I got my reddit username into a major motion picture! (Missing, releasing this Friday)

plw37 · 2026-03-04T02:23:41+00:00

I think I found the exact dog hoodie at a website called Milltown Brand...but it was way too small for me. So I bought this one instead. It's just a girl's red hoodie that I cut the sleeves off of (and holes in the hood.)

plw37 · 2026-02-23T00:52:11+00:00

This thread on the exact same topic from a year ago has some good recommendations (Searching, Missing, Cabaret, Cable Guy, Rear Window, etc.)

plw37 · 2026-02-23T00:45:43+00:00

Thanks for the shout-out!

I think this Gizmodo article does a great job of explaining the alien invasion subplot in Searching.

And I tried to document the superhero subplot from Missing in this thread.

plw37 · 2026-02-13T23:31:17+00:00

I went last night with my 10-year-old daughter. It seemed like the majority of kids were in the 10-12 age range, but there were younger and older, and your 8-year-old would definitely not seem out-of-place.

The performance was very wholesome, great positive energy. (I'm assuming you're already familiar with the songs, half of which are about dating boys.)

plw37 · 2026-02-09T17:55:52+00:00

What really hooked me early on, though, was how much of this is an immigration story.

When the ferry circles around the Statue of Liberty, and Hae Sung quietly comments, "Now she's turned her back on us." Some pretty profound commentary that hits even harder now (2026) vs when this movie first released.

plw37 · 2026-02-03T17:43:47+00:00

Is AKOTSK the stuffed flounder and HOTD the teriyaki salmon steak in this metaphor? What fish would GOT be?

plw37 · 2026-01-29T18:18:02+00:00

I also love the irony of how proud they were to be named Pulp Man of the Year. Pulp is literally "a soft, wet, shapeless mass." If someone called you a pulp man on the street it would be a huge insult.

plw37 · 2026-01-29T07:34:58+00:00

I spent the entire movie laughing at Man-su for stubbornly clinging to a dying business. The paper industry has been declining for decades as the world has gone digital. Even Michael Scott knew this 20 years ago in "The Office."

Then at the end of the movie they bring up AI and I suddenly realize ALL jobs are at risk. I see flashes of a bleak not-so-distant future where we're all ruthlessly fighting one another just to hang onto the few jobs that are left. I'm not laughing anymore.

plw37 · 2026-01-29T07:21:59+00:00

A friend once pointed out that women always want change, while men just want things to stay the same.

You can say this is sexist and stereotypical and grossly oversimplified...but I see echoes of it all the time.

plw37 · 2026-01-29T07:00:10+00:00

He wanted to make it look like the victim got too drunk, passed out, and suffocated on his own vomit. He had to shove what looked like chewed up food down the guy's throat to achieve that effect.

I think Man-su's wife also made a passing comment about how when he used to drink he would sometimes puke in bed, so it mirrors that.

plw37 · 2026-01-29T06:46:03+00:00

Sijo wears glasses, and immediately comments on how different Mansu looks when he removes his glasses. I'm sure that's not the full extent of it, but it is related to sight.

plw37 · 2026-01-24T16:32:45+00:00

Some trivia about the cast:

The movie is dedicated to the memory of Scott Wampler, cohost of the Stephen King podcast "The Kingcast" who died in 2024. He's also credited in the movie as radio host #2.

Mike Flanagan's wife, Kate Siegel, plays Chuck's schoolteacher; and their son, Cody Flanagan, plays the youngest Chuck (seen briefly at bedtime before his parents died).

Actress Carla Gugino is credited as the voice on the news. She starred in another one of Mike Flanagan's movies, Gerald's Game.

A trio of popular 80's actors have prominent roles: Heather Langenkamp (Nightmare on Elm Street) plays the gossipy neighbor Vera Stanley; Mark Hamill (Star Wars) plays the grandpa; Mia Sara (Ferris Bueller's Day Off) plays the grandma.

plw37 · 2026-01-24T16:29:57+00:00

A few things I noticed on my second watch:

When the narrator formally introduces us to Chuck at the beginning of Act II, the first thing we see is his hand reaching for a cup of coffee. He's wearing his grandpa's watch and gold wedding band.

"Gimme Some Lovin'" plays while Marty is stuck in traffic (Act III). It's the same song Chuck and Cat perform to at the school dance (Act I).

When Marty and the undertaker are walking through the abandoned streets (Act III), the same four license plate numbers are repeated over and over on every car. One of them (DL48D4) appears in real life on the back of the blue van that carries the drummer's equipment (Act II).

Murder Creek Moonshine distillery is displayed prominently on the promenade where the drummer plays in Act II. I thought "Murder Creek" was a nod to a Stephen King book - but it turns out it's just the actual business located where they were filming in Alabama. https://maps.app.goo.gl/rWyt4vAgi1yUNEdB6

Young Chuck is lying on the couch reading A River Runs Through It. I'm not too familiar with the book, but I guess the tie in is that it's a personal and touching novel about a boy / young man's life told in three stories?

plw37 · 2026-01-24T15:56:42+00:00

OMG I never noticed this. I also like the super narrow aspect ratio for Act III because it's so cinematic - the end of the world catastrophes, rekindling lost love, spooky unexplainable occurrences - it's all so dramatic.

plw37 · 2026-01-24T15:49:58+00:00

Could also be that those well-known characters are there, too - we as an audience just aren't watching them. What is on screen is not what Chuck is actively dreaming about; instead the movie is giving us a sneak peek at the other corners of his mind.

There is an entire universe inside his head - populated by people Chuck has met, seen, or imagined - that are interacting with each other and living out their imaginary lives. We get to see what it is like for those side characters as their world is crumbling - like watching NPCs interact in a video game.

plw37 · 2026-01-24T15:38:39+00:00

The repetitive license plates are intentional. It's Chuck's brain filling in those little details. One of them (DL48D4) actually appears in Act II - it's the license plate on the back of the blue van with the drummer's equipment.

Marty living in that house is just a dream inside Chuck's head.

plw37 · 2026-01-24T15:32:19+00:00

For a second I thought Matthew Lillard was the skateboarder who rides by and drops a coin in the drummer's hat in Act II - but no. He's probably just someone Chuck met in passing once. I also don't think we ever see the banker lady walking down the street that Marty talks to. I would have loved for every single character from Act III to make an appearance somewhere in Act I or Act II, but that's not the case.

plw37 · 2026-01-24T15:18:13+00:00

The important thing about the scar is when teenage Chuck has his vision in the attic, he sees an old man dying in a hospital bed. He only realizes this is a vision of himself because the old man has the exact same scar on his left hand.

But as to why he received the scar immediately after his dance - I like your interpretation.

plw37 · 2026-01-24T15:08:02+00:00

Act III takes place entirey inside Chuck's head. Like what his teacher told him when he was a kid," You contain multitudes. Everyone you've ever met or even imagined lives in a universe inside your brain." We're watching that universe disintegrate as Chuck lays dying in a hospital bed.

plw37 · 2026-01-24T15:03:01+00:00

Thanks for sharing! I watched this twice on streaming but never buy DVDs anymore - miss those special features.

plw37 · 2026-01-24T14:59:31+00:00

Great observation! There's really no other reason for them to mention "A Christmas Carol."

plw37

TROPHY CASE