PLOT: When Kath and her boyfriend arrive at a remote cabin in the redwoods, they find a mysterious younger couple already there. Her boyfriend disappears with the young woman, and Kath becomes obsessed with finding an explanation.
REVIEW: The “searching for a missing person” sub-genre has never been of particular interest to me but Gone in the Night is certainly not what it seems at first glance. The story plays with your own expectations and takes you on a ride that feels both unique and familiar. While the trailer really leans into the “woman searches for her missing boyfriend” angle, there’s definitely more beneath the surface.
Winona Ryder does a great job as Kath, the woman in search of her lost boyfriend, Max, and trying to uncover what happened. She can do so much with just the slightest look and she adds a ton to the proceedings. Kath struggles with her age, even dating a real loser (John Gallagher Jr.) just because he’s younger and persistent. But thankfully this issue never becomes too hammy or melodramatic. And it’s a core part of the whole story at play here.
Brianne Tju plays the mysterious Greta and she’s slowly becoming quite the genre darling with other ventures such as Unhuman and the I Know What You Did Last Summer TV series. She continues to be a strong presence and is really the most layered person here, outside of Kath. I could have spent a whole movie seeing what Greta was up to, because she has one of the more interesting character perspectives, especially for a movie of this ilk. Where’s my Greta sequel?!
I would consider Dermot Mulroney to be one of the most underrated actors out there, and he further cements that here, delivering a fantastic performance. He’s instantly likable and makes you want Kath to abandon her mission and just shack up with him instead. Owen Teague rounds out the cast as Mulroney’s son and he mostly plays the role of “Oh hey, that guy’s weird” just like he does in most movies he’s in. But here there’s not much meat to his role. By the time he has something significant to do, it’s already too late to mean anything.
Having co-created Amazon Prime’s Homecoming, this is Eli Horowitz’s first feature film, and he delivers an interesting mystery. He provides an intriguing journey (which he co-wrote with Matthew Derby) that unfolds in a rather satisfying way. While none of the characters are particularly noteworthy outside of Greta, the performances are still solid. And the cinematography features plenty of beautiful forest views. The end credits sequence is a particularly incredible feat of shot layering.
The only real problem that I had with Gone in the Night is that I couldn’t have cared less about Kath finding her boyfriend, Max. He was only shown as being a massive loser and someone who was deceiving Kath. His fate seemed very unimportant so it makes the core mystery at play a little hollow. While his character’s traits are clearly intentional, making him even somewhat likable would have gone a long way. But given that this is the main mystery at play here, it’s hard not to dock the film for that alone.
Ultimately, how the mystery unfolds is one of the stronger points of the film. I’m sure its ending will be divisive. But I was on board the entire time, enjoying Ryder’s slow realization of what’s happening around her. There’s a real darkness going on here, and I’m sure it will result in plenty of introspection. Propped up by the good performances and mysterious characters, this is one I’d recommend seeking out for the journey alone. Horowitz has proven his worth in feature filmmaking, and I’m excited to see what he does next.
Gone in the Night is ONLY IN THEATERS JULY 15th.