Secret in Their Eyes (2016) [Blu-ray]
Mystery | Thriller

Tagline: The truth lies in the most unexpected places

A tight-knit team of rising FBI investigators - Ray (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Jess (Julia Roberts), along with their District Attorney supervisor Claire (Nicole Kidman) - is suddenly torn apart when they discover that Jess's teenage daughter has been brutally and inexplicably murdered.

Now, thirteen years later, after obsessively searching every day for the elusive killer, Ray finally uncovers a new lead that he's certain can permanently resolve the case, nail the vicious murderer, and bring long-desired closure to his team. No one is prepared, however, for the shocking, unspeakable secret that will reveal the enduring, destructive effects of personal vengeance on the human soul.

Interweaving past and present, this deeply layered mystery explores the murky boundaries between justice and revenge, and asks the question: how far would you go to right an unfathomable wrong?

Storyline: 2002: Ray Kasten (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Jess Cooper (Julia Roberts) are two investigations in a private police unit led by the DA. When they receive an anonymous tip about a girl raped and killed, they rush to the scene. Ray realizes it is Jess' daughter and the team falls apart due to the grief. In 2015, Ray comes back to LA, and says that after 13 years, he has found a lead and convinces the DA to reopen the case. They find clues and leads unknown to them, and secrets from the past come to light as they start discovering the real, chilling truth. Meanwhile, Jess, unsatisfied with the law, decides to take matters into her own hands and track down the killer, no matter what lengths she has to go to.

Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Martin Liebman, February 25, 2016 -- Secret in Their Eyes is based on the book El secreto de sus Ojos by Juan Jose Campanella and Eduardo Sacheri that was previously adapted into the Spanish-language film The Secret in Their Eyes, Director Juan José Campanella's fantastic 2009 picture that earned an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year. The re-imagining is directed by Billy Ray (Breach) and features an all-star cast, but it's a decidedly inferior product in every way. Emotionally vacant, content to adhere to procedure, and banking on actor skill alone to flesh out the story, it's a far cry from the 2009 classic and a disappointing misappropriation of otherwise terrific talent in a movie that didn't need an English language re-imagining to begin with.

The film alternates between two timelines, the present day and the year 2002, only months following the September 11th terrorist attacks. Ray Karsten (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is a counter-terror specialist who works alongside Investigator Jess Cobb (Julia Roberts) and Assistant District Attorney Claire Sloan (Nicole Kidman). While working on a high priority terror case, Ray and Jess discover the unthinkable at a crime scene: Jess' daughter, dead. Jess is understandably devastated. Ray and Claire make finding the killer their top priority. As the investigation unfolds over the years, Jess has retreated and Ray and Claire have developed a romantic interest in one another. But their investigation will lead them to a startling discovery that will challenge their personal values and professional ethics alike.

Secret in Their Eyes earns a vulnerable, wounded performance from Julia Roberts, but its all star cast -- which includes stars Chiwetel Ejiofor and Nicole Kidman and a couple of high profile supporting actors in Dean Norris and Alfred Molina -- fails to run with what is admittedly flat material. There's an unmistakable sense of procedure to the movie, a dullness that permeates most every scene save for its most highly charged and high impact moments, two of which center around Julia Roberts and the other an interrogation scene with Nicole Kidman who goes to a dark place to get the greatest emotional response from the moment. The film is never capable of filling in the gaps with material that offers a reasonable rate of return. It slogs through the motions, spiking high in those critical moments but slinking back far too low and deep to maintain interest. The movie does manage a positive balancing act in its timeline shifts, assembling the story both in the present and in 2002, tying them together with an effortless flow that at least keeps the audience aware of the when's and what's and who's.

Director Billy Ray, who also penned the screenplay, leans too heavily on a support structure that only seems to get in the way without adding much to the plot, central to which is a touch-and-go tease of a romance that doesn't add any serious heft to an otherwise bleak story of pain and revenge. Ejiofor and Kidman manage to pull a fair bit of chemistry out of the angle, though thanks entirely to their skill rather than their script. Supporting characters are drawn with a shocking flatness about them that doesn't allow any of them to serve as anything more than background filler that only propels the story forward rather than flesh it out. The one exception: Joe Cole as key figure Marzin during a key scene he shares with Kidman (referenced above). Maybe without the original in the wild this movie might have ranked marginally higher, but even in a vacuum its ability to take a great premise, and an equally strong cast, and do so little with so much at its disposal makes for the most interesting part of the movie.

Secret in Their Eyes has a lot going for it -- namely great source material and a stellar cast -- but it's remarkably good at doing nothing with the bounty laid before it. Roberts and Kidman manage a few good moments, but the movie lacks much of an emotional draw, a steady pace, or even purpose. Universal's Blu-ray offers decent 1080p video, a good but hardly memorable lossless soundtrack, and a supplementary package that includes a commentary track and two very brief featurettes. Pick up the original classic instead.

[CSW] -2.5- This movie got an extra half a point just for making me try to figure out the mystery before the very weak ending that I did see coming. I argue that you will not see better performances on film than what you see here from Chiwetel Ejiofor and Julia Roberts. For her roles demands Nicole Kidman is perfect. However, this high quality collection of actors was wasted on pure mediocrity. Certainly watchable, and has its moments, but suffered from unrealistic subplots and character reactions, as well as pacing that was a bit slow for a thriller. The political aspect, while not heavy handed, makes certain aspects of the film ludicrous. The previous adaptation of the novel won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film. Nothing about this movie justified having the book adapted a 2nd time. Don't waste your time on this movie.....watch the 2009 prize winning Argentinian version.
[V3.5-A4.0] MPEG-4 AVC - No D-Box.


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