MovieChat Forums > Spoorloos (1988) Discussion > Why is this movie considered such a genr...

Why is this movie considered such a genre classic??

posted 12 years ago by Alocirp3
23 replies | jump to latest

God I feel like such an outsider on the whole topic of the lovers of this movie vs the haters. I'm a classic film fan, there are plenty of "boring" movies I absolutely love (Godfathers, Glen Garry Glen Ross, In Bruges, 2001, Dreams, etc) And also horror/thrillers/suspense movies are one of my favorite genres of film. And yet I absolutely hate the pointless gorefest lots of modern horror uses as an excuse for a real movie. The Hostels, the newer texas chain saws, the saw movies after 2, the list goes on and on. But anyway I found this movie to be INCREDIBLY overrated.

This movie is considered one of the genre's classics. I can't believe it, I have no idea why this movie became so popular. It isn't scary at all! The tension never really builds at all. The only reason I found myself building any sort of tension/excitement was because I knew how well reviewed and respected this movie was. So as I got further and further into the movie with nothing really happeneing except for the villain becoming slightly more interesting, I expected the last 30 minutes or so to be absolutely mind blowing and I kept thinking this over and over again. "Ohhhh man these last 20 minutes, something crazy must happen!" 15 minutes to go "Oh god here we go the villain is telling his story theres gonna be something really mind bending here!!!" 5-10 minutes "Jesus! Something absolutely incredible better happen when Rex drinks this coffee" Which led into " THATS IT???" The guys in a coffin he screams for 15 seconds, movie ends, roll credits. So basically exactly what you would have expected all along he took her from the gas station, brought her back and killed her. Thats it there you go. No interesting plot twist or motive or anything. Just a crazy guy, who felt his next step in life was to kill someone.

This movie was NOWHERE NEAR as good as other murder mysteres/suspense films. Se7en, Silence of the Lambs, Psycho, Memento, Vertigo, stand head and shoulders above The Vanishing, even some not so "classics" I would consider far superior to this, Girl with the Dragon Tatoo, Zodiac, Shutter Island, and Blue Velvet, and those are just off the top of my head! I can't see giving this movie higher than a 6 maybe a 6.5.

I don't get the hype at all. The acting was nothing special. The scenery wasn't anything great. I don't mind subtitles at all. I just don't get it...

/end rant

[–] franzkabuki 12 years ago

The Godfathers, Glengarry Glen Ross etc are "boring movies" (as if "Boring Movie" was a genre unto itself)? Blue Velvet is not a classic? Getting stranger...

As for Spoorloos, it is not a thriller nor a suspense movie as it were, but a psychological horror drama and it is considered a classic because of its mastery of tone and atmosphere - few films build such an air of contemplative dread, sadness, foreboding and loss as effortlessly as this - as well as the remarkable complexity with which it observes its themes and characters.

"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan

[–] 12 years ago

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[–] fordfanatic460 8 years ago

I agree 100%
Just watched this movie after having it in my watchlist forever. Finally found it today and was so excited to watch it thinking from the reviews it was going to be a mind raper of a movie. I was bored the whole time waiting for "the crazy ending" that never happened.