Missing (1982)

Director: Costa-Gavras
Writers: Costa-Gavras, Donald Stewart
Stars: Jack Lemmon, Sissy Spacek, Melanie Mayron
Runtime: 122 minutes

Plot: When an idealistic writer disappears during the Right Wing military coup in 1973 Chile, his wife and American businessman father try to find him.

Review: Mr. Costa-Gavras's film, about the 1973 kidnap and murder in Chile of Charles Horman, is an interesting piece peering into the dysfunctional nature of society and its workings. The center of the film is the political awakening of Ed Horman, who comes to Chile to help Beth, though he suspects that Charles has gone under cover for some reason that is beyond his comprehension. ''If he had stayed home,'' says Ed, who is well-to-do and politically conservative, as well as a practicing Christian Scientist, "this wouldn't have happened."

In view of the film's opening contention of being a true story, the care that Mr. Costa-Gavras takes not ever to identify Chile by name is a bit disingenuous. The cities are clearly named and identified. Also a bit disingenuous is the way the film never bothers to give a good answer to the question of why the Chilean - and possibly the American - authorities found it necessary to liquidate Charles Horman while allowing the safe departure from Chile of Terry Simon. Terry, after all, is privy to all the supposedly damaging information Charles gathered in Vina del Mar.

Reviewed by Mohaiminul Islam