Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

The Missing Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Stephen Larson July 23, 2020

I chose to attend The Missing (2003) on the last day my local cinema was screening it primarily because Ron Howard directed and James Horner scored this revisionist Western. I recall it as a dark and harshly lit film with much of the action taking place at night and the estranged father/daughter relationship of Tommy Lee Jones and Cate Blanchett at the narrative center. Revisiting it seventeen years later, the 137-minute cut intitally felt shorter to me watching it in the theater and when I saw the 154-minute "Extended Cut," which is included on a second disc of this Shout Select edition, it felt much too long and drawn out. And yet, it has much to recommend owing to the performances, cinematography, and yes, Horner's score.

Maggie Gilkeson (Cate Blanchett) is a healer/medicine woman living in the frontier in a remote house. She's a widow and mother with a daughter, Lily (Evan Rachel Wood), on the brink of womanhood and a smart and spunky younger daughter named Dot (Jenna Boyd). Her live-in boyfriend, Brake (Aaron Eckhart), has just returned from the wilderness with a crusty older fellow who could pass as a quasi-Indian. Maggie immediately recognizes and becomes uncomfortable at the sight of Samuel Jones (Tommy Lee Jones), once her dad who she once took as dead. Maggie remains bitter over the death of her mother and blames Samuel for it. Brake and a fellow traveler promise to take Samuel back with them on a little trek but Lily and Dot also want to tag along. When no one comes home the following morning, Maggie jaunts into the woods to find carnage and a shell-shocked Dot. Maggie soon learns that Apache scouts who've left their U.S. Army posts have joined forces with an Apache mystic named Chidin (Eric Schweig), who is capturing young ladies so he can sell them to slave traders over the Mexican border. In a cell at the local sheriff's office, where the authorities are unhelpful, Maggie finds her vagabond father, who agrees to help her track down Lily.

The Missing is based on Thomas Eidson's 1995 novel, The Last Ride, and is adapted for the screen by Ken Kaufman (Space Cowboys). One of the main problems I have with the script is with the exception of the father/son Apaches who help Maggie and Samuel, the other Apaches are not given much depth and are badly stereotyped. Chidin is too one-dimensional as an evil phantom shaman. There's a backstory to his character but Howard and Kaufman are uninterested in exploring it. He's all ruthless and misogynistic, which gives the Apache man a bad archetypal representation. There's a scene where he chides Samuel for a long history of his people acting evil to the natives, which I thought Howard and Kaufman could have developed more.

The Missing Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Theatrical Cut and Extended Cut of The Missing are both presented in the movie's original theatrical exhibition ratio of 2.40:1 on these MPEG-4 AVC-encoded BD-50s. Color is largely drained, giving the film a bleak and stark appearance. Director of photography Salvatore Totino uses spare natural light from candles or kerosene lamps to illuminate faces amid a black or dark background. This transfer doesn't have any of the edge enhancement that plagued the original Columbia/Tri-Star DVD from 2004.

Shout supplies sixteen chapter selections for each cut.

The Missing Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

For the Theatrical, Shout has provided a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround (2629 kbps, 24-bit) and a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo downmix (1582 kbps, 24-bit). On the Extended, we likewise get a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround (2873 kbps, 24-bit) and a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo downsample (1581 kbps, 24-bit). Dialogue is crisply presented. The movie is in English, the Apache languages, and Spanish. For the latter two, compulsory yellow English subtitles are displayed (see Screenshot #s 19 and 20). The Missing has frequent stretches where just the sounds of wind and nature are heard. James Horner blends ethnic and Western sounds into a sweeping melody that reminds me of his theme from Braveheart.

The Missing Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Shout has ported over all bonus materials from the Columbia/Sony DVDs. Not carried over are three photo galleries ("Cast," "Location," & "Production") that were included on the Fullscreen/Widescreen Special Editions.

DISC ONE: THEATRICAL CUT (2:17:00; 2.40:1, 1080p; DTS-HD Master 5.1)

• Ron Howard on ... (19 min., 1080i) - "The Filmmaking Process" (2:21, upconverted to 1080i): Howard explains the roles he plays in the making of his movies. This is accompanied by behind-the-scenes footage of Howard at work with his crew and directing actors on location while filming The Missing. "His Love of Westerns" (1:50, 1080i) has Howard reminiscing about his father, Rance, who grew up on a farm and spent a lot of time watching Westerns with his son. "The Conventions of Western" (2:56, 1080i) has Howard emphasizing the types of Westerns that are endearing to the public (ones that strive for authenticity and humanistic portrayals of all characters). "Home Movies" (5:52, 1080i) shows excerpts from the Western shorts that Howard made in high school, which are included on this disc. He gives a synopsis of each and how he created some of the special effects. Brother Clint Howard is also interviewed. In "John Wayne" (3:09, 1080i), Howard recollects working with The Duke on The Shootist (1976) and Wayne's relationship with John Ford. "Editing" (3:09, 1080i), the last mini-featurette, has Howard repeating a maxim that George Lucas told him (i.e., a film is truly made in the editing room). He also offers some of his own anecdotes. All interviews and footage are in English, not subtitled.

