (Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu) suddenly calls.
There are no big twists, last-minute rescues, or Hollywood reveals in The Vanishing; even the suspense builds slowly. However, there is a palpable sense of unease from the outset, creating an utterly terrifying story rooted in one inescapable fact: these events could happen to anyone, anywhere and at any time. Sluizer’s film is, at its heart, a terrifying take on the abduction subgenre, as we spend equal screen time with Rex, the boyfriend and Raymond, the kidnapper – a self-proclaimed sociopath. This enables us to develop an understanding of their personas and their origins long before they meet for the first time.
Sluizer’s film delves into uncomfortable themes of obsession and loss from two distinct and challenging angles, culminating in an anxiety-inducing car ride and a gut-wrenchingly hopeless, dark finale.
In 1993, Sluizer would return to The Vanishing with an English-speaking remake starring Sandra Bullock, Jeff Bridges and Kiefer Sutherland, but it’s the original that continues to haunt people’s dreams.
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