History Film / Searching

** [[spoiler:Relating to the above, any viewers with a rudimentary understanding of how cameras work would likely notice that the image fish_n_chips uses is far too crisp and clear to simply be taken with a smartphone. While it could be excused as perhaps being a professional shot taken for a graduation photo or the like, the blurry background of a house behind the woman combined with her [[StepfordSmiler forced smile]] hint that it's a stock image rather than a natural picture.]]

* EveryoneHasStandards: Peter is a lazy stoner, but he would ''never'' [[spoiler:groom and sexually exploit his own niece]]. He is deeply hurt and angry when [[spoiler:David]] levels accusations of such at him, calling it "un-[[PrecisionFStrike fucking]]-speakable".

* BadInfluencer: Downplayed. Margot's FalseFriend Abigail directly tells Margot's frantic father David that they were not friends and she only invited Margot to her study session to help her get into Berkley, including uploading a video of her ignoring Margot who is sad in the corner. When it's revealed that Margot is missing, Abigail makes a video dramatically declaring that Margot is her best friend, earning thousands of views

* AmbiguousSituation: It's never made clear how much [[spoiler:Vick]] is telling the truth about Margot's fate. [[spoiler:Did Robert want to turn himself in, or does she only say that because she's TakingTheHeat for him as best she can? Was it really her decision to leave Margot behind at the ravine, and did she really assume Margot was dead or did she not look because she wanted not to find the body?]] Also, is there really something wrong with [[spoiler:Robert? Is he mentally challenged in some way or is this just Vick's continued efforts to believe the best of her son?]]

* TwentyMinutesIntoThePast / TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: A minor example. The majority of the film takes place in May 2017, but the movie didn't premiere until January 2018 at Sundance and August 2018 in cinemas. Meanwhile, the epilogue takes place in April 2019.

* InstantHumiliationJustAddYouTube: David flips out on Derek at a movie theater after seeing his gross comments online. The fight gets uploaded to [=YouTube=], where David is labeled "Crazy Dad".

''Searching'' is a 2018 thriller film directed by Creator/AneeshChaganty from a script he co-wrote with Sev Ohanian. It stars Creator/JohnCho, Creator/DebraMessing, Michelle La, and Joseph Lee.

* MeaningfulName: [[spoiler: The [=YouCast=] user fish_n_chips, revealed to actually be Margot's stalker, Robert, uses a stock photograph and anonymity to pretend to be another girl who can relate to Margot's loss by claiming to have a parent suffering from cancer. The "fish" part of the username is a reference to {{Catfishing}}, the act is presenting a false identity to another in order to encourage their engagement.]]

* MentalHandicapMoralDeficiency: Implied to be the case, possibly, for [[spoiler:Vick's son Robert. She constantly refers to him as being "different", which has led to a lifetime of rejection and isolation, says that he struggles to fit in with others, and is prone to outbursts.]] However, [[spoiler:it's left ambiguous ultimately whether this is true or just another way for Vick to justify her son's behavior.]]

* DirtyCop: [[spoiler:Subverted in that Detective Vick is for the most part a model officer whose service has earned her numerous commendations throughout her career. However, she's wildly overprotective of her son to the point that she not only covers up his assault on Margot but goes out of her way to ensure the search parties never get near the actual location where the altercation occurred and forces a prisoner to confess to Margot's murder to ensure she can't be found alive and expose the true culprit.]]

* TwentyMinutesIntoThePast: A minor example. The majority of the film takes place in May 2017, but the movie didn't premiere until January 2018 at Sundance and August 2018 in cinemas.

The film is notable for being told from the [[InUniverseCamera POV of laptop and phone screens]], much like ''Film/{{Unfriended}}'''s take on [[FoundFootageFilms the found footage genre]] did in 2014 (though this film is by a totally different production team).

** [[spoiler:Margot]] also looks okay when [[spoiler:she's rescued from the ravine, too, despite repeated warnings that she may look gruesome. Even more so a couple of months later when, despite being in a wheelchair from the injuries she sustained, she looks very healthy and just like she did pre-disappearance and being stuck in a ravine for a week.]]

** Abigail, Margot's classmate who outright tells David she only invited Margot to the study group session so that Abigail can get into Berkeley. After Margot is reported missing, she makes a phony tearful video saying Margot was her best friend.

** The news articles David pulls up at the beginning foreshadow upcoming events, such as [[spoiler:a weather report on an upcoming storm, and a story about how a hiker was lost for nine days before being found by a search party.]]

** When David first logs into [=YouCast=], fish_n_chips logs in almost immediately, and then just as quickly logs off. [[spoiler:This is Robbie Abolt panicking about seeing the supposedly dead Margot online, and then logging off. If fish_n_chips had just been an unrelated online friend of Margot's, you might expect her to ask David who he is]]. When David browses Margot's cast history, the first time fish_n_chips interacts with Margot, she doesn't have a profile picture. [[spoiler:This is because he created the false identity after his first interaction with her]].
** Margot states her favorite Pokemon is Uxie, which lives in a lake.[[spoiler:Now, where was Margot found again? A lake.]]

