Disappearance (movie)
Encyclopedia
Disappearance is a 2002 television movie
first aired on TBS
and later was released on DVD
.
of Nevada
discover an old ghost town, Weaver, and stop to take snapshots. Patrons at an estranged diner, in a lobotomized or brainwashed state, claim to not have heard of Weaver, although a gas-station attendant warns Jim Henley to "stay on the pavement". Henley, his wife Patty, his son Matt, along with Matt's friend Ethan and sister Kate make their way to the ghost town, discovering mysterious symbols and a human-sized dry skin on a wall, also discovering a video tape, which reveals previous visitors were taken by an unseen force, ending with a girl running from the unseen threat. The car, an SUV, is disabled and the family is forced to spend the night in one of the abandoned buildings. The unseen person/force steals their car, along with a flashlight and Jim's sweater.
The next day, the family discovers the car has been stolen. Deciding to split up, Kate, Patty, and Matt remain in the building while Jim and Ethan set out for the diner. Ethan is attacked by a snake in the desert, but it only bites his wallet. Jim and Ethan also discover a large expanse of glass in the middle of the desert - a plaque in the centre of which reveals it to be a 1948 neutron bomb test site called, naturally enough, "Ground Zero". Ethan vanishes when walking just ahead of Jim over a ridge, and Jim runs off to a nearby car graveyard glimpsed in the distance, where many stolen vehicles, including his SUV are parked in the same fashion as the symbol on the wall. Meanwhile, Patty goes to use the bathroom, notices someone watching her, but falls through rotten boards into a mine shaft. Patty hears growling sounds from below, and climbs further up, discovering many stolen items including a familiar sweater. Matt and Kate search for Patty until Matt finds her, climbing down the mine to help her. The source of the sound, one of the unseen stalkers seen only from 1st person camera movement, makes its way faster to Patty and Matt, however before it can do anything, Patty shoots at it with a gun, though no body is discovered and it is uncertain whether it was harmed. Jim rescues them in the SUV after evading another one or more of the mysterious creatures attempting to prevent him recovering a battery for the car from the vehicle graveyard, only for their way out of Weaver to be blocked by a seemingly driverless school-bus and truck, forcing Jim to drive them both through a clapboard outbuilding to escape.
They stop to use a telephone at the diner, but it is useless. Jim and Matt spot a dust cloud moving in their direction from the vicinity of Weaver.
Jim visits Sheriff Richards in the nearby town of Two Wells, telling him about Ethan's disappearance, the town of Weaver, where the townspeople vanished without a trace, and the unseen beings attacking them. The Sheriff denies all knowledge of the town, but while he is away, Jim is pulled aside by an old inmate named Lester, who gives him a possible explanation, telling him the town does exist and the unseen force is possibly the mutated, deformed offspring of the townspeople, reminiscent of The Hills Have Eyes
, who refused evacuation before the bomb was dropped, or the spirits of Indians interred in a burial ground under the town, also mentioning Area 51
, although telling Jim aliens are not necessarily the explanation for the unseen forces in Weaver - whether this is anything to do with the truth or simply the ramblings of a madman is never made clear.
Kate finds the girl from the video apparently alive, working at the local Dairy Queen, though by the time the family return to confirm this she's 'gone off-shift' and is nowhere to be seen. The family stays at a motel, after the Sheriff agrees to search for Ethan the next day. Kate senses one of the beings watching them from the window, prompting them to decide to leave at once.
Sheriff Richards, as a possible sacrifice and exchange, or because of his revelation to Jim, takes Lester to the desert, lights a fire, and leaves him for 'the beings'.
Jim and Patty take Matt and Kate, attempting to flee, but are stopped by the Sheriff, who first attempts to dissuade them from leaving and eventually tells them that he found Ethan. The four of them pick up Ethan, Jim seeing Lester's empty cell.
Meanwhile, as the five of them flee, Ethan tells them he fell and does not remember anything else, while Matt questions the events. As Jim is distracted, the car hits what appears to be an animal, possibly possessed by the Indian spirits, or one of the unseen mutants, causing the SUV to flip over. The viewpoint of one of the unseen creatures makes its way to the wrecked car, only their screams being heard afterwards.
