Involving and intriguing crime mystery!

Rating: 8/10 (9 January 2011)

'THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES': Four Stars (Out of Five)
Another film that's made a lot of year end critic's top ten lists and was last year's Academy Awards winner for Best Foreign Language Film. This film is an Argentine mystery / crime drama based on the book 'The Question In Their Eyes' by Eduardo Sacheri. The script is adapted by Sacheri and the film's director, Juan Jose Campanella. Campanella surprisingly has a lot of experience directing American TV series (like several episodes of 'HOUSE M.D.', 'LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT', 'STRANGERS WITH CANDY' and others) and his directing here is very impressive and memorable, including a breathtaking chase scene that appears to be all one single camera (although it was edited together using multiple cameras with CGI). The film has impressive acting turns as well from Ricardo Darin and Soledad Villamil in the two leads.
Darin stars as a retired federal agent who tries to lay old memories to rest by writing a novel about them. He turns to an old friend, Judge Irene Menendez-Hastings (Villamil), for help. She was his superior, whom he also had strong feeling for, on a disturbing rape case several years earlier. The case was closed but it's outcome still haunts him to this day and leaves him with many unanswered questions. He tries to piece together the past with the help of Irene in order to finish his book and conquer his nightmares as we watch through flashbacks.
The film is a very involving and intriguing crime mystery with a lot of emotion and interesting complex characters. It is very grisly at times though, including a torturous rape scene which is one of the most disturbing visuals I've seen in cinema. There is a lot of graphic violence as well as nudity and the movie is very hard to watch at times but if you can stick it out it's worth it. It's very beautiful in a lot of ways at times and leaves the viewer with as many positive emotions as negative. The writing, directing and acting is all superb and the movie, with all it's ups and downs, is a rewarding and memorable film going experience.
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