Released: May 2011
Director: Michael Goi
Run Time: 85 Minutes
Not Rated
Distributor: Anchor Bay/Lionsgate Studios
Genre: Horror
Cast:
Amber Perkins: Amy Herman
Rachel Quinn: Megan Stewart
Dean Waite: Josh
It’s often been said that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. Whatever your intentions are when creating something that can be of use to people, there tends to be a lot of suffering involved. Technological advancements happen because of war, and medical advancements happen because some sick scientist conducted experiments on people. The same thing happens when you’re making a movie, especially one that deals with real-life issues, whether it’s crime or social injustice. If you want to make something compelling that will get people to notice and understand, there’s a line that you have to draw somewhere between exploitation and legitimate story-telling. The problem is, is that when you make a movie that has a strong message, you run the risk of hitting the audience over the head with that message, and most people do NOT appreciate that. That brings me to a little horror movie called Megan is Missing.
Megan is Missing is a found-footage movie that tells the story of teenage girls Amy Herman and Megan Stewart. Megan disappears a few days after meeting a guy named Josh online and Amy disappears several weeks after. That’s the crux of the story. I’ll be honest, I really had no interest in seeing this. I have no issues watching movies that deal with real-life crimes and situations. Some of those films can be very compelling if handled correctly. Michael Goi’s Megan is Missing was intended to be a wake-up call for teenagers and parents about the dangers of online dating, because you never knew if you were going to run into a predator. I understand the intention the movie and what happened to Amy and Megan in the movie happens in real-life. It’s a horrific crime that is every parents’ worst nightmare. Utilizing the found-footage technique is not the worst idea. In fact, it can be pretty effective. The problem here, is that the movie is BORING. It spends the first part of the movie trying to develop our main characters until Megan disappears. Then we follow Amy for the following couple of weeks until SHE’S abducted.
In terms of characters, this is some of the worst characterization that I’ve seen in a long time. Megan, as a character, is incredibly insufferable to the point where the audience can’t identify with her, even when she disappears. Amy fares a little bit better, but to me, these two are nothing more than lambs to the slaughter. The only character that feels like a real character is Josh, and we don’t even see his face. All we hear is his voice. Not only that, but there are these news segments that mess with the film’s overall tone. I don’t think it’s intentional, but that’s how it comes across. In fact, there is a segment in which Megan’s abduction is re-enacted, and it’s unintentionally hilarious. That’s not to say that re-enactments can’t be helpful. They can, but not like this. As far as some of the film-making goes, the camera-work is fine. There’s a surprising lack of shaky-cam considering that this is a found-footage movie. In fact, a lot of the dialogue that’s given is done through webcams, which makes sense as to why there’s no shaking. Shots are surprisingly decent and the cinematography is more competent than I was expecting. Bravo.
Megan is Missing was released back in 2011 and most critics tore it to shreds for the weak characterizations and a finale that hopelessly brutal and bleak. The movie DID have something going for it and that was the endorsement of one Marc Klaas. For those who don’t remember, Marc’s daughter, Polly was abducted and murdered in October of 1993. Because of that, Mr. Klaas would go on to create the Klaas Kids Foundation, an organization designed to help and locate children who were victims of abuse, assault, trafficking, and other crimes. That lends some credibility to Megan is Missing. The strange thing is, is that the film has found new legs because of some TikTok reaction videos to the film that went viral back in November of 2020. It also started trending again on Twitter, so in some ways, the film is a success. Not necessarily financially, but in terms of getting people to pay attention to the movie and the message that it’s trying to convey. Those last 22 minutes though, are what really made this movie controversial. Sexual assault is NEVER an easy thing to discuss in a film review, which is why I’m doing this review in written form instead of my podcast. I want my thoughts on this movie to be perfectly clear, and the written form is the best way for me to do that. I’ve seen a lot of movies where there is a sexual assault involved. Some of them have been pretty graphic while others are obviously implied. Do I think that Michael Goi could’ve made his point without the audience witnessing the brutal assault of a 14-year old minor? Maybe, maybe not. Most people have torn Mr. Goi to shreds because of the last 22 minutes of the film, and do I think he deserves that? Not really. His intent was not to pull punches on a serious and dangerous aspect of modern technology.
I think it goes without saying that Megan is Missing was not made to be enjoyed, but rather to warn teenagers and parents about the dangers of the Internet. Did the movie really need to be so blunt about it? Look, I normally have issues with movies that force messages down people’s throats, but this is one of those “message” movies where people need to understand the reality of these situations, and Michael Goi pulls no punches in that regard, and I have to applaud him for that, even if other aspects of the film fail to be compelling. There is no mistaking Goi’s intent, but there were times throughout the film where I was questioning his methods. Ultimately, I don’t think Megan is Missing is a very good movie. But I do believe that it is an important one. Movies based on real-life crimes are hard to pull off, and Megan is Missing doesn’t always hit its marks. I’ll be the first one to admit that while I don’t normally appreciate movies with a heavy-handed message, this particular message is one that needs to be hammered home, especially rebellious teenagers. The Internet can be a dark and scary place, and some of the worst scum can be found there, but sometimes a movie like this can provide ways to help avoid those dangers, but it’s also up to the parents to make sure that their kids are adequately protected and prepared.
It’s really surprising that a movie like this actually managed to get people to see it, even nearly a decade after it’s release. I would argue that because of the renewed attention to the film, that Megan is Missing is finally getting a Blu-Ray release towards the end of October. While I most likely won’t watch the movie again, I’m very curious about what that disc is including. I want to get into the minds of the people behind this movie, so I will probably be getting this movie when it hits Blu-Ray. Would I actually recommend the movie for anybody to watch, though? That’s not really a question that I can answer.