Gone (2012)

Gone appears to be a slow starter in the beginning but I promise you it is worth watching so stick with it. The beginning shows Amanda Seyfried's character Jill walking through the woods like she is looking for something and as the audience we have no clue what, after she returns home to her sister we are treated to some extremely well done flashbacks to what has happened to Jill, it appears that in the past she had been kidnapped as we witness a scene of her with duck tape over her mouth whilst being held down. When the film quickly returns to the present day we see the effects it has had on her such as her apparent paranoia and we are shown Jill taking a self defence class showing she obviously feels a need to protect herself from a threat. The slowly developing plot allows us to understand what has happened to the character in her past and how this is affecting her whilst still keeping us intrigued. It is when her sister goes missing that the film begins to pick up some suspense and speed as Jill feels it is a race to save her life. However nobody believes her story, as she goes to the police to appeal to them to help, they brush her off and it is revealed she has had quite the traumatic life as both her parents died within a few months causing her to be put on suicide watch in an institution then after her supposed kidnap she was seen to have psychological problems as they found her on the corner of the forests telling her story but could not find any evidence of the story she was revealing to them.

With Jill having enough of them not doing their jobs she begins her own hunt for the kidnapper that had her once but has come back again and took her sister. Even I at one point was questioning her sanity as she ran around with a gun asking questions making her appear unstable. The twists and turns started to begin as each person she came in contact with gave her a new lead and piece of information to help her on her quest to save her sister, first the neighbour tells her a van was outside so she goes to the plumbing company which she finds a receipt at leading her to a warehouse company. All this time she is getting the answers she needs and whilst doing so she is avoiding the police which although unrealistic it keeps the highly charged plot moving with added action of police chases. It is at her friends house that she finds the essential piece of information she needs in the form of her kidnappers number apparently his name is Jim. How ordinary. After contacting him she follows his instructions to drive back into the dark forest and follow the path to a campsite. Jill does this all alone showing her to be a strong and brave female lead which is unusual as it is usually a male figure we see in the role of hero so it is a breath of fresh air to see a female lead saving herself and others.

After arriving there the pace picks up even more with a showdown between Jill and the kidnapper ending up with them both in the hole she was in the first time she was kidnapped. Revealing how angry he is that she was the only victim that got away. Once again she manages to evade him and eventually kill him. The confrontation will have you on the edge of your seatsand after three gun shots, petrol and fire he is well and truly dead. Returning home to find that her sister had been tied up under her own house all that time and is now safe and sound. The best part of the film being the end for me being when the police realised that Jill was right all along and when asking her what happened she replies that she imagined it all, giving them the treatment they deserve and  an overall satisfaction to the audience.

Amanda Seyfried is great in this role and the way she plays the character truly makes the film as she creates the appearance of a crazy character who is completely sane. Gone contains minimum characters as it is mainly based around Jill and her life journey, with the ending seeing her happy now that she has ridded the world of the man who kidnapped her and killed so many others girls. I recommend to watch this thriller as it contains the right amount of mystery and drama to make you want to know what happens next and allows you to form a connection with the lead character Jill.