Truly brooding

Rating: 9/10 (6 August 2010)

The splendid Ricardo Darin, star of the late great Fabien Bielinski's two movies, is back on fine form in this film. Superficially it's more conventional than Bielinski's films, being a straightforward story of a veteran (ex-) policeman who can't let his most interesting unsolved case lie. For sure, the plot is tricksy and there's evidence of corruption in high places; but this is all run-of-the-mill for this genre. What's unusual about this film is it's focus on character: the brooding hero is another stereotype, but Darin's character's relationship to his case is complex; the supporting cast are also great, and the sense of a life wasted, in part, because the hero's boldness in his job is not matched by a similar confidence in matters of the heart is well conveyed. The film is also superbly shot, there's a sequence filmed in a football stadium where the use of the camera to exploit the venue is frankly brilliant. Overall, I think that Bielinski's films with Darin were even better, but they also set a high bar; but 'The Secret in Their Eyes' certainly confirms his uncanny ability to shamble onto the screen and steal it completely.