The 1988 Dutch Movie Stanley Kubrick Called 'The Most Terrifying Film He Had Ever Seen'
Stanley Kubrick is no stranger to fear.
The American director is widely considered to be one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, with works across the entire spectrum of genre. He has stepped into comedy with Dr. Strangelove, Sci-fi with 2001: A Space Odyssey, War films with my personal favorite of his Full Metal Jacket, and horror, with arguably his most popular film, The Shining.
The Shining remains a cornerstone of the horror genre, capturing a sense of existential dread that still terrifies me on rewatch after rewatch. The lines between fiction and reality bleed seamlessly together like watercolor as the film goes on, creating an oppressive, mind bending experience that hits just as hard more than 40 years later.
I would consider Kubrick an authority on terror, which is what drew me to Spoorloos, or its English title, The Vanishing. It was a film I had never heard of before, but was incredibly intrigued by. For starters, the poster was incredibly haunting. I was immediately interested, and Kubrick's relationship to the film had me even more invested.
The way the story goes, the director of the film George Sluizer received a phone call from Kubrick. Kubrick at that point had watched the film 10 times, and he called Sluizer to tell him that it was "most terrifying film he had ever seen." He had great things to say about the structure and ending of the film, and went as far as to offer lead actress Johanna Ter Steege a role in his unmade film Aryan Papers.
Sluizer was flattered, and was quoted with saying to Kubrick "Well, you directed the The Shining, haven't you seen that?" Kubrick's response was "Yeah, but that was child's play compared to this!"
So what is 'The Vanishing (1988)?'
I'm going to keep my statements brief as this is a film best experienced blind, but here is the basic idea:
A man and his girlfriend are vacationing in the French countryside when they stop at a gas station. While the man is waiting outside, his girlfriend vanishes without a trace. That's all I will really say about the plot.
The film was made with a very small budget, sitting somewhere around 165,000 USD, which is about 489,000 in today's money. The shoot was fairly smooth, save for some clashes between actors and crew members. For such a small, simple production, Sluizer really manages to craft something terrifying that will sit with you long after you watch it for the first time.
The film has had critical acclaim for years, being touted by many other famous figures as an amazing work. Sluizer also directed a 1993 English language version of the film starring Kiefer Sutherland and Jeff Bridges, which was not received as well as the original.
I personally believe there was no exaggeration from Kubrick. This is a phenomenal film that taps into some of the most primal fears and emotions people can experience, and I highly recommend it to anybody reading.
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This story was originally published May 4, 2026 at 5:05 PM.