Searching
Screen Gems | Release Date: August 24, 2018 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
71
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 34 Critic Reviews
Positive:
29
Mixed:
4
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Original-CinKim HughesAug 2, 2018
For a film where every single scene is rigidly contained within a screen — framed by an iPhone FaceTime chat, a laptop exchange, TV image, home movie or security camera surveillance — Searching has a surprising sense of momentum. Read full review
90
IGNBrian GallagherAug 23, 2018
Searching isn't just a gimmick movie. It delivers the goods. Read full review
90
VarietyPeter Debruge
Cutting to the emotional core of what social media says about us, the result is as much a time capsule of our relationship to (and reliance upon) modern technology as it is a cutting-edge digital thriller. Read full review
86
The VergeBryan Bishop
Search is shockingly effective, not just in creating a sense of constant, palpable tension, but also in the way it pulls off authentic, effective emotional beats. Read full review
85
TheWrapCarlos AguilarAug 23, 2018
Chaganty and co-writer Sev Ohanian refrained from facilitating a cautionary tale centered on the unspeakable dangers that lie ahead with every click. Their approach concentrates on experiences that are collectively understood in relation to modern artifacts and how they transform our codes of conduct. Read full review
83
IndieWireKate Erbland
Despite the specificity of its story and the manner in which its told, the issues at hand remain universal, including David’s struggle to connect with his child and the way paranoia can make even the best friends into the worst enemies. Read full review
83
The PlaylistJordan Ruimy
Chaganty and co-writer Sev Ohanian deliver wonders on both the technical and narrative ends of Search, but editors Will Merrick and Nick Johnson do an astounding job as well. Read full review
80
EmpireOlly RichardsSep 3, 2018
The smart visual trickery lifts what might otherwise have been a fairly conventional thriller, but it also lets Chaganty say some interesting things about our online lives. Technophobes should stay away. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicRandy CordovaAug 27, 2018
Searching is a thriller with a gimmick. The entire story takes place on screens — we see the action play out on devices like laptops and phones. But the movie never feels gimmicky, which is perhaps the neatest feat achieved by first-time director Aneesh Chaganty. Read full review
80
Film ThreatBrian ThompsonAug 23, 2018
Thematically relevant and persistently moving the form forward, Searching is an emotional roller coaster, taking a familiar premise and invigorating it along with biting commentary on viral video culture. Read full review
80
Time OutPhil de SemlyenAug 22, 2018
See it, then go home and wipe your hard drive. Read full review
80
Rolling StonePeter TraversAug 22, 2018
Searching is a technical marvel with a beating heart at its core, which makes all the difference. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterTodd McCarthy
Impressively, first-time filmmaker and former Google commercials creator Aneesh Chaganty has also made a real movie, the story of a family that morphs into a crime drama that gradually ratchets up the tension as all good thrillers must, one that’s well constructed and acted as well as novel in its storytelling techniques. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovAug 29, 2018
Surprisingly effective for what could easily be labeled a “gimmick film,” Chaganty’s debut feature suspenser unfolds entirely onscreen on screens. Read full review
75
UproxxVince ManciniSep 8, 2018
Searching has a big performance and a big gimmick, and it’s hard to say which is the bigger discovery. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliSep 3, 2018
A taut, effectively paced mystery-thriller with a powerful emotional component Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Brad WheelerAug 30, 2018
A clever twist-and-turn thriller. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comChristy LemireAug 24, 2018
It aims for and earns genuine emotion rather than cheap thrills. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubJesse HassengerAug 20, 2018
As a thriller, Searching is both ruthlessly absorbing in the moment and relatively disposable as soon as it ends, sliding itself gracefully into the desktop recycling bin. Read full review
75
The Film StageDan Mecca
As the style begins to wear out its welcome, the promise of a resolution and nifty twist keep things nimble. Like a well-crafted paperback, Search never commits the cardinal sin of being boring. Read full review
70
The AtlanticDavid SimsAug 24, 2018
Searching is a clever update on a housebound Hitchcock thriller like Rear Window, one that can make a series of Google searches play out like a high-wire action scene. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangAug 23, 2018
Searching is nothing if not ambitious, and its rapidly accelerating second half is jammed with bold twists, red herrings and breathless confrontations. It’s also here that the movie begins to slacken its grip — partly because some of the twists beggar belief, and partly because they strain the limits of the online-all-the-time interface. Read full review
70
ScreenCrushE. Oliver WhitneyAug 23, 2018
Though Searching is a fun ride, I left disappointed over how little the film uses its digital schtick to unpack the psychology behind our modern screen addiction. Read full review
70
SlateInkoo KangAug 23, 2018
If Searching prefers to focus on plot mechanics over emotion, it at least makes up for it with minor but significant developments in Asian American representation. Given the predominance of the cultural and generational gap between parents and children in Asian American narratives, from "The Joy Luck Club" to "Master of None," it’s refreshing to see an example of assimilated families, whose numbers will only continue to increase. Read full review
70
The New York TimesAisha HarrisAug 23, 2018
The combination of clever concept reflecting the prevalence of screens in everyday life, and the pleasure of watching a typically underused Mr. Cho take on a meaty lead role make Searching a satisfying psychological thriller. Read full review
70
Screen DailyTim Grierson
The movie’s arresting visual conceit has enough flexibility to sustain interest, even if the story’s twists and turns sometimes feel excessively fiendish. Read full review
63
Movie NationRoger MooreAug 30, 2018
The end is too much like a “You may have already won” come-on, a poker game where the other player is using a 56 card deck, when you’re still counting on 52...A cheat, in other words. Read full review
63
Washington PostMark JenkinsAug 28, 2018
Like most mysteries, this one relies heavily on coincidental discoveries, even if they arrive via Gmail or FaceTime, rather than more traditional means. But the plot’s contrivances are less problematic than the movie’s insistence on maintaining its artifice even after it becomes a hindrance. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineDerek SmithJul 30, 2018
As nimble as Aneesh Chaganty is in presenting his main character's multi-faceted interaction with technology in the first hour, the film suddenly morphs into a generic and manipulative missing-person thriller. Read full review
60
The GuardianMike McCahillAug 30, 2018
Chaganty’s tab-toggling is pacy enough, but he gets pedantic about tying up unfinished digital business, and Unfriended’s pulse-raising wildness is beyond him. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleSteven WinnAug 23, 2018
The movie might work better if the psychological puzzle tucked inside it were more engaging or surprising. But as the pieces fall into place, in a clunky resolution, the story turns as flat as the screens that contain it. Read full review
40
The Observer (UK)Simran HansSep 2, 2018
The film doesn’t understand what mode it wants to operate in; serious thriller with emotional stakes or contrived, cynical satire (a set piece around a Twitter hashtag seems to suggest the latter). Read full review
40
Village VoiceApril WolfeAug 21, 2018
Though the script by Chaganty and Sev Ohanian is taut and surprising, I’ve felt more absorbed in an episode of Murder, She Wrote than I did in this film, because, there, it’s story and performance that we’re invited to savor, not just tech and technique. Read full review
35
Film Journal InternationalDaniel EaganAug 1, 2018
Searching is so smart about how we interact with computers that it's surprising how lame it is about moviemaking basics like characters and plot. Read full review
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