The Details" in "Searching"

"Searching" is undoubtedly an exemplary piece of detective work in the form of a film. The director strategically lays out the truth in all the details from the beginning of the movie. Many may claim they've cleverly figured out the culprit early on. However, in the realm of detective works like this film, guessing the truth isn't the skill; especially when the movie involves only a few characters, using deductive reasoning based on duration could lead one to identify the culprit. The real intrigue lies in whether, when the writer and director present all the clues to you early on, you can piece them together like the protagonist, deducing the truth logically.

Upon finishing the movie, the revelation comes when all the devilish details presented in the movie find confirmation of the ending. This article will revisit these breadcrumbs by highlighting some key details.

Emotional Clues from Margot

Emotional Clues from Margot "Searching" is not just a detective movie; Margot's emotional clues play a crucial role in the film.

The first 5 minutes of the movie set the background for the Kim family. Starting from the initial Windows XP startup screen, creating Margot's personal user, showcasing the happy family photos and videos—all reveal the family's happiness. However, on December 6, 2015, Pamela Kim, Margot, and David's mother, passed away due to cancer, casting a shadow over their lives. In these brief 5 minutes, there are two crucial details hidden.

Firstly, Pokemon was introduced into Margot's life by her father, David:

David showing Pokemon to young Margot Pokemon remains a significant part of Margot's life, being one of her most important hobbies. On the one hand, the Pokemon keychain she carries becomes a crucial clue for David to find her. On the other hand, Pokemon is also the topic that fish_n_chips uses to strike up a conversation with her. Margot's favorite Pokemon hints at the unresolved emotional tension between her and her father.

Secondly, piano lessons are the most important emotional connection between Margot and her mother:

Margot's schedule

In the fleeting glimpses of her schedule, we see that all the piano learning times are marked as "Piano with Mom." It's evident that Margot had her mother's company during every piano lesson. The video of Margot playing a piece for her mother before her death also confirms the emotional bond.

This emotional setup becomes crucial when Margot quits piano lessons. As playing the piano was closely tied to her mother, attending these lessons caused significant psychological pressure. This is affirmed later in the film by Uncle Peter, and David is unaware of this.

Uncle Peter, who is both a suspect and a source of misdirection in the film, discloses a lot about Margot's emotional threads. In terms of details, in an early video scene, Peter's marijuana on the table and Fins' jersey in the profile picture need no elaboration; most viewers would notice these details. Another detail is Peter's hesitation in talking to David:

Peter about to say something interrupted Considering the subsequent plot, it can be inferred that due to the inability to communicate openly with her father, Margot regarded Uncle Peter as a confidant. Many things that she couldn't say to her father were likely revealed during moments of marijuana consumption with her uncle. Perhaps, due to their promise to keep each other's secrets, Peter only wanted to hint at David before being cut off.

So, what is the issue between Margot and David? The film shows through various details that after her mother's death, they couldn't bring themselves to talk about her. This became an unresolved emotional knot between father and daughter. In one video scene, on her mother's birthday, when David enters the room, intending to bring up the topic, he ends up avoiding it, shifting the focus.

David hesitating to bring up the topic

This detail continues throughout the film. In the first chat between father and daughter, David intended to send a message, "Mom would be too," but he deleted it. Finally, after everything, this sentence is uttered, and the knot between father and daughter is finally untied.

"Mom would be too" Four simple words that convey myriad emotions. By the end, a warm feeling emerges.

Clues to the Real Culprit The director also laid out clues to the real culprits, police detective Rosemary Vick and her son Robert, very early in the film.

Skipping the photo of Vick with the scapegoat, the critical clues are explained. Firstly, Vick's motive is clearly based on her excessive love for her son Robert and the subsequent cover-up. Early in the film, the director reveals this through the protagonist's point of view:

Vick's Facebook page On Vick's Facebook page banner, it reads, "A mother's love for her child is like nothing else in the world," with her profile picture being a snapshot with her son. It's evident that Vick has an overwhelming love for her son. More importantly, to hint to David that Margot might be a runaway, Vick shares a story about her son in relation to Margot. In this story, we see Vick, as a cop, engaging in actions that contradict justice and principles for her son. Initially, we, like David, might have taken it as a joke, but when the truth is revealed, we find that what Vick did for Margot mirrors her previous deceitful actions for her son.

