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David
Pure Phase
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:33 am Posts: 34865 Location: Maryland
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Searching
Quote: Searching is a 2018 American thriller film directed by Aneesh Chaganty and written by Chaganty and Sev Ohanian.
_________________1. The Lost City of Z - 2. A Cure for Wellness - 3. Phantom Thread - 4. T2 Trainspotting - 5. Detroit - 6. Good Time - 7. The Beguiled - 8. The Florida Project - 9. Logan and 10. Molly's Game
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Sat Sep 01, 2018 5:38 pm |
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David
Pure Phase
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:33 am Posts: 34865 Location: Maryland
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Re: Searching
Quite captivating. It uses its computer-bound format very well, inviting the viewer to play amateur detective alongside John Cho's character and piece together images, names, search histories, timestamps, etc. There is a great deal of visual content here, and it moves rapidly, but the film is never less than legible. There is also subtle-but-effective humor indicting the type of reactionary sensationalism high-profile crimes create in the media and online. Elevating it further is an emotional core—a loving father realizing he does not know his troubled teenage daughter's interior life as well as he should—which rings true, so we genuinely sympathize with and root for the protagonist.
_________________1. The Lost City of Z - 2. A Cure for Wellness - 3. Phantom Thread - 4. T2 Trainspotting - 5. Detroit - 6. Good Time - 7. The Beguiled - 8. The Florida Project - 9. Logan and 10. Molly's Game
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Sat Sep 01, 2018 5:39 pm |
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Dil
Forum General
Joined: Wed Oct 28, 2009 9:48 pm Posts: 8942 Location: Houston, Texas
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Re: Searching
Yeah I really enjoyed this one. Loved the way social media was used in this as well as other pieces of modern tech. It's similar to both of the Unfriended movies, but this felt a lot more realistic to me in terms of how a lot of this stuff is actually used. I thought John Cho was fantastic here and I really bought into him being a father who just doesn't know who is daughter is, but is desperate to find out what exactly is going on. Even more surprising to me though is how strong of a performance Debra Messing also gives here. Sure some of it is a little predictable and I kind of figured out the twist about half way through, but this is still a very well done and enthralling mystery/thriller that's definitely worth watching.
B+
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Fri Oct 12, 2018 10:14 am |
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Algren
now we know
Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2004 9:31 pm Posts: 67028
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Re: Searching
It's not the most original in terms of how it is presented. Other movies have done it the whole computer/device screen thing. Open Windows and the Unfriended movies, for example, and all of them are good. But this is a brilliant film for many more reasons. Cho is very good, and the story itself is just really well executed, and the character decisions and actions seem to be sensible and honest. I mean, I figured out about 20 minutes before Cho that she was going to Barbosa Lake, but whatever. lol. I also had a small feeling that Grace had something to so with it early on (just by the fact that she was the only other famous face in the film - that's usually a tell-tell sign) but abandoned it after it really did look like she was on the good side. The film pulls at the heart strings a bit too, which I was a sucker for, and it's just really quite thrilling how everything unfolds. Was it too easy and eye-roll-worthy that she ended up living? I could forgive people for having this opinion (usually I'd be one of those people), but for me the way it happened in Searching was actually effective, and it ended in a feel-good mood, which was nice. It moves at a fast pace. I felt they lingered on certain areas for slower viewers, but it never damages the flow. A
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Fri Nov 09, 2018 10:32 am |
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Dil
Forum General
Joined: Wed Oct 28, 2009 9:48 pm Posts: 8942 Location: Houston, Texas
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Re: Searching
Glad you enjoyed it so much Algren, but I had a feeling you would.
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Fri Nov 09, 2018 7:02 pm |
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stuffp
Keeping it Light
Joined: Wed Apr 08, 2015 8:06 am Posts: 11201 Location: Bright Falls
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Re: Searching
This definitely didn't disappoint. I'm not familiar with any of those same concept films mentioned, but I really dug the use of video chat to progress the story and it made the emotions mostly feel very real. Messing surprised me in a good way too, as did the film do in general, it's non-flashy style is engaging and I was hooked seeing the investigation unfold with each revelation. The script felt a bit over the top however, but Cho did just such a good job of keeping things grounded that it never felt bothersome either. It's a pretty great and emotional investigative thriller.
A-
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Thu Nov 15, 2018 12:57 pm |
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MadGez
Dont Mess with the Gez
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 9:54 am Posts: 22673 Location: Melbourne Australia
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Re: Searching
Hopefully this is a lot better than Unfriended which I found a bore.
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Sat Nov 17, 2018 2:18 am |
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