The Secret In Their Eyes

8.7/10 Dropps

Genre: Romance, Art House & International, Mystery & Suspense, Drama
Rated: R
Running Time: 2 hr. 9 min.
In Theaters: Apr 16, 2010 Wide
Box Office:$6.4M
Directed By: Juan José Campanella
Written By: Juan José Campanella, Eduardo Sacheri

2010 is proving to be a year of fantastic foreign films; first with A Prophet (French:
Un Prophete) and now with THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES (Argentina: El secreto
de sus ojos). The film follows retired justice officer Benjamin Esposito (Ricardo
Darin) through the course of writing a novel based on a case that stuck with him
twenty-five years earlier. When having trouble beginning his story, he decides to
visit his old chief Irene Menendez- Hastings (Soledad Villamil), for advice. We come
to discover through flashbacks that in the 70’s Esposito was in love with Menendez
and this case was a big point in their professional lives. The Morales case found
Esposito investigating the rape and murder of Liliana Coloto, a beautiful woman
recently married with Ricardo Morales (Pablo Rago), a deeply loving a passionate
husband. After the case is solved and the murderer convicted, Esposito and Morales
continue with their lives, both dealing with an unobtainable love. Years later we
discover that the murderer has been freed under government contract, and we’re
brought back to the present to discover Esposito has no ending for his book. The
film follows Esposito through his journey to finish his story be rehashing old
memories and visiting the people of his past.

THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES plays heavy on two stories of love and passion; one
with the unfinished romantic endeavors of Esposito and Menendez, the other
with Morales and his dead wife Liliana. The film is entirely gripping and thought
provoking. Rarely does a film deal with the ideas of passion and love in an original,
sometimes disturbing way.

Written and directed by Juan José Campanella, a prominent TV director (30 rock,
House, Law and Order), this Argentinean film is a fantastic display of his future
potential in film. It completely engrosses the viewer in a way that keeps you
thinking about the power and capacity of love and passion, along with human
nature. Campanella did a fantastic job of creating memorable characters that stick
with you during the film; they appear to be living in the now, and not some made up
time line created on the screen.

Winner of the 2010 Academy Award for best Foreign Film, THE SECRET IN THEIR
EYES is a must see for film buffs.
-Hunter Freiburg