Vick telling David she helped her son deceive a neighbor

When looking back at the movie, we discover more clues that pointed to Vick. After David reports Margot missing, Vick contacts David first. In their phone call, Vick is concerned that David might take unauthorized action and says, "We'll handle the ground investigation," expressing near-loss of control when David independently pursues a suspect. Initially, we, like David, thought she was angry because she, as a cop, was being reprimanded, but in hindsight, she was probably afraid David might uncover her son and take drastic measures.

When David starts organizing Margot's social relationships chart, Vick reminds David to share the chart with her.

Share that with me too.

The choice of "SHARE" instead of "SEND" and the lingering focus on the word "SHARE" for a few seconds is significant. Vick needs real-time updates on David's progress. Because Vick is well aware that her son is in Margot's Facebook contacts, whether sharing the chart helps Vick conceal her son's clues, we don't know, but at least, in the chart, we don't find Robert.

In fact, Robert is introduced to the audience very early on. When David opens the contacts of the past two years on Windows XP to find past contacts, we see a name in the high school list.

The director confirms that this is Vick's son Robert. This boy, who once liked Margot, may have been silently in love with her, leading to the events that unfold later. This might be a directorial trick, but there's another trick that, if the audience could recognize early on, could have led to an earlier discovery of the real culprit.

When David discovers Margot's destination early in the morning and fails to contact Vick immediately, during FaceTime at 4:22, Vick lets slip a crucial detail:

Are you at the lake? Recalling David's voicemail to Vick, mentioning that "she was driving to the spot she's been visiting for the past five months," not mentioning any lake, and the FaceTime scene pointing to the sky, making it impossible to see a lake surface. Therefore, the only person who could have realized that "the lake" might be the actual killer is the real culprit.

In his rage, David doesn't pay attention to this flaw, and the director guides the audience through navigation, imprinting the concept of a lake into their minds in advance, allowing this flaw to slip through. Perhaps, this is the charm of detective reasoning.

Interestingly, reviewing this scene, Vick's performance is evidently more panicked and nervous than anxious. Even Robert peeking behind the door, appearing guilty, is easily overlooked.

Other Detailed Explanations Apart from emotional and investigative clues, what's more important is that the film has almost no useless shots. Many seemingly insignificant details actually play a crucial role in the entire story.

Everyone will likely remember a news report video scene in the middle of the movie.

Storm hampers search efforts The first time we see this, we think it's merely explaining the difficulties of the search operation. Unexpectedly, this storm turns out to be the life-saving rain for Margot. This storm allows Margot in the wilderness to replenish water and endure until rescue arrives.

In the early part of the movie, David casually browses a news footage, and we also see another crucial detail:

Hiker rescued after 9 days

Perhaps, it was this news that gave David the psychological confidence, and by appearing early in the film, it hinted that the movie would end with Margot's comedic rescue.

Additionally, by searching Margot's social media, we gradually glimpse into Margot's inner world after losing her mother. Her loneliness and the isolation around her force the girl to face everything on her own. On her first day on Tumblr, Margot posted her first status:

Decisions...

The date is December 30, 2016, almost half a year before the incident. According to the piano teacher, Margot hadn't attended piano lessons for six months. Considering the photo, it's likely that at that time, Margot made the painful decision to give up the piano, along with her obsession with her mother. Unfortunately, it wasn't easy. In the end, Margot picks up the piano again, applies for a piano major, and breaks down the barriers with her father, truly letting go of her obsession with her mother.

Margot's computer wallpaper was always a snapshot with her mother, but after everything, she replaces it with the latest snapshot with her father.