Six Months later, Jim is now the gas-station attendant, while Patty works as the waitress in the diner, all of them in the same lobotomized state as the other members of the town of Two Wells, Nevada. After Kate has served Sheriff Richards at the diner, the film ends with Kate feeding one of the crows as several bikers turn up at the diner, very possibly to begin the cycle all over again.
on April 21, 2002. It was later released on DVD on January 21, 2003.
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
first aired on TBS
Turner Broadcasting System
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. is the Time Warner subsidiary managing the collection of cable networks and properties started and acquired by Robert Edward "Ted" Turner starting in the mid-1970s. The company has its headquarters in the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia. TBS, Inc...
and later was released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
.
Plot
A family driving through the U.S. stateU.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
discover an old ghost town, Weaver, and stop to take snapshots. Patrons at an estranged diner, in a lobotomized or brainwashed state, claim to not have heard of Weaver, although a gas-station attendant warns Jim Henley to "stay on the pavement". Henley, his wife Patty, his son Matt, along with Matt's friend Ethan and sister Kate make their way to the ghost town, discovering mysterious symbols and a human-sized dry skin on a wall, also discovering a video tape, which reveals previous visitors were taken by an unseen force, ending with a girl running from the unseen threat. The car, an SUV, is disabled and the family is forced to spend the night in one of the abandoned buildings. The unseen person/force steals their car, along with a flashlight and Jim's sweater.
The next day, the family discovers the car has been stolen. Deciding to split up, Kate, Patty, and Matt remain in the building while Jim and Ethan set out for the diner. Ethan is attacked by a snake in the desert, but it only bites his wallet. Jim and Ethan also discover a large expanse of glass in the middle of the desert - a plaque in the centre of which reveals it to be a 1948 neutron bomb test site called, naturally enough, "Ground Zero". Ethan vanishes when walking just ahead of Jim over a ridge, and Jim runs off to a nearby car graveyard glimpsed in the distance, where many stolen vehicles, including his SUV are parked in the same fashion as the symbol on the wall. Meanwhile, Patty goes to use the bathroom, notices someone watching her, but falls through rotten boards into a mine shaft. Patty hears growling sounds from below, and climbs further up, discovering many stolen items including a familiar sweater. Matt and Kate search for Patty until Matt finds her, climbing down the mine to help her. The source of the sound, one of the unseen stalkers seen only from 1st person camera movement, makes its way faster to Patty and Matt, however before it can do anything, Patty shoots at it with a gun, though no body is discovered and it is uncertain whether it was harmed. Jim rescues them in the SUV after evading another one or more of the mysterious creatures attempting to prevent him recovering a battery for the car from the vehicle graveyard, only for their way out of Weaver to be blocked by a seemingly driverless school-bus and truck, forcing Jim to drive them both through a clapboard outbuilding to escape.
They stop to use a telephone at the diner, but it is useless. Jim and Matt spot a dust cloud moving in their direction from the vicinity of Weaver.
Jim visits Sheriff Richards in the nearby town of Two Wells, telling him about Ethan's disappearance, the town of Weaver, where the townspeople vanished without a trace, and the unseen beings attacking them. The Sheriff denies all knowledge of the town, but while he is away, Jim is pulled aside by an old inmate named Lester, who gives him a possible explanation, telling him the town does exist and the unseen force is possibly the mutated, deformed offspring of the townspeople, reminiscent of The Hills Have Eyes
The Hills Have Eyes
The Hills Have Eyes may refer to:*The Hills Have Eyes *The Hills Have Eyes , a 1977 film by Wes Craven*The Hills Have Eyes Part II, the 1985 sequel...
, who refused evacuation before the bomb was dropped, or the spirits of Indians interred in a burial ground under the town, also mentioning Area 51
Area 51
Area 51 is a military base, and a remote detachment of Edwards Air Force Base. It is located in the southern portion of Nevada in the western United States, 83 miles north-northwest of downtown Las Vegas. Situated at its center, on the southern shore of Groom Lake, is a large military airfield...
