Searching (2018)

David Kim's (John Cho's) daughter is missing. He feels bad, as he didn't realize this for some time. But he's had a lot on his mind, his demanding job, the loss of his wife about two years previous.
Enter Rosemary Vick (Debra Messing), the tireless detective who tries to figure out what happened. And the theories are endless, especially since Margot (Michelle La) stopped taking her piano lessons and wired money to herself (or did she?). First, she ran away but then her car was lifted from a lake without her body but trace amounts of blood it so then it was a kidnapping before a confession from an ex-con before his suicide.
But this isn't sitting right with David. After all, her body hasn't been recovered and we all know that no one's fully dead until there is a body. He first uncovers that the picture of Margot's online friend is merely a stock photo used over and over again. He calls Rosemary to tell her of his development but she isn't available and the operator tells him that she volunteered for this case which leads him back to her past and that she knew the ex-con, now deceased.
Yeah, crazy twist. There are two types of parents, the enablers and the fighters. David is a fighter, convinced that his daughter is still alive despite the odds not being in her favor and Rosemary who lets her son, Robert (Steven Michael Eich) hoodwink his neighbors into donating money to a fake charity and when he gets into a physical altercation, she helps him cover up the crime and even takes a plea deal that will prevent him from any major jail time, instead of getting him the help he really needs.
Fortunately, this film has a relatively happy ending. Margot is miraculously found alive, injured and weak but a storm had come through which meant that she survived the fall and David was given a second chance to mend his relationship with Margot, which he does.
What makes the film especially unique is that it is done entirely online with various youtube videos, text messages, facetime, security cameras and news clippings so it is bizarre and annoying at times, but the plot was so compelling, I was engaged the whole time. The performances are also realistic and the actors make each character fully fleshed out despite never having control over the whole screen. John Cho is one of the most underappreciated actors in Hollywood (I will never forgive ABC for cancelling Selfie) and he makes the most of this role. Messing is great support and managed to fool us all, though I was slightly taken aback when she let her son steal from his neighbors. But most of all, I'm grateful that this film had a happy ending, those are the best kind. Grade: B+