Benjamín Espósito is a judiciary agent in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The film follows Espósito’s life as he investigates the rape and murder of Liliana Colotto de Morales, both in the past and present. As Espósito uncovers clues and experiences revelations regarding the case, the film alternates between the years subsequent to the murder and 25 years afterwards. Upon analysis of some old photographs, the agent discovers a man with a keen interest for Liliana. Along with the help of the department chief Irene Menéndez-Hastings, this discovery leads to a guilty confession by Isidoro Gómez. However, Gómez is freed from conviction thanks to acts of political injustice in the country. Gómez is then never found for 25 years, until Espósito begins to write a novel based on the case and makes the ultimate discovery. Originally lying and claiming that he murdered Gómez, Liliana’s husband, Ricardo, is found to have held Gómez captive for decades in efforts to fulfill Gómez’s life sentence he was never given. After the case has been resolved, Espósito also faces his feelings for Irene and finds her to offer his own confession, one of love.
The Secret in Their Eyes. Directed by Juan José Campanella, Alta Classics, 16 Apr. 2010.
Describes the setting of a scene in a play or a film. It refers to everything placed on the stage or in front of the camera—including people. In other words, mise en scène is a catch-all for everything that contributes to the visual presentation and overall “look” of a production. When translated from French, it means “placing on stage.”
Filmed in various locations and neighborhoods around the capital of Argentina, Buenos Aires. Key locations include the Tomás Aldofo Ducó Stadium, Palace of Justice of the Argentine Nation, Retiro Station, and El Secreto bar.
This is the art of photography and visual storytelling in a motion picture or television show. Cinematography comprises all on-screen visual elements, including lighting, framing, composition, camera motion, camera angles, film selection, lens choices, depth of field, zoom, focus, color, exposure, and filtration. Cinematography sets and supports the overall look and mood of a film’s visual narrative. Each visual element that appears on screen, a.k.a. the mise-en-scène of a film, can serve and enhance the story—so it is the cinematographer’s responsibility to ensure that every element is cohesive and support the story. Filmmakers often choose to spend the majority of their budget on high-quality cinematography to guarantee that the film will look incredible on the big screen.
In this case, the use of wide-angle shot is used to showcase the landscape of the Argentinian countryside. At this point in the story, the investigators have just fled the house of the murderer’s mother after searching for handwritten letters for clues of the culprit’s whereabouts. Her address is never disclosed, but the wide-angle shot of the countryside reveals that they have driven far from their office’s location in the bustling city of Buenos Aires. This is key in highlighting the protocol they’ve broken and the lengths they were willing to go in order to possess this information. By using actual shots of Argentina (rather than shooting in a studio), the story feels realistic and more easily submerges the audience into the plot.
When Benjamín Espósito is recalling the murder of Liliana Colotto for the novel he is writing, the screen depicts a flashback of her final moments with her lover. Liliana is filmed with a soft focus, blurring and brightening the edges of her outline. Not only is this selection done to indicate that the scene is a flashback, but it also highlights her innocence. With the soft gradient and white highlights, Liliana looks angelic, which heightens the audience’s horror as they learn of her murder.
The movie begins with multiple long-exposure shots filmed with a long-duration shutter speed in order to create the effect of bodies blurring on screen. This is used to communicate the passage of time, as one of the protagonists recollects memories of his departure from Buenos Aires. There is also a soft focus of the images on screen, adding to the dream-like state. There is a brief moment where the only characters in focus are the two protagonists parting ways, emphasizing how their attention is only on each other.
Editing is the process of putting a film together–the selection and arrangement of shots and scenes. Editing can condense space and time, emphasize separate elements and bring them together, and organize material in such a way that patterns of meaning become apparent. In addition, editing can determine how a film is perceived: for instance, quick, rapid cuts can create a feeling of tension, while a long take can create a more dramatic effect. The first photoplays generally had no cutting, owing to the fact that they were single-reel films; once filming began, you could not stop until the film ran out. (https://filmglossary.ccnmtl.columbia.edu/term/editing/)
This scene depicts the final moments between Irene and Espósito before he flees to Jujuy after his attempted murder. The pair had long ignored their romantic affections for each other and face the problem of whether to reconcile everything at once. The take is slow-paced and flows from one camera angle to another in order to cautiously capture the intimacy between both characters. The shots linger on their faces and the protagonists’ lips to highlight the tension between them, but also their unwillingness to give in. By avoiding quick transitions and opting for longer takes, the audience feels present and is consumed by the moment. It is also a slower-paced scene, and there are no conflicting events to interject the characters’ interactions.
