On the surface The Secret in Their Eyes is a crime thriller set in Buenos Aires in the 1970s, following detective Esposito as he investigates a brutal case of rape and murder. But to that we must add the layer that he is looking back from 25 years later, as he is now retired and writing a book about the case.
In re-visiting the case he is attempting to deal with his past, including the fact that he was in love with his superior, Irene, and has been ever since, but has never been able to voice it. This plays out very subtly and beautifully beneath a tense and tightly crafted murder story involving some stunning set pieces - look out for the chase scene in the football stadium.
The corruption of the justice system at the time is an interesting subtext to the film. I am ashamed to admit that my knowledge of Argentine history pretty much begins and ends with Madonna, so the political edge went over my head slightly, but ultimately this didn’t seem to matter. I understood that people could just ‘disappear’, without needing a knowledge of the Dirty War (isn’t it nice, this learning together?).
This is much more than a run of the mill crime thriller, and much more engaging than a dry documentary of Argentina‘s political past, which probably explains why it won Best Foreign-Language picture at this year‘s Oscars. This is a film about constancy, about friendship, about memory, and about people’s reasons for being. And about secrets. Revealed in people’s eyes. But you probably guessed that.
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