Searching

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Searching

PG-13

2018

1h 42m

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

92%

Tomatometer

260 Reviews

88%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

David Kim becomes desperate when his 16-year-old daughter Margot disappears and an immediate police investigation leads nowhere. He soon decides to search the one place that no one else has -- Margot's laptop. Hoping to trace her digital footprints, David contacts her friends and looks at photos and videos for any possible clues to her whereabouts.

Critics Consensus

Searching's timely premise and original execution are further bolstered by well-rounded characters brought to life by a talented cast.

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Kevin Maher

The Times (UK)

09/14/2022

A mystery that’s far meatier than its virtual framing would suggest.

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Andrea Gronvall

Chicago Reader

03/20/2020

Shot mostly with iPhones and GoPro cameras, the movie is visually drab and a little too gimmicky - ultimately it's a stunt, albeit an engrossing one.

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Roxana Hadadi

Chesapeake Family Magazine

09/21/2018

3.5/5

Searching follows Eighth Grade as another thought-provoking film about the intersection between teens' lives and their presence-and reliance-on social media.

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Ankit Ojha

Cinema Elite

07/09/2024

4.5/5

Going against the Heightened Realism 101 rulebook in films of this kind, Chaganty underlines his storytelling with a terrific score and appropriate rhythm-heavy editing.

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Kate Boyle

InSession Film

07/08/2024

The writing is amazing, the use of technology is great, and it doesn't feel cheesy as it has in past films.

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Manuel São Bento

MSB Reviews

07/24/2023

A

A tremendously unique style of filmmaking elevates an almost seamlessly written mystery, containing constant twists and puzzling clues that leave the audience captivated throughout the entire runtime.

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Chris D

@ChrisMark Apr 13

Clunky expositional moments aside, not terrible. Awkwardly realised around an hour in that I’d already seen it.. Well filmed by using FaceTime/CCTV/nanny cams etc, kept it flowing. There were a number of logic leaps that didn’t quite work, but overall not a bad way to spend your time. Also a lovely throwback to when Windows was a lot easier to navigate. And a reminder that, even in 2017/2018, the internet was the cesspit it remains to this day.

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Leaburn O

@RT35452347 Mar 28

Low budget, bad acting, terrible directing. Watching someone copy and paste, access sites using forgotten passwords etc is not entertainment. Plot becomes increasingly absurd. This is a chore to watch. Saw it on Netflix.

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Joe W

@jwwincz Mar 27

I'm sorry but I couldn't get past the first 5 minutes with all that texting and screenshots! Maybe some of you guys like that stuff but for me it was a big turnoff! I kept waiting for the movie to start but THAT WAS THE MOVIE! I'm not Hi-Tech to begin with but this was really way too much for me to deal with! It was very annoying!

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And 5.

@Kitty55 Mar 23

This was a very original story, very relatable to our world of computers and tech today. Surprising twists and turns that kept the suspense flowing, with very good actors..

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Ranman C

@Ranman3554 Mar 22

Other than the usual, overused trope of the panicked father going too far and getting violent on a couple of occasions I'm hard pressed to find fault. And the final twist to it all blew my mind. Hands-down, this is my new favorite John Cho film.

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William L.

@LiveFromNYC Mar 10

Fantastic viewing of family values and love

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Aneesh Chaganty

Director

John Cho

David Kim

Debra Messing

Detective Vick

Joseph Lee

Peter

Michelle La

Margot

Sara Sohn

Pamela Nam Kim

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Synopsis

David Kim becomes desperate when his 16-year-old daughter Margot disappears and an immediate police investigation leads nowhere. He soon decides to search the one place that no one else has -- Margot's laptop. Hoping to trace her digital footprints, David contacts her friends and looks at photos and videos for any possible clues to her whereabouts.

Director: Aneesh Chaganty
Producer: Sev Ohanian, Timur Bekmambetov, Adam Sidman, Natalie Qasabian
Distributor: Sony Pictures Entertainment, Screen Gems, Stage 6
Production Co: Screen Gems, Stage 6 Films, Bazelevs Production
Rating: PG-13 (Some Drug References|Language|Some Sexual References|Thematic Content)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 31, 2018, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 13, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA): $26.0M
Runtime: 1h 42m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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