Sunday, July 22, 2012

Megan is Missing (2011)

When I saw Megan is Missing in my suggested Netflix instant  queue, I blew it off as some horrible faux-documentary ripoff of Strangeland.  But then I kept hearing about it here and there -- on Facebook, blogs, and the like.  When I finally got myself committed back to actually writing on this blog after a crazy few weeks, I thought this movie would be a good place to start.

Megan is Missing is about two friends named Megan and Amy.  Megan seems like a bit of a turboslut, but we learn that she's had a tough past, including being molested by her stepfather when she was super young.  Her friend Amy is kind of an outsider -- pretty, but plain, shy, and not into the whole party and sex scene like her friend Megan.  Megan meets a totally cute skater guy (Josh) online and makes plans to meet him at a party, they don't connect, yet continue to chat online.  They make plans to meet up again, and Megan and Amy even chat with Josh together.

After heading out to meet up with Josh, Megan disappears.  The news stations jump all over the story, and surveillance footage shows her being led away by a mysterious man.  Meanwhile, Amy holds faith that Megan is okay, even continuing to contact Josh and chronicle her feelings about Megan's disappearance on her video diary.  Three weeks later, while filming, Amy is abducted as well.

The last 22 minutes of the film are the infamous "22 minutes" talked about in the various reviews and blogs.  They are disturbing for sure.  Not Martyrs-level in my opinion, but pretty damn close.  There's not an incredible amount of gore to see, but it's what you don't see that fucks with your brain.  The fact is, this kind of stuff happens every day, and that's the horrifying part of this movie.

At risk of being a curmudgeon, I worry for teenagers these days.  When I was younger, I partied.  I started drinking when I was in my early teens, but nothing like the kind of stuff you see in this movie, and with modern teenagers in general.  It was usually just a bunch of kids with a keg in the woods, huddled around a fire laughing, and stumbling back to our neighborhoods afterwards.  Chat rooms were first coming around when I was 15 or so, and sure, friends and I would goof around chatting with guys, but would never agree to meet up, or go any farther.  We'd wander around our neighborhoods late at night, always in groups, and looking out for each other.

With teenagers now, there's so much that puts their faces and information out on the internet.  Facebook, Instagram, Skype, Twitter,  FourSquare.  With "checking in" and all that nonsense, anyone who is someone's "friend" can see where they physically are at all times.  Like how fucking scary is that?  If some crazypants wants to find you, it would not be that hard.  This internet craziness is happening all the time, and although this movie isn't real, it's a true social commentary.

Megan is Missing is disturbing, but well made and topical and definitely worth a watch.  I kind of want to chain my social network crazy 17 year old cousin to a chair and make her watch it over and over until she never even thinks of talking to a random dude.  Also, Scream Queen needs a drink now.

4 comments:

Mr. Xploit, Esquire said...

A pretty amazing movie in the end. Terrifying and IMO far more disturbing than Martyrs and not pretentious either.

Kathy said...

That CCTV Bristol footage could have helped crimefighters. Well, that is if this movie had taken place in real life.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the review, Scream Queen. My movie seems to be taking on a life of its own, with many young people writing to me about how it changed their internet habits. I hope that it becomes a positive message rather than just a shocking one, but that will depend on how many people it actually ends up influencing to be safer online.

Michael Goi

Unknown said...

Very good place you've built here, and I agree. This post has made me decide to watch the movie. I hope it's not too much like "Seasoning house" because I just can't handle watching those brutal rape scenes.