A couple of unsettling films!

The world has been a pretty dark place in recent years and I don't need to go into the details, I am sure everyone reading this is very well aware. Now the question is, why would one gravitate towards films with darker and more sombre themes when they can escape the already shitty reality? Well, I cannot speak for the world but I can surely make a case for myself. I believe films with more sinister and often disturbing themes highlight a part of society we all wish we can escape but unfortunately, we cannot; we cannot run away from something just because it is uncomfortable. In one of my previous posts, Heroic Villian or Villainous Hero? I explained how understanding human characteristics drives my cinema-watching. I get insight into different psyches and gain enormous knowledge about the film genres, they navigate within. I have often noticed these films circulate within the horror, thriller, and psychological drama space but they are often some exceptions.

Some of those exceptions are what I am focusing on today. These 4 films are in the familiar genre space of thriller/ drama yet they bring so much more to the table by not conforming to the conventions. Interestingly I found myself forming an imaginary double date of films: on one side of the table we have Creep (2014) and Creep 2 (2017) and on the other side, we have Searching (2018) and its very recent sequel, Missing (2023). The two sides of the table are very far from one another in terms of tone and plot yet what brings them together is their common feat of subversion of genre and evolution in their sequels. I am sure that I am writing a spoiler-free, purely critical - comparative analysis!

We are not going to dive deep into each of the films but discuss them by certain parameters. If you are aware of these films, here is a little context for you: Creep is the directorial debut by #PatrickBrice; it is written by himself and #MarkDuplass and they both star in it too. Frankly, the film does give two boys coming together to make a film over the weekend vibes. Creep is a found-footage psychological thriller where Joseph (Mark Duplass) hires Aaron (Patrick Brice), a struggling videographer for a filming job over the weekend in his remote cabin up on the hill. Joseph's online job listing was obscure and only said "Discretion is appreciated." We find out slowly that Aaron has been hired to film a series of videos for his client's unborn son because Joseph has an inoperable brain tumour. However, things soon start getting strange, very strange. Creep 2, made by the same duo is a notch its prequel and even discussing the plot would be a spoiler, so I won't do that.

On the other hand, we have Searching, directed by #AneeshChaganty is a screenlife mystery thriller about a father, played by the #JohnCho, trying to find his missing daughter with a help of a directive. The film is entirely focused on computer or mobile phone screens with no access to the world beyond technology. the very recent sequel, Missing, also created by #AneeshChaganty, is a directorial debut by #WillMerrick and #NickJohnson. Missing is a standalone sequel i.e., it follows a completely separate storyline yet manages to situate itself in the same universe. It is also a screenlife mystery thriller and has a similar storyline where a daughter, played by #StormReid, is trying to find her mother who never returned from her holiday with his boyfriend.

Now that you know the films, come join me in discovering how these innovative films managed to be insanely creepy and sustain the audience's attention! I mean literally, how? Believe me when I say - these films are weird!

Mark Duplass in #Creep (2014), dir. Patrick Brice

Play with Film Form

Let's talk about "Form." Oxford defines it as a critical term referencing an established pattern of literary devices or, more broadly, signals the structure of design in a particular work. So put simply, #FilmForm is the structure of the film and the established pattern we expect from films of a certain kind. For example, we expect a fun lighter mood when watching romantic comedy films, thus, in a way, "form" creates expectations. These expectations have built up over the years of cinema history and the history of the world. However, when this expectation is not met with the same elements of story or style in films, the viewers are left unsettled and sometimes, unfulfilled; this is the point where a film subverts the genre and doesn't comply with the convention.

Staring with Creep and Creep 2: these are of the found-footage subgenre in the horror/thriller space. This means that the audience will be aware that they are watching a recorded version of events from the camera's point of view and they won't get alternative angles of the same action on screen. This mode of the film is popular with horror classics such as the infamous #BlairWitchProject (1999) and #REC (2007) and of course the disturbing classic, #CannibalHolocaust (1980) but that doesn't mean that this mode isn't used for other genres - the prime example of which is the cult-classic mockumentary #TheOffice. Coming back to the Creep franchise, I think the best way to describe is what someone on #Letterboxd said, "Creep is like if The Office and The Blair Witch Project had a baby."The film's eccentric and unpredictable writing is supported by a terrifying performance by Duplass, which he continues in the sequel but becomes more on the nose. Creep 2 feels like a film that knows what it is doing and doesn't try to hide; it laughs at the audience for being so vulnerable and playing along.