• Home Movies (13 min., 1080i) - three shorts that Howard made as a high schooler: Old Paint (7:53), The Deed of Daring Do (3:01), and Cards, Cads, Guns, Gore and Death (2:11). They're in English and not subtitled.

• Eleven Deleted Scenes (17:04, 1080i) - eleven excised scenes are titled on Shout's submenu and presented in this order with a "Play All" option: "Maggie and Lily Discuss Fashion," "Jones Shoots Mountain Lion," "Maggie Spies on Jones," "Dot Begs Lily to Go to Outhouse," "Lily Watches Maggie and Brake from Outhouse," "Maggie and Dot Release Cattle," "Maggie Looks for Jones," "Funeral with Ducharme," "Jones Sits Awake at Night," "Jones and Maggie Talk About the Son He Never Knew," and "Dot Gets a Lesson on Killing." Howard essentially put all these scenes back in when he and Sony produced an Extended Cut in 2006. Here, they're presented in 1.85:1 non-anamorphic widescreen. All contain English dialogue and are not subtitled.

• Three Alternative Endings (32 min., 1080i) - alternate endings titled "Long Version" (7:44), "Take Me Home" (12:42), and "A Silent Goodbye" (11:23). Each is presented in letterboxed 1.85:1.

• Outtakes (2:32, 1080i) - a short blooper reel consisting of various prop mishaps and bungles cast members committed while filming different scenes.

• Theatrical Trailer (2:32, 1080i) - this is more of a teaser trailer for The Missing. It's presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo.

DISC TWO: EXTENDED CUT (2:34:14; 2.40:1, 1080p; DTS-HD Master 5.1)

• Audio Commentary by Director Ron Howard - recorded for Sony's 2006 DVD, this feature-length chat has Howard speaking about things that happened during production and anecdotes about his cast and crew. Though Howard is pithy, there are too many gaps in between his talking points. It would have behooved him to have a moderator guiding him along to prevent so frequent dead air. In English, not subtitled.

• The Last Ride: The Story of The Missing (5:38, upconverted to 1080i) - Howard discusses the Westerns in TV and film he watched or was a part of as a child actor. Producer Daniel Ostroff is also interviewed about he became acquainted with writer Ken Kaufman's screenplay. You'll notice on the front cover of the script shown that Akiva Goldsman made some polishes to one of Kaufman's drafts. Kaufman describes how he became familiar with Eidson's novel. Producer Brian Grazer gives his impression of the script. In English, not subtitled.

• New Frontiers: Making The Missing (29:10, 1080i) - the film's official making-of doc with lots of behind-the-scenes footage of cast and crew filming in New Mexico. We hear from Howard, Grazer, Kaufman, cinematographer Salvatore Totino, costume designer Julie Weiss, stunt coordinator Walter Scott as well as actors Cate Blanchett, Tommy Lee Jones, Even Rachel Wood, Jenna Boyd, Aaron Eckhart, Eric Schweig, and Clint Howard. In English, not subtitled.

• Casting The Missing (15:38, 1080i) - this featurette covers the casting of the principals and supporting characters. We get remarks from Howard, Grazer, casting director Jane Jenkins, as well as actors Blanchett, Jones, Wood, Boyd, Eckhart, Schweig, and Clint Howard. In English, not subtitled.

• Apache Language School (5:43, 1080i) - interviews with Howard and Tommy Lee Jones about incorporating the Apache languages and customs into the movie. We also hear from Apache translator Elbys Hugar and Apache consultant Dr. Scott Rushforth. We're also treated to some script-readings with a few of the actors. Mostly in English.

• The Modern Western Score (5:02, 1080i) - this piece starts with James Horner conducting a studio orchestra at the Todd-AO Scoring Stage. Howard and Horner discuss the collaborative process they employed through their long partnership. Horner also explains his approach to western and native music. He wanted to marry the two together and not just have a distinctive ethnic sound. Though short, this is one of the best segments. In English, not subtitled.

The Missing Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While The Missing is overlong and problematic in its (mis)representations of Apaches, it's also masterfully lit and occasionally beautiful to watch when it isn't so dark. Shout Select have done a splendid job of assembling two discs containing the theatrical version and the Extended Cut. The extras duplicate the DVDs. RECOMMENDED to fans of Cate Blanchett, Ron Howard, and Tommy Lee Jones.