In Secret

A clever film adaptation of Emile Zola's novel, Therese Raquin, set in 1860s Paris. Convincing mise-en-scene, convincing acting, excellent filming, suitable pace.

A clever, satisfying story containing the themes of marriage, affairs, desire, murder, suicide and justice. The plot strands draw us into the sinister world the lovers have created and provide us with a suitable denouement.

The director creates a believable world in which the unbelievable happens. Although it's not easy to empathise with any of the characters, it is easy to follow their development and roles within the narrative.

Paris during a past century. A woman is slowly dying in a loveless marriage but what can she do? She accepts her fate and goes on until the possibility of romance and passion comes her way. Then everything changes and she becomes prepared to do the unthinkable, but is the man she has fallen for a better bet than the husband for whim she has no love?

The ___location and costumes gave it an aura of authenticity as well as having a very potent storyline makes for an intriguing viewing experience. The let down comes from the fact that it is Hollywood making an epoch film. The way the characters are introduced and the plot develops is way too fast to create the impact it should.

"In secret" is a very poignant title, all evolving around a woman. She is drowning in her marriage...in secret, she meets and falls for another man...in secret, she goes out of her depth to be free of her husband and be with the one she loves...in secret. When the secret is revealed, the whole situation collapses like a pack of cards.

If you suppress sexuality and love long enough, it will break out eventually. And this is what happens here at some point. There are some very racy scenes, that while we do not get so much naked flesh to see, might be a bit too much for some viewers. Love can be freeing, but it can also be like a prison.

And while we do probably have the one Olsen sister who can actually act in this, this might be too much even for her. Especially towards the end, her act seems to be breaking (no pun intended). It gets pretty weird too, too weird maybe for some, but that's something you'll have to see for yourself. I kinda liked it, though the characters seem to lose a bit of their credibility. But it happens ... or it could happen

It was not the first time Jessica Lange had played an overpossessive mother;just check "hush" .

The most famous French version of the novel is Marcel Carné's (1953)starring Simone Signoret and Raf Vallone ;in both versions ,it's the mother-in law who walks out with the honors and literally blows her co-stars off the stage :both Sylvie and Lange are the stand-outs .

Whereas Carné's version was transferred to modern times and sometimes dramatically wandered from the novel ,this one is much more faithfull. Locating the action in the 19th century was more relevant for at the time an orphan girl without a dowry had little choice :her marriage with sickly Camille made more sense than in the fifties .The pictures depicting the gloomy shop are dark and close to a living hell where the poor wife finds solace "in secret" between two domino games ;these games are given a convincing treatment and as one of the players says :"it smells mortuary" and not only because he works in such a lugubrious place.

The Lange /Tom Felton (who sometimes recall Terence Stamp)pair overshadows somewhat the lovers ; Madame Raquin is in awe of (and in love with) her offspring and afraid to be alone (hence the second marriage).But in the second part,if look could kill,hers certainly would.

located first near Vernon ,Normandy ,although the landscapes do not evoke this region ,but the cinematography on ___location is really dazzling.

In life, people all have shades of grey. We have good moments and bad. At times, a person can be our best friend, and at other times, he can seem our worst enemy. A family member can be our greatest ally, and then suddenly our fiercest obstacle. But for the purposes of cinema, films often eliminate these complexities. They present us with heroes who are immaculate in virtually every way and villains who have no redeeming qualities whatsoever — and they expect us to cheer and boo accordingly. But that certainly isn't the case in Charlie Stratton's first feature film, In Secret . In this dark and captivating drama based on the novel Thérèse by Émile Zola, the lines are brilliantly blurred. There's no hero to worship or villain to wish dead — just people with good moments and frighteningly bad moments trying to get through life.

When Thérèse Raquin (Elizabeth Olsen) is left with her Aunt (Jessica Lange) after her mother's death, her life doesn't seem to be off to the best start. After years caring for her ailing cousin Camille (Tom Felton), her aunt announces that the two of them will be wed and they'll all move to the city. Understandably, this isn't the life the imaginative Thérèse had dreamt for her future. But dutifully, she does as she's told — and quickly sinks deeper and deeper into the hands of this family she never truly wanted to be part of.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the strong, charismatic, and handsome Laurent (Oscar Isaac) presents himself and she finds hope and love for the first time in her young life. But with a needy husband and overbearing aunt, the two realize they can never truly be together — unless they take matters into their own hands. And so begins a dark and terrifying psychological study of what happens when people are desperate to pursue their wants, regardless of the damage those desires may cause.

Although the average summary of the film might have you going into the cinema expecting a tortured romantic drama, Stratton isn't afraid to take sharp turns without a moment's notice. So be prepared for plenty of darkness and suspense. Your notions of bad guys and good guys quickly disappear as you find yourself cheering for one character one moment and feeling terrified of her at the next. Olsen, Lange, Felton, and Isaac carry off these depictions of refreshingly multi-dimensional characters almost effortlessly and with captivating honesty. Stratton's screenplay and direction brilliantly capture the complexities of human wants and needs — and the devastating effects of our desperate attempts to achieve them.

Everyone just wants to be happy — but at what cost?

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