John Cho in #Searching (2018), dir. Aneesh Chaganty

Moving on to Searching and Missing, these films are screenlife mystery/thrillers which means we are in the world of the character through the screen they are viewing. It is a very intimate mode, similar to found-footage but the only difference is screenlife claims to be the present-day situations and not something in the past, like recorded footage. The screenlife genre is a unique blend of innovation but with limitations. Yes, it can show you exactly what one's life is like through unsent text messages, emails, pictures, and notes apps yet cannot tell you what the character is feeling. Alongside this, there is always a fear that we, as the audience, will miss anything that happens beyond a screen such as if someone enters the house and we cannot see the door, which is often hinted at by successful films in this genre: #Unfriended (2014) and #Host (2020). This film form subverts the classic detective mystery by giving the power of technology to the hands of the family.

Character over Plot

When I say character over plot, what I mean is the films in question lean towards the character as the driving force of the narrative rather than events in the plot. This means we are interested more in what the character says or does rather than what is happening in the story as such. Creep and Creep 2 at times feel like Duplass' actor reel as he takes control of the scene and just goes with it. Even if something doesn't mean much, we are enthralled by the personality of a mid-aged man with strange ideas of the world. Similarly, in Searching and Missing, we follow the father looking for the daughter and the daughter looking for the mother, without having exposition into their lives and their personalities. One can argue that Searching franchise is a detective story so the element of the case affects the pacing of the film but I would say that the audience is only interested in the case finding because they are supporting the respective family member. It is also interesting to note that both sets of films don't seem to mind that we don't like the characters but they cash on the idea that the viewers are fuelled by their curiosity in the case of Creep and Creep 2 and their sympathy in Searching and Missing.

Stormy Reid in #Missing (2023), dir. Will Merrick, Nick Johnson

Familiarity with a twist

Last but not least, the reason I decided to talk extensively about these films is that these are familiar plot lines with predictable climaxes but what makes them stand out is the fact they are confident in their identity. It feels strange to talk about the identities of films but in this case, I believe these films know what they are and what they are doing - they are international and self-reflective at times. They have mastered the different forms be it found-footage or screen-life genre, the films have taken the familiar and turned it into something new and unsettling!

The core of the plot in Creep is a guy who is mentally unwell and traps innocent people in his schemes - a story that has been written over and over again but what makes Creep such a big name is the strong connection Duplass' psychopathic character makes with the audience; it is as if we are one of his many victims. Creep 2 featuring the Peachfuzz isn't just a use of a prop - it's a motif, a metatextual reference to its predecessor. Similarly, the story of a family member going missing and then figuring out their hidden in the process isn't an original idea to be very honest but the films knew that and built an entire multiverse on this idea. We find snippets of Searching's case as a Netflix series in the story of Missing. This brings me to my ending conclusion that Creep and Searching started the innovation with form and story which Creep 2 and Missing stand on but they also further it by their own evolutions. The sequels in question are connected but standalone as they are more reflective and make you question some of life's mundane things - do you trust this employer? do you know about your mom's past? do you know who that man at the bar is? do you know if someone is outside your house?

So do you feel unsettled? Yes? Great! That was the whole point.

Mark Duplass as Peachfuzz in #Creep2 (2017), dir. Patrick Brice

Well, I guess what I am trying to say is that I highly recommend Creep and Searching if it sounds like something you would enjoy and after that, if you are in need of more as I am often - then there is Creep 2 and Missing to quench your thirst for disturbing yet fun. Of course, these are not just the unsettling films that have watched - there are so many to name but we have to start somewhere isn't it?

You can find some of the other films on my Letterbox account! Give me a follow? :)

Again, thank you so much for reading this critical analysis of Creep, Creep 2, Searching, Missing - hope you learn something new. Officially, this is the first film analysis post I have done in a while and I say it is a good start, won't you?

Creepiness your way,

~K.