"The eyes...speak..."

Rating: Null/10 (9 October 2010)

Benjamin Esposito (Ricardo Darín), a retired detective in Buenos Aires, is haunted by a shocking rape/murder case he worked on twenty-five years ago. He decides to write a novel about it and returns to his old office to enlist the help of his former partner, a perpetually drunk but true-blue friend (Guillermo Francella), and his boss (Irene Menéndez Hastings), a beautiful woman he has secretly loved all this time.
This outstanding film won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. The script is extremely clever, mixing equally-compelling stories of crime and love. There are frequent flashbacks so we feel we really become involved in the case and know and care about the three main characters. The grizzly crime is thankfully seen only for a few fleeting moments but its horror keeps the story exciting and moving at a fast pace. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.
The actors are all outstanding, so good I never felt they were acting. The entire film is riveting, the dialogue is realistic, and there is a great "what would you do?" ending. Heartily recommended for those who enjoy crime stories with twists and turns with occasional comic bits plus a bittersweet, unrequited love story.