"The Vanishing", or "Spoorloos" (its original Dutch title) tells the story of Rex Hofman (Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu), who is on a carefree road trip with his girlfriend, Saskia (Johanna ter Steege). After breaking down inside a tunnel, the two make their way to a busy truck stop in the French countryside, and Saskia goes inside to grab a few things. But when she fails to return to the car, panic ensues, and Rex begins a frantic search for his missing girlfriend. Three years later, Saskia is still missing, and the abductor, Raymond Lemorne (Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu), a cool-facaded college professor, begins contacting Rex, promising to tell him the truth of what he did to Saskia... but Rex, desperate for answers, finds himself in a situation more horrifying than he could have ever imagined.<br /><br />I'd heard of "The Vanishing" before, and how it was hailed as a psychological chiller classic, but I had no idea that the version that I was aware of was actually a remake of a 1980s French/Dutch film. That is, until I mistook this movie for the 1993 American version at the video store. When I took it home and began watching, I immediately realized this was the original French film, but I'm extremely happy that I made this mistake. Why? Because otherwise I wouldn't have gotten to watch this excellent movie. I have yet to see the American remake of the film, so I cannot compare the two, but I can easily say that I found this to be one of the most effective psychological horror films I've had the pleasure of seeing.<br /><br />Truly worthy of the Hitchcockian label, "The Vanishing" weaves a tale that is both frightening and dramatic. When the film begins, it gets off slowly. Nothing much happens for a good thirty minutes, but we, the audience, already know something bad is coming in the way of our characters. And when that moment happens, it's scary because of how realistically depicted it is. Everything in this film is realistic, and I think that gives it a lot of power. The characters, their actions, their rationale - it all seems so human, and it is easy to sympathize with them. After Saskia has vanished, the rest of the film focuses on both Rex and Raymond, and the mind games that Raymond begins with Rex, who is desperately seeking the truth. The themes in this film are relate-able as well - the loss of a loved one and the desperate need to find the truth behind what happened to them. All of this is natural human reaction, but the situation in which it's placed is unusually and sufficiently frightening.<br /><br />The imagery in the film is lyrical, the camera-work excellent, and the symbolism effective. It's an atmospheric movie and this is another one of its large benefactors. It leaves its audience in a surreal, somewhat depressed state, and a film that can do that has got to have achieved something worthy of recognition. The acting is great, Donnadieu plays a role reminiscent of Rutger Hauer's performance in "The Hitcher", and Bervoets is convincing as the Rex character, desperate in finding answers. Johanna ter Steege is also great as Rex's ill-fated girlfriend, Saskia. As for the much-talked-about-ending, all I can say is "Wow". I didn't see it coming, and it isn't anything remotely like your typical story conclusion. It, as well as the rest of the film, is depressing, dark, and somber, and while I wouldn't call it a "twist" (because it really isn't), it's still extremely effective.<br /><br />Overall, "Spoorloos", or "The Vanishing" is a surreal and scary film. The story is near genius and worthy of a Hitchcock status, and the movie is extremely well-made. For fans of slow-going, almost dreamlike psychological horror films, "The Vanishing" is an absolute must-see. It leaves you with a strange, unsettling feeling in the pit of your stomach, and poses a thought provoking question- how far would you go to discover the truth? Perhaps sometimes the truth is better left unknown. I can't stress enough that filmgoers should not be put off by foreign-language movies. If you're too lazy to handle subtitles, then you will miss out on excellent films like this and many, many others. 9/10.