Il segreto dei suoi occhi

Last night I went to watch this flick, and I must say that all in all, I ended up quite surprised because of it's impressive quality. Taking into account that I was already expecting superior film, indeed, it came out to be even more outstanding than I thought, mainly because of the rare combination of noir genre with very precise and measured funny moments and especially an incredibly faithful description of the Argentine system of justice and the characters that compose it. This last element is just perfect. The movie keeps your attention all the time -no decays at all- and the set design is also great, to such extent that it left me wondering what the tricks of the trade employed to achieve such similarity are. Foreign watchers might not fully understand some great details that are mainly local, but anyway they will surely enjoy the thrilling aspects of the film. It would be enough for them to say that almost all this locale's are just true, no matter how incredible they might look.

I am one of the people who always criticized Argentinian movies, because most of the times the scripts makes no sense or the story is slow or some scenes pointless, but El Secreto de sus Ojos is a master piece.

The ambiance, the photography, the script, the acting (I cannot stand Guillermo Francella but in this movie he completely shut my mouth, wonderful acting), everything makes this one of the greatest Argentinian movies I ever saw.

On a side note, as a reply to dardo766 I have to tell you that it may be childish for you the language in that scene, but actually is very common here all the swearing you are complaining. I think one of the greatest things of the movie is the dialogs, with or without swearing, it is very local and this might be the only flaw of the movie.

I can't add a lot to what has been written. The direction and cinematography aside (which is magnificent), this is an incredible psychological study, involving a group of the most complex of characters. Esposito finds himself in love with two people: the woman who was once his boss and because of inaction, left him heartbroken, and, secondly, a beautiful young rape/murder victim. Over a twenty-five year period, these forces never leave him. The rapist is his Moby Dick to his Captain Ahab. Since we don't see a lot of what happens in the intervening time, we must wonder how empty and fruitless his life has been until he has his epiphany. Mixed in all this are the politics of Argentina and the vengeance of a horrible man. Also, in the middle is the messed friend, an alcoholic, who can be a true talent, but is submerged in his problems, spending his time in bars. If we look to literature we might consider him the Sydney Carton of this film. When you see what happens to him, you will see why I choose this character as a reference. This is one of the finest films I've ever seen. It has it all.

"El Secreto de sus Ojos" hit me with unspeakable strength. I didn't expect to like it so much, so I owe a review to those in analysis measures before seeing it or those interested in some opinion.

First off, Campanella works with flawless effort all of the technical aspects of the film. It even starts with a double exposure effect, mixed with some sad shots of a beautiful Buenos Aires that hints the spectacle ahead of us. One shot especially, from a chopper in a soccer field edited with a crane shot is breathtaking. Nothing to envy from Hollywood upper class.

But the main strength of the movie comes from the powerful narrative dominion Director Campanella has over characters, spaces and silences. Many moments are coldly tense, scary and very, very intense. This crossover from genres by Campanella couldn't have been better. Crime stories often fall in common places, this one relies on the fragile psychological state of the audience to draw all of it's intense dialog, acting and scenes.

I cannot stop recommending it, Argentina can open it's market with movies such as this. It has many, many memorable moments, it interwines comedy perfectly and it is doubtful you will instantly forget it, as it is so well constructed. See it if you can!

This is it. A film that you can't get your eyes off until lights are back on... and then it's still difficult to stand up. A thriller, with lovable main characters, that makes you smile and think. A movie about a crime and a love. It has one of best chase scenes I've ever seen, involving what seems to be real complex camera work, something that could've been part of a Lord of the Rings movie maybe (at least that is what it looked like from my seat). Simply amazing. The acting is perfect. The pace is perfect. The ending couldn't be better (and we have seen so many great films that spoil it all at the end!).

Just go see it and enjoy what cinema should always be. It's a 10 out of 10.