El secreto de sus
ojos
English title: The Secret in Their Eyes
Genre: psychological
drama
Director: Juan José Campanella
Release: 2009
Studio: Tornasol Films, Haddock Films, 100
Bares et al.
Rating: 18A
MBiS score: 8.8/10
The Case and the
Woman He Couldn’t Forget
Having recently retired from his job as a
courthouse clerk, Benjamin Esposito (Ricardo Darín) begins writing a novel about
an unsolved rape and murder case he worked on 25 years before. Such a task won’t
be easy for him since it rekindles painful memories about the case and his
pent-up passion for a former boss, the competent and beautiful Irene Menéndez
Hastings (Soledad Villamil). With Carla Quevedo (Liliana Coloto, the murder
victim), Guillermo Francella (Pablo Sandoval, Benjamin’s co-worker and friend),
Mariano Argento (Romano), Pablo Rago (Ricardo Morales, Liliana’s husband), Javier
Godino (Isidoro Gὁmez) and José Luis Gioia (Inspector Báez).
Once in a while, you catch a movie so
striking, so brilliant and so different in some respect that it hits you like a
ton of bricks. From the outset, I had very modest expectations about El secreto de sus ojos but this
Argentinian sleeper won me over in a matter of minutes. On an emotional level, you
might say it packs the same kind of punch as Z, that great political thriller I
reviewed some time ago. Juan José Campanella’s film has everything one can hope
for: charismatic leads you'll root for, a robust and captivating screenplay
that doesn’t lose you despite frequent flashbacks, masterful direction and acting,
attractive visuals, a healthy dose of humour and romance, a simple yet elegant
score and also a powerful payoff. At some point, it even waxes philosophical with
its thoughtful reflections on days gone by, opportunities lost and aching regrets.
This tough, mature and mesmerizing Oscar
winner deserves one of my higher marks… and so be it. As Ricardo Morales would
say, ‟Memories are all we end up with. At least pick the nice ones.”
MBiS
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