Stanley Kubrick dubbed horror 'the most terrifying film of all time' - here's where to stream it
The film affected Stanley Kubrick so deeply, that he immediately rang up the director afterwards to tell him it was the most terrifying film he had ever seen.
When The Shining director Stanley Kubrick describes a film as “the most terrifying movie he’s ever seen”, you know you’re going to be in for a wild ride.
1988 horror film The Vanishing, directed by George Sluizer, has become widely influential over the years.
Rather than dealing with the type of gore and gross-out scenes that you might expect from modern-day horror, The Vanishing is instead a devastating story of loss, trauma and existential dread.
It asks the question: if your loved one disappeared one day, how far would you go to find out what happened to them?
The psychological thriller, which received positive reviews when it was first released, is adapted from the 1984 novella The Golden Egg by Tim Krabbé.
It stars Gene Bervoets as a man who searches obsessively for his girlfriend following her disappearance at a rest stop.
What did Stanley Kubrick say about The Vanishing?
One of the things that makes The Vanishing so terrifying is its ending, which we will not reveal for the sake of spoilers.
The ending had such an impact on Kubrick, that he immediately got on the phone with Sluizer to tell him it was the most terrifying film he’d ever seen.
In an interview with the Criterion, Sluizer claimed the esteemed director, known for films like A Clockwork Orange and 2001: A Space Odyssey, was a huge fan of the movie and saw it about 10 times.
He also reportedly compared it to his own film The Shining, claiming The Vanishing was far more disturbing.
What is The Vanishing about and where can I stream it?
The Dutch film, originally titled Spoorloos, features a couple named Rex (Gene Bervoets) and Saskia (Johanna ter Steege) who are driving through France while on holiday.
When they run out of petrol, they stop off at a gas station to refuel, and Saskia runs inside to grab a drink.
However, she never returns, and her disappearance causes Rex to spiral into despair as he seeks to find out what really happened to her.
You can rent or purchase The Vanishing on Amazon Prime or on Apple TV.