A Hybrid - A thrilling romantic?

The Secret in their Eyes (El secreto de sus ojos, Argentina; 2009)
What happens when the director of 'House' and 'Law & Order' decides to do a joint venture film between Argentina and Spain? This movie - a thriller with a gruesome murder whilst the legal eagles involved in the cases see love in each others' eyes materialises!

It is a lovey dovey movie for the mature, narrating the members involved in the investigation of a senseless rape and murder of a pretty young wife. They thought they had nailed the assailant down. 25 years later, after the assistant counselor (Benjamin Esposito) retires and plans to write a novel about the murder, he discovers that there is more to it than what meets the eye.

A scene at railways when they depart ways - Esposito
being transferred and the boss soon to be tied the knot!

His immediate boss, a young Cornell trained judge 25 years previously, had the hots for him then and the feeling was mutual. Neither party made any attempts to express their inner feelings as she was engaged to be married, and he, engrossed in his work and having had gone through broken marriages.

With her proof reading his script, whilst the film reenacts the sequel of events, she discovers his inner feelings and we, the audience enjoy a 2-hour saga of police work, restrained love feelings, the emotional hangings of a widower, the unscrupulous government machinery which favours well-being of the nation rather than punishing the wrong doers. Did I mention that they were some poetic dialogues, though they were translated ones, via subtitles? eg. "We are left with so many memories, just choose the good ones!"

TE MO = I fear
TEAMO = Love!
(the case of typewriter with
faulty letter A)

Two fascinating aspects of the movie are the excellent work of cinematography where the cuts appear like one of investigative journalism and the excellent work of makeup. Many of the angles taken were different, like how the film maker zooms in to football stadium where the murderer is apprehended. Quite revolutionary. As the story flip flops between two eras of 25 years apart, the actors are the same but the makeup alters them quite significantly without giving the impression of being painted upon!
Interesting, interesting....

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