Secret in Their Eyes (El secreto de sus ojos)

Considered one of the most important films in contemporary Argentine cinema, The Secret in Their Eyes (2009) follows Benjamín Espósito (Ricardo Darín), a retired criminal investigator, as he revisits an unsolved murder case from the 1970s, exposing the process through which veiled violent practices erupt more openly and systematically under military rule.

This book offers the first full-length study of Campanella’s film, showing how its gripping crime story becomes a powerful reflection on memory, justice, and political violence. Mariano Paz explains how the film moves between the mid-1970s and late 1990s to explore the long aftermath of state terror, challenging the common assumption that it is set during the dictatorship itself.

Paz places the film within Argentina’s history, film industry, and star system, with close attention to Ricardo Darín’s performance. He analyses the film’s blend of melodrama and thriller, its visual style, its famous football stadium sequence, and the symbolic role of the Palace of Justice.

Paz concludes by examining the film’s reception in Argentina and abroad, including the 2015 Hollywood remake, and shows why The Secret in Their Eyes remains central to debates about the political instrumentalization of the past.