The Missing 2003

How far would you go to save someone you love? 

Story Director Ron Howard turns to the Western genre in this tale of a father and daughter who are brought together under difficult circumstances. Samuel Jones (Tommy Lee Jones) is a man living in New Mexico in the 1880s. He had abandoned his family years before to live and travel with a band of Apaches, but his conscience has finally gotten the better of him and he's decided to return home. Jones, however, does not receive a warm welcome upon arrival -- his wife has died and his daughter Maggie Gilkeson (Cate Blanchett), now grown and raising two children with her husband Brake (Aaron Eckhart), has no desire to see the man who left her mother to fend for herself. As Jones prepares to depart on a note of bitterness, a band of ruthless bandits, let by Army deserter Chidin (Eric Schweig), descends upon the homestead, murdering Brake and kidnapping his 15-year-old daughter Lily (Evan Rachel Wood). Maggie realizes  her father is her best hope to track down the criminals who took her child, and Jones and Maggie team up to find the bandits before they can disappear into Mexico.

Cast Clate Blanchett, Tommy Lee Jones, Evan Rachel Wood, Jenna Boyd, Aaron Edkhart and a cameo by Val Kilmer. 

Our Two Cents A very suspenseful and gripping story. Blanchett is an incredible actress.

FYI Kilmer, who lives nearby on his Pecos River Ranch, agreed to a cameo in this film, secondary to his work with New Mexico's Film Investment Program.

Kilmer and Jones also appeared together in Batman Forever. Howard also directed Kilmer in Willow.