Secret In Their Eyes: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
A tight-knit team of investigators — Ray (Chiwetel Ejiofor), Jess (Julia Roberts ) and their supervisor Claire (Nicole Kidman) — is torn apart when Jess’s teenage daughter is brutally and inexplicably murdered. After obsessively searching for the elusive killer every day for 13 years, Ray finally uncovers a new lead that he’s certain will resolve the case. No one is prepared, however, for the shocking secret that will reveal the enduring, destructive effects of personal vengeance on the human soul.
I like murder mysteries but I’m still fairly cautious when diving in to them because I have seen my fair share of films that brought the build up then didn’t deliver at the end. The film does a great job at alternating between two timelines fairly easily. These timelines are essential to the story and give some really good background information. The story is heartbreaking without a doubt and Roberts gives a great and wounded performance throughout the film. You really do feel for her as a parent and although she isn’t on screen as many of the other cast members, she without a doubt leaves you with a lasting impression. Ejiofor is really the main protagonist here and gives a stellar performance as always. He tends to pull you in as a viewer with every scene and his intensity is something that doesn’t come around very often. Kidman was a surprise to me. Normally (and admittingly) she isn’t usually on my radar as far as acting ability goes but she surprised the hell out of me here. There was once scene in particular that involved an interrogation that blew me away and had me cheering for her character. I can easily say that the film easily kept me intrigued the entire way and had a nice twist ending that was satisfying to the story. Definitely one of the best mysteries that I’ve seen in recent years. 8/10
Special Features:
Adapting the Story for Today’s World – A short feature that takes a look at recreating this film for American audiences.
Julia Roberts Discusses Her Most Challenging Role – The actress goes in depth about just how hard it was to film a certain scene that her real life husband was also behind the camera for.
Feature Commentary With Director/Screenwriter Billy Ray and Producer Mark Johnson
