The visual nature of this movie, while very well-made from a technical standpoint, only serves as a diversion for the paper-thin plot, major inconsistencies and a huge requirement for suspension of disbelief. It had me yelling "what?!" and "that's not how it works AT ALL" throughout most of the second half of the film. Also, the "twist" isn't a twist. There are literally no possible avenue by which the audience could put the clues together to reach this conclusion, so it's just lazy writing. Some highlights of inexcusable plot contrivances, mistakes, plot holes and the like:
-any suspense is undercut by solving each mystery within five minutes of introducing it. Weird thing with David's brother? explained within 5 minutes. Piano money? Explained within 5 minutes. The slightest feeling that David might have something to do with it? Explained within 5 minutes. et cetera.
-David breaks a guy's jaw, unprovoked. Why is he not in jail for assault?
-The plot keeps alluding to David being a bit violent and explosive. Why is nothing done with this?
-A decorated police detective secretly has an autistic/psychopathic/? kid (this is never explained) and is totally okay with literally murdering reformed ex-convicts and leaving innocent girls to die in a ditch. Right.
-The "ravine" area in which they "couldn't search because it's not easily accessible" is later shown to have A LITERAL ROAD LEADING TO IT.
In short, I hate this movie. Because if you strip away the thin veneer of the "everything's on a screen!" gimmick, it's basically Gone Girl written by a five-year-old. Blech.
-any suspense is undercut by solving each mystery within five minutes of introducing it. Weird thing with David's brother? explained within 5 minutes. Piano money? Explained within 5 minutes. The slightest feeling that David might have something to do with it? Explained within 5 minutes. et cetera.
-David breaks a guy's jaw, unprovoked. Why is he not in jail for assault?
-The plot keeps alluding to David being a bit violent and explosive. Why is nothing done with this?
-A decorated police detective secretly has an autistic/psychopathic/? kid (this is never explained) and is totally okay with literally murdering reformed ex-convicts and leaving innocent girls to die in a ditch. Right.
-The "ravine" area in which they "couldn't search because it's not easily accessible" is later shown to have A LITERAL ROAD LEADING TO IT.
In short, I hate this movie. Because if you strip away the thin veneer of the "everything's on a screen!" gimmick, it's basically Gone Girl written by a five-year-old. Blech.