* INeverSaidItWasPoison: [[spoiler:Easy to miss, because [[ViewersAreGeniuses even David never realizes it]], but when he calls Detective Vick in the middle of the night to tell her about Margot's connection to Barbosa Lake, one of the first things out of her mouth is "Is she at the lake?" without any suggestion on his part that a lake was involved.]]

* MonsAsCharacterization: In Margot's video chat with fish_n_chips, she says that her favorite Pokemon is Uxie, while fish_n_chips says her favorite is Kecleon. Margot says she likes Uxie because it has the power to erase memories, alluding to her own struggles with dealing with the grief of losing her mother. As for Kecleon, it's a Pokemon that can change its own type, alluding to how [[spoiler:fish_n_chips is really Margot's stalker Robert hiding his identity.]]

** Derek Ellis is a HateSink who plays TeensAreMonsters pretty straight, and David has every reason in the world to suspect that he may have something to do with Margot's disappearance. [[spoiler:Turns out he has nothing to do with it, he's just being an asshole about the whole situation.]]

* RightForTheWrongReasons: [[spoiler:David finds some disturbing messages between Margot and Peter and assumed that they did something terrible behind his back. He was correct, but for the wrong reason. David initially assumed that the two are in an incestuous relationship, but in reality, Peter was just sharing his weed with Margot and was not responsible for her disappearance.]]

** Vick's first name is [[Film/RosemarysBaby Rosemary]], and her only son [[spoiler:attacked and nearly killed Margot.]]

->'''Detective Vick:''' One, after study session Margot didn’t return home. Two, she didn’t attend school on Friday. And three, she’s been transferring funds for the last six months. We’ll handle the ground investigation, but as a parent you can help us with who your daughter talks to. Is that something you can do?\\

The film is notable for being told from the [[InUniverseCamera POV of laptop and phone screens]], much like ''Film/{{Unfriended}}'''s take on the FoundFootage subgenre did back in 2014 (though this film is by a totally different production team).

A sequel, called ''[[Film/Missing2023 Missing]]'', was released in January 2023. Chaganty returns as a producer, but the film does not not feature the characters or story of the first film (except as a fake Creator/{{Netflix}} documentary episode shown in-universe), [[ThematicSeries while it shares the same style]].

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: [[spoiler:While Vick and her son are seen arrested for their crimes, the audience does not get to see the outcome of their trials, though presumably they are both found guilty.]]

A sequel, called ''Film/Missing2023'', was released in January 2023. Chaganty returns as a producer, but the film does not not feature the characters or story of the first film (except as a fake Netflix documentary episode shown in-universe), [[ThematicSeries while it shares the same style]].

* ''{{Film/Searching}}'': In Margot's video chat with fish_n_chips, she says that her favorite Pokemon is Uxie, while fish_n_chips says her favorite is Kecleon. Margot says she likes Uxie because it has the power to erase memories, alluding to her own struggles with dealing with the grief of losing her mother. As for Kecleon, it's a Pokemon that can change its own type, alluding to how [[spoiler:fish_n_chips is really Margot's stalker Robert hiding his identity.]]

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: David's brother Peter, who's a weed-addict [[spoiler:and shares it with his niece Margot behind David's back, but only because Peter wanted to help Margot get over her mother's death and other personal problems. He also [[JerkassHasAPoint has a point]] when he said that David didn't really try to understand how Margot really feels, which is part of the reasons why David has such a hard time finding Margot in the first place. He's also seen participating in the search for Margot at the lake and doing his best to assist David in the investigation, so it shows that for all his other qualities, he really does care for Margot.]]

* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: David and Peter Kim are brothers who are starkly different from each other. David is responsible, hardworking, and stern, while Peter has a carefree attitude and in his introduction scene is shown to be a weed-junkie and David has to reprimand him. [[spoiler:Then it's zigzagged halfway through the movie. While David is the more responsible one, he fails to notice his own daughter's changes after Pamela's death and neglects to take care of her, while Peter is the one who's doing his best to help Margot get over the pain of losing her mother by inviting her to try smoking weed. Even if it's not exactly the best solution, he's still doing his best to help her, and he calls out David for doing nothing when the truth is out.]]

A sequel, called ''Film/Missing2023'', will be released in January 2023. Chaganty, who will return as a producer on the film, has disclosed it will [[ThematicSeries not feature the characters or story of the first film, but share the same style]].

A sequel, called Film/Missing2023, will be released in January 2023. Chaganty, who will return as a producer on the film, has disclosed it will [[ThematicSeries not feature the characters or story of the first film, but share the same style]].

** David and Peter's [=FaceTime=] call is interrupted by a doorbell, followed by Peter quickly and awkwardly hanging up. [[spoiler:This scene has more significance later on when David finds texts messages between Margot and Peter, leading the audience to think Peter had something to do with Margot's disappearance. It turns out that Peter was a RedHerring, and that the interruption was most likely Margot coming over to get high with him.]]