Missing Link grabbed the world’s interest when it won the award for Best Animated Feature at the 77th Annual Golden Globes, beating out three Disney films and a DreamWorks movie. For those who hadn’t seen it, the win came as a total surprise; Frozen 2 and Toy Story 4 fans were shocked that the prize wasn‘t theirs.
Now that more eyes are on the LAIKA studio film, perhaps it is appropriate to pinpoint ways in which the movie both met and subverted expectations. Here are five ways Missing Link adheres to standard Bigfoot tropes (and 5 where the old playbook was tossed out).
Followed: Bigfoot Smells and Makes Unearthly Noises
In many interpretations of the mythical man-monkey beast, Bigfoot is described as having a rather pungent aroma, an expected byproduct from living out in the backwoods of America for so long.
Indeed, about 5 minutes into his initial encounter with the titular Missing Link, Sir Lionel Frost (played expertly by The Wolverine star Hugh Jackman), asks the creature if he may smell him. Later on in the movie, Mr. Link (who prefers to go by the name Susan) unleashes more of his primal side by unleashing a very feral, primitive growl that intimidates both man and beast during a fight scene.
Subverted: Bigfoot Speaks!
In a lot of TV and movie properties, Bigfoot is coded as being a strong but silent type. It is expected that he may grunt or make showy gestures, but Bigfoot doesn’t talk, let alone carry out simple conversations. Missing Link eschews tradition and has the eponymous character speak.
In fact, once he starts, he barely stops, and Link/Susan (voiced by Zach Galifianakis) is responsible for most of the witty banter and quirky retorts that are uttered, including puns and turns of phrase (a staple of most LAIKA projects).
Followed: The Footprint/Dubious Circumstantial Evidence
Before Sir Lionel Frost sets out on foot for his prize, he literally brings a foot – or rather, a cast model of a footprint – to the adventurer’s club he wishes to join to prove that Bigfoot is real. Such is usually the case with movies where only flimsy evidence is used to convince a skeptical crowd of something fantastical.
Sometimes it can be a blurry photograph or shaky video footage. In other instances, indisputable evidence is obtained, only for it to be lost or destroyed when offered up as proof. (For example, at the beginning of the movie Frost obtains a clear shot of the Loch Ness monster, only for the camera to be destroyed.)
Subverted: Intelligence
The interesting thing about this trope is that it can usually go both ways: sometimes the found Bigfoot is of exceptional intelligence, not unlike the aptly-named Beast from X-Men. For the most part, however, Bigfoot usually possesses the intelligence of a scarcely self-aware animal; it acts like a 3-year-old or a big, lumbering dog.
Missing Link toes the line and subverts expectations by giving Link/Susan an average level of intelligence; he can read, write and speak as good as any man, yet he doesn’t possess scholar-level knowledge. In fact, most sarcasm and figures of speech go entirely over his head. By making him average, the movie essentially grounds him and makes Link/Susan a relatable character, even as a giant ape-man.
Followed: Bigfoot Exists in the Same universe as Yetis, Lake Monsters, and Mermaids
A common theme in these mythical creature movies is that if one creature actually exists beyond legend, then it stands to reason that all the mythical creatures exist in the world constructed for the viewer.
As such, Frost has irrefutable evidence of not just Link/Susan, but of the Loch Ness Monster and mermaids, not to mention coming face to face with Yetis and their fabled land of Shangri-La. In fact, the end of the movie sets up a sequel where Link and Frost allegedly team up to uncover the truth about the lost city of Atlantis. Unfortunately, after bombing at the box office, it appears this mystery will remain unsolved.
Subverted: Mannerisms
Again, in keeping in line with its beastly appearance, the Bigfoot in TV and movies seem incapable of resisting the urge to resort back to more animalistic behavior.
In a more predictable film, Link/Susan would have likely eaten a live creature, beat its chest and go into an uncontrollable fit of rage, or some other quirk that would have been explained away by his incomplete evolution. Not so is the case with Missing Link: the monster is sensitive, polite, and doesn’t resort to random bouts of violence in order to advance the plot.
Followed: Superhuman Strength
Since the creature resembles more ape than man, and primates tends to have more physical strength than their evolved counterpart, Bigfoot is generally written to be quite strong in movies and in TV. Such is the case in Missing Link; a simple punch by Link/Susan could knock an enemy out, destroy a window, or even obliterate a wall.
On many occasions in the film, Link/Susan utilized his strength in order to help out Sir Lionel Frost and Adelina Fortnight, his friends and traveling companions who accompany him through most of the movie.
Subverted: Clothes out of necessity
Many times in a Bigfoot or found mythical creature movie, the being in question may be forced to affect visual touches of humanity to conceal its identity and fit in better with the crowd (especially if they are being pursued by some big bad).
In other cases – usually, when Bigfoot possesses the aforementioned high-level intelligence – clothing is chosen as a bid to look more human. In Missing Link, clothes play a more functional role, as Link/Susan only wears articles of clothing out of necessity; in fact, he can’t and doesn’t even wear any shoes (though he does attempt to wear a sock).
Followed: Skepticism
Skepticism is the name of the game with the Bigfoot trope. The general public scoffs at the existence of a mythical creature, and flat out refuses to believe unless they can see the beast with their very own eyes. The central plot of Missing Link is centered on skepticism.
Frost wishes to gain admittance into a club containing pompous, old-stock adventurers, but they refuse his admittance on the grounds they doubt the validity of his exploits. Evidence is the only thing that will change their minds, so Frost embarks on an international quest to prove them all wrong.
Subverted: Wanting to Capture Bigfoot
In most movies of this nature, Bigfoot is a desired prize by the main antagonist. If captured, the antagonist hopes to use the creature for its fur, mount it on their wall, or take it in for extensive, invasive experimentation. What makes Missing Link unique is the inherent lack of interest in Link/Susan, even when he’s discovered to be Bigfoot.
In fact, the movie seems more involved in the arc of Sir Lionel Frost than of Link/Susan. Even the head villain, when the truth is staring him in the face, does not want to possess Link, but merely scrub him of existence so that his narrow-minded world view is no longer challenged.
