Little Lost Boys... and the Adults Who Get Lost Pursuing Them ("TV Tuesday")

"TV Tuesday"...

It’s our nature to be sympathetic to others—particularly when they’re going through something horrific. (We could have a big discussion about whether it’s really that altruistic of us, or if the truth is more that we’re just relieved it’s them and not us—which in turn frees us up to feel badly for them—but let’s just leave it as a basic human response for our purposes here.)

The first season of “The Missing” (which originally aired on BBC One and Starz, but is now available to stream on Amazon) gives an intelligent, thoughtful look at what happens when a child vanishes… what the terrifying experience is like for the parents, how the police proceed, how the media respond, and how everyone else in the vicinity is affected.

So, the basics: A couple from the UK, Tony and Emily Hughes, head off to France with their 5-year-old son Oliver for a holiday, in 2006. What seems like a fun little getaway for the threesome in a charming small town soon turns to disaster, though, when Oliver disappears from Tony’s side in a crowd of rowdy football revelers. From that point on, the couple—and the town—are naturally consumed with the search for little Olly.

There are a lot of things that really stand out about “The Missing”, for me. First, the way the story unfolds—flashing back and forth between 2006 and 2014, intercutting scenes of fresh terror with what life is like several years down the road for the same characters. It’s fascinating to clock all of the changes (as well as noting the things that don’t change), and a very effective way to tell this story.

There’s some really fine acting, too. James Nesbitt and Frances O’Connor are brilliant as the beleaguered couple; Tchéky Karyo is irresistible (and irrepressible) as lead investigator Julien Baptiste; Jason Flemyng is solid as Baptiste’s British counterpart who goes to France to aid in the investigation; Titus De Voogdt turns in a surprisingly touching performance as pedophile Vincent Bourg; and Arsher Ali is quietly powerful as journalist Malik Suri. Truly, there are no “weak links” among the actors; even those in minor roles nail their parts and add to the pastiche.

One thing that surprised me is how hard I found it to sympathize with Tony Hughes (because who doesn’t feel badly for a parent whose child has gone missing, right?!). Well, yeah… except Tony isn’t just a forlorn father, trying desperately to find his son. As the story progresses, we watch Tony plunge right over the edge of “normalcy” (given his situation) and head straight toward “crazy town”. He’s angry. Bitter. Obsessed. Misguided. Unreasonable. Ravaged with guilt. Frustrating (and obviously, frustrated). And that man isn’t very likable, at all. 

Finally, the complexities in this story are impressive. Not just the inclusion of the usual red herrings and such, but the depth given to so many of the characters. (Even the more-unseemly of them—and there are, we quickly learn, a lot of not-so-lily-white folks in this town—become objects of fascination, and sometimes, even, sympathy.) It’s not an easy task, making those we have every reason to dislike (or sometimes detest) seem more human, and worthy of our attention… but that’s what happens here.

Don’t miss out on “The Missing”; it’s seriously-compelling viewing.

~GlamKitty