, although telling Jim aliens are not necessarily the explanation for the unseen forces in Weaver - whether this is anything to do with the truth or simply the ramblings of a madman is never made clear.
Kate finds the girl from the video apparently alive, working at the local Dairy Queen, though by the time the family return to confirm this she's 'gone off-shift' and is nowhere to be seen. The family stays at a motel, after the Sheriff agrees to search for Ethan the next day. Kate senses one of the beings watching them from the window, prompting them to decide to leave at once.
Sheriff Richards, as a possible sacrifice and exchange, or because of his revelation to Jim, takes Lester to the desert, lights a fire, and leaves him for 'the beings'.
Jim and Patty take Matt and Kate, attempting to flee, but are stopped by the Sheriff, who first attempts to dissuade them from leaving and eventually tells them that he found Ethan. The four of them pick up Ethan, Jim seeing Lester's empty cell.
Meanwhile, as the five of them flee, Ethan tells them he fell and does not remember anything else, while Matt questions the events. As Jim is distracted, the car hits what appears to be an animal, possibly possessed by the Indian spirits, or one of the unseen mutants, causing the SUV to flip over. The viewpoint of one of the unseen creatures makes its way to the wrecked car, only their screams being heard afterwards.
Six Months later, Jim is now the gas-station attendant, while Patty works as the waitress in the diner, all of them in the same lobotomized state as the other members of the town of Two Wells, Nevada. After Kate has served Sheriff Richards at the diner, the film ends with Kate feeding one of the crows as several bikers turn up at the diner, very possibly to begin the cycle all over again.
Cast
- Jim Henley - Harry HamlinHarry HamlinHarry Robinson Hamlin is an American film and television actor, known for his role as Perseus in the 1981 fantasy film Clash of the Titans, and as Michael Kuzak in the legal drama series L.A...
- Patty Henley - Susan DeySusan DeySusan Dey is an American actress, known primarily for her roles in film and television. Her more prominent parts came as elder daughter, Laurie Partridge, on the 1970s sitcom The Partridge Family, and as Grace Van Owen, a California assistant district attorney and judge on the dramatic series, L.A...
- Matt Henley - Jeremy Lelliott
- Kate Henley - Basia A'HernBasia A'HernBasia A'Hern is an Australian actress. She is well known for her roles on television shows, including, The Sleepover Club, McLeod's Daughters, Out of the Blue, Don't Blame the Koalas, and Double Trouble....
- Ethan - Jamie CroftJamie CroftJamie Croft is an Australian actor.Croft began his career in the television soap opera A Country Practice. Subsequent credits include: Police Rescue, Water Rats, Above the Law, Sun on the Stubble and Farscape.He has also appeared in many movies and mini-series including, That Eye, The Sky, Mighty...
- Sheriff Richards - Jeremy KewleyJeremy KewleyJeremy Leo Kewley is an Australian actor, based in Melbourne, who made his professional acting debut at the age of 14 in the feature film The Devil's Playground .-Early life:...
- Lester - Roger Newcombe
- Lisa – Victoria Dixon-Whittle
- Tammy – Annie Carter
- Old Man – Ian Boyce
- Assistant Deputy – Robert MacPherson
- Ice-Cream Waitress – Nikki Fort
- Steve – Christopher James Taylor
- Rachel – Charlotte Rees
- Brian - Paul Reichstein
- Bill the Cook - Dominic Pedlar
- Biker (1) - Claude Revi
- Biker (2) - Clive Cunningham
Broadcast and DVD release
Disappearance was first broadcast in the United States on TBSTurner Broadcasting System
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. is the Time Warner subsidiary managing the collection of cable networks and properties started and acquired by Robert Edward "Ted" Turner starting in the mid-1970s. The company has its headquarters in the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia. TBS, Inc...
on April 21, 2002. It was later released on DVD on January 21, 2003.