Gone (2012) Review

Gone is a 2012 thriller starring Amanda Seyfried and directed by Heitor Dhalia. Dhalia was known in Brazil for his artsy films and his 2009 movie À Deriva competed in Cannes that year, so it was probably the movie that got him to Hollywood. He apparently had a terrible time shooting this picture as he had no creative control and tried to disown it. The film was written by Allison Burnett, he worked on a few generic action and sports movies but also in Underworld: Awakening, released the same year as Gone. This unlikely mix resulted in an engaging but uneven film that critics hated and did badly at the box office. 

The story is about Jill (Amanda Seyfried), a young woman who was kidnapped a year before the events of the film by a serial killer. At least that's what she believes, as no evidence was ever found and investigators think it was all on her head, so she was sent to a psychiatric institution. Now she lives with her younger sister Molly (Emily Wickersham), enjoying what's a seemingly normal life aside from some haunting memories of the traumatic event. Suddenly, her sister vanishes and Jill believes she was abducted by the serial killer who kidnapped her. The authorities don't believe her, so the girl decides to take matters into her own hands.

The movie sports some decent cinematography, very gray and almost colorless shots with cold colors that really immerse you into the melancholic atmosphere, always dry and gloomy, it causes a very solid effect on the viewer and fits the tone very well. It has the style of a 2010's thriller but before the aesthetic began to be completely tiresome. It's a solid work on the visuals but it's lacking any stylistic voice aside from some clever camera movements and shot compositions. 

I liked the interesting relationship between two sisters that's at the heart of the film, their bond becomes troubled when the protagonist becomes paranoid after her kidnapping. When Jill takes self-defense classes she becomes too brutal and often loses control, making her truly unstable and adding to the perception of her being deranged. I think they should have added a few more scenes of Jill and Molly being together so we can get a better idea of how close they truly are, because a very important part of the film is simply treated as an excuse to begin the heroine's search. However, I do get that at this point we are supposed to doubt if her story is real or not, so not knowing much about them seems logical.

One of the many movies that touch upon how authorities let women down and people often don't believe them when they speak up about certain issues, it's practically a subgenre, particularly in places like the USA. Every cop and most men in this movie either deny any chance of her story being true or tries to use Jill's situation for selfish purposes, even the female cop spouts some sexist lines. The film denounces the police as inherently misogynistic or at least infested with cops who are, but it's not heavily moralizing, just fed up with it and asking people to take action and listen.   

While there are no real surprises (the film doesn't have a mind-bending twist), it's a very tense and perfectly satisfactory thriller of its time that's consistently entertaining. Maybe the ending makes things too easy for the heroine but it's actually a very realistic resolution that doesn't aim for spectacle but for vindication as the struggle was always internal. 

I will also add that Seyfried is quite solid, angelic-looking and very convincing in her role. Check it out, it's a good way to spend some fast paced 90 minutes of your time.