Thirteen years ago, Detective Jessica Cobb’s daughter was found murdered in a dumpster on a case she was working on. Her close friend and colleague Ray was the one to find her. There’s no good way to break that news to a mother, and there was no way to stop Jess from climbing into that dirty dumpster to cradle her daughter’s dead body. The case was mishandled and the killer never found, mostly because her body was discovered outside a mosque in the months following 9\11 and counter-terrorism took precedence over murder investigations. This group of detectives, once close-knit, is ripped apart at the seams from the grief and the guilt.
Cut to: thirteen years later, Jess (Julia Roberts) and Ray (Chiwetel Ejiofor) meet up again, in the office of a new supervisor, Claire (Nicole Kidman). Ray has some news: he thinks he’s found the culprit. 696 000 caucasian male inmates in American prisons every year; if you look at 1906 faces every night, you can cycle through the entire population in a year. Ray has done this for 13 years and finally has a bite. That’s just to let you know that it may be Jess’s kid who died, but it’s haunted Ray too. They haven’t kept in touch but Ray has never stopped looking. Jess isn’t sure she has the strength to follow the legal channels, but Ray convinces her that under Claire’s direction, things will be different.
This movie is about ghosts, and sacrifice, and justice. It’s a 2015 remake of a 2010 Argentinian movie that probably doesn’t need to exist since the original is so compelling. This one is not quite so complex and yet it’s harder to follow, the jumping back and forth between time lines not quite so clean. But Julia Roberts as a shadow of a woman, contorted with grief, is worth watching (her mother died during production; she returned to work after just 5 days), and so is Chiwetel Ejiofor, who brings a lot of grit and empathy to the role. Nicole Kidman even has a scene in which she’ll suck the air right out of the room. They’re great, and at times they elevate the material, but this movie lacks the thrill part of a thriller. There’s no real suspense generated, it just sort of feels like we’re waiting, and it’s the gloomiest waiting room you’ve ever spent 111 minutes in. Is the ending worth it? Well, I’ll tell you this: there is no happy ending when a mother’s only child is raped and murdered.
You’ve got to have courage or over-inflated ego or be simply deluded to remake a classic film like Secret in Their Eyes (2010)! Just a brilliant film that works as a romance, murder mystery, political thriller; and manages to be funny too in places. The one-take football pursuit scene is unforgettable! As is the end!
I’ve seen the remake and can’t remember a single thing other than Julia Roberts was good in it.
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She’s good but the film itself feels diluted. They tried to introduce some American political stuff to justify the remake I guess, but it doesn’t quite work.
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Absolutely agree. Your review is spot on!
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I’m with Paul – I saw it for Julia Roberts.
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Julia Roberts was at her best here.
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I will have to find the original. I mean, what is a thriller without the thrill?
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The original is brilliant! Not that it’s always a vouch for quality – it won Best Oscar for film in foreign language!
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I have to search for it. Thanks so much
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The original feels more potent. The performances in the American remake are solid, but the story loses its way a bit.
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Hm… Still sounds like one I’d see. (Jay, have you guys reviewed Hostiles yet? I couldn’t find it on the site…)
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You’re right, we haven’t, but it’s on the list!
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I liked the Argentinian version but I never bothered with the remake despite liking the cast. I’d maybe watch it if it were on TV.
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Why do they remake films like this? Because American audiences won’t watch something in English. And yet, Hollywood always mucks it up. (We’re such babies when it comes to reading subtitles.)
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What a cast.
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I know I’ve seen this but I can’t remember a thing about it, so thanks for the review. 🙂
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I liked this movie even less than you did, though I absolutely love the original. It’s totally different from this piece of…poop. Great site.
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Just watched this, and came to your site to see if you reviewed it. Yup, 100% agree. Those performances were great, but the timeline flip back and forth…and yes, the plot felt diluted. You got it!
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Oh wow funny that we agreed on so many of the points. I mean, it almost seems like they didn’t test-run it would audiences?
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