The Secret in their Eyes / El secreto de sus ojos

Well deserved 2010 Academy Award winner for best foreign language film, Juan José Campanella’s The Secret in their Eyes opens with retired criminal investigator Benjamin Espósito (Ricardo Darin) finishing a novel based on a case he worked on some 25 years earlier, in the 1970s. The unresolved brutal murder and rape of young woman became the turning point in his life.  Through a series of flashbacks the who-done-it is laid out with pinpoint accuracy, even if there are some plot devices that beg for some serious suspension of disbelief. But Campanella pulls it off, largely with an exceptional cast of Argentine regulars. Comic star Guillermo Francella as Pablo, Benjamin’s best friend and co-worker, pulls off one of the best performances of the year with his drunken inspirations, comic moments and ultimately heart-rending performance.  As every very good mystery deserved a story of unrequited love and The Secret in their Eyes delivers in spades with Benjamin’s 30-year crush on his beautiful boss, Irene (Soledad Villamil).  And a simultaneously creepy and moving wraps the whole thing up brilliantly.

Published in EL Magazine, August 2010