This technique is used to create the illusion of continuity and maintain a smooth flow of action from one take to another. During this segment of the movie, Espósito is chatting with Liliana’s husband at the train station, and figures of passersby frequently cross in front of the camera. As a person cuts in front of the camera, the brief period of darkness is used as an opportunity to switch to shot from a different point of view in the scene after the person passes. However, due to the quickness of the moment, the transition is smooth and discrete, creating the illusion that nothing has changed.
This clip shows the transition from Ricardo Morales looking off into the distance after hearing of his wife’s murder to a boiling pot of water. The two shots are unified by a sound bridge of the kettle ringing. Not only does this diegetic sound connect the two shots, but it also symbolizes the anger and passionate emotions brewing inside of Morales. This notion is reinforced when, at the end of the film, the audience learns that Morales actually kidnaps and holds the murderer hostage for many years. With this new information, it can be deduced that at this point in time, the water boiling parallels the anger erupting from Morales.
During this segment of the movie, a transition takes place between inspector Espósito at the local jail and then a shot of him confronting a rival judiciary agent outside their offices. Once Espósito discovers that the men who confessed to the crime were beaten into submission, the camera instantly switches to his attack of the other agent. This is then followed by multiple quick transitions between shots from both sides’ point of view. As the men shout at each other and attempt to throw punches, the handheld camera quickly follows. These fast transitions help communicate the action and immediacy of the situation. This technique not only conveys perspectives in the fight, but also serves to showcase how quickly Espósito came to the realization and took action after seeing the battered men.
Sound is an integral part in a film. It refers to everything that the audience hears including sound effects, words and music. Sound is used in films for various purposes, including: providing the information to the viewer about the location of the scene, heightening the mood, telling the audience about the characters and advancing the plot. Every person who watches a film realizes that the choice of voices, soundtrack and music present in a film affect the way that the viewer perceives a particular film. As a result, the sound is an important and integral element of the film, one that determines the way that the viewer experiences and understands a film as a visual experience.
Narrative analysis is an examination of the story elements, including narrative structure, character, and plot. A narrative can be considered to be the chain of events in a cause-effect relationship occurring in time and space. In order to analyze the narrative of a film, we need to first make the distinction between the plot of the film and the story of the film. This is sometimes referred to as the discourse and story of a film. Narrative may also be called the story thought story mainly refers to the events that describe the narrative.
Film genres are various forms or identifiable types, categories, classifications or groups of films. (Genre comes from the French word meaning "kind," "category," or "type"). These provide a convenient way for scriptwriters and film-makers to produce, cast and structure their narratives within a manageable, well-defined framework. Genres also offer the studios an easily 'marketable' product, and give audiences satisfying, expected and predictable choices. Genres refers to recurring, repeating and similar, familiar or instantly-recognizable patterns, styles, themes, syntax, templates, paradigms, motifs, rules or generic conventions.
The Secret in Their Eyes. Directed by Juan José Campanella, Alta Classics, 16 Apr. 2010.
Establishing shots are used to set up the context for the scene taking place. In this shot in the movie, the audience is greeted by a long take which slowly zooms in from a wide-angle to capture the Tomás Aldofo Ducó Stadium where the soccer game the agents visit takes place. This shot is also tied to the previous scene where Sandoval comments on the passions of Argentinian men. Consequently, this take not only establishes the location for the scene to come, but also welcomes the audience in relating to the same passion. The stadium is shown to be packed and loud, also foreshadowing the trouble the agents face when attempting to identify the murderer amongst the crowd.