In Secret (2013) User Reviews

rather dull sad costume drama improves slightly

[SnoopyStyle · 5/10 · 22 April 2015]

Thérèse Raquin (Elizabeth Olsen) is left by her father to live with his sister (Jessica Lange). Her hope of his return is lost when he's reported dead. She is pushed to marry her sickly cousin Camille (Tom Felton) by her domineering aunt. Camille finds a clerical job in Paris and the three of them move to the city. They buy a dusty shop and Thérèse is stuck behind the counters at the empty shop. She falls for Camille's new work friend Laurent (Oscar Isaac) who also paints. They quickly have an affair. However their secret affair is threatened when Camille decides to move back to the country.

It's a rather dull costume drama for the first half hour. Everything is dim and cold. Olsen needs some more opportunity to do something. When she pretended to be a bear, it was a flash of something great. The movie seems to be filled with possible great moments that are quickly engulfed by the movie's overwhelming blackness and whispers. It's an old romance novel of corset ripping without any great charm.

When the movie changes to a murder thriller, it picks up some energy but nothing that truly takes off. The prodding darkness keeps clawing it back to lifelessness. I never really fell in love with the couple. Lange is masterful at times but the movie is generally lifeless. It tries to be a nightmarish Hitchcockian thriller but director Charlie Stratton doesn't have the skills.

When struggling to breathe makes you drown

[jul-kinnear · 7/10 · 4 April 2014]

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?

http://juliekinnear.com/blogs/in-secret-review

When born into a family in which love is absent, how far will one woman go to keep a man who found a way to satisfy her?

[Amari-Sali · 6/10 · 15 June 2014]

Admittedly I am not a big fan of period dramas. I find them pretentious and with most actors performing in a constrained manner, so they seem prim and proper, they often do come off dull to me. However, post-Belle, I did find myself curious about this film. After all, it does have Jessica Lange and Elizabeth Olsen in it, as well as the familiar face of Tom Felton. But, with no mention of Jane Austen, one of the few whose adaptations can liven up a period drama, I walked in hesitant and perhaps rightfully so.

Characters & Story

Poor Therese (Elizabeth Olsen) has found herself dumped with her Aunt Madame Raquin (Jessica Lange) and sickly cousin Camille (Tom Felton). To make matters worse though, Madame fully expects Therese to dedicate her life to nursing and entertaining Camille. Even to the point of marrying the boy. So, naturally, when a young man named Laurent (Oscar Isaac) comes around and not only presents himself as interesting, but less coddled and childish than Camille, it sparks something in Therese. But how far will she go in seeking some way to appease her lust and happiness? That is the question which lingers throughout the movie.

Praise

The first act of the film, in which we meet and get to know the main cast, makes for quite an entertaining picture. Olsen, as Therese, is quite fitting for the expression the Olsen sisters seem to have in their eyes, this sort of sadness even when they smile, makes Therese quite the sympathetic character. And while I am no fan of Tom Felton, with him popping up in multiple movies I've been watching, I must admit that playing multi-dimensional pathetic men seems to be something he is quite good at. For while I do feel bad for Therese, Felton as Camille certainly draws your sympathies as well since you can tell between him wanting to assert himself, and truly make Therese happy, he does try. It is just that Therese wants a more traditional man over a momma's boy.

Which makes Isaac as Laurent quite a burst of fresh air. I mean, watching Therese, who can't even deal with breathing the same air because of how mad she is with lust, was quite amusing, as is their whole relationship. I'd even say that the two have good enough chemistry, in the first act, that it makes you hope the two actors would work with each other again.

Criticism

However, once the climax happens and the 2nd act begins, watching the movie certainly becomes a chore. Be it the odd whispery voice of Shirley Henderson repeating "Madame" over and over; Therese and Laurent losing their appeal as a couple; or even Jessica Lange having a stroke and trying to give a quality performance using just one hand and eye movements, the 2nd act is simply a struggle to sit through. Not to forget, both Olsen and Lange portrayal of guilt and grief is so over dramatic that it really is quite a liability for the 2nd act. Especially as we see Therese's guilt eat at her and cause her to fight with Laurent. Making for when the film ends, it isn't something which saddens you but gives you such a feeling of relief.

Overall: Skip It

Consider me spoiled by the likes of Belle and the few Jane Austen movies I've seen. For with a lack of sarcasm or wit, and not even aesthetically pleasing attire to attract the shallowness of the eyes, it is hard to say this film gives any real quality reasons to sit through the whole thing. Which is unfortunate since the first act surely presented a decent film, but the climax somehow stole away all the life of the film and left us with a bumbling mess. Hence why the label "Skip It" is given. Even with the first half of the film being pleasant, the 2nd half is so exasperating that it ruins the film as a whole.

A nice little story that challenges the conventional protagonist vs. antagonist formula

[Arit · 16 September 2013]

Elizabeth Olsen's latest title role performance is not as showy as her first; when she broke out with "Martha Marcy May Marlene" in 2011, her character's heart and mind were the primary focus of the film. She used her bland looks like the Japanese Noh mask or the Greek Archaic smile, which you could interpret as an expression of any emotion you would like, thus lending mysteries and ambiguities. In "Therese" Olsen goes a lot lighter, allowing us to detach from, or even dislike the apparent protagonist if we choose so.

By contrast, Therese's mother-in-law, Madame Raquin is played by Jessica Lange with a heavy emotional emphasis. Few actresses entertain the idea of playing characters with special physical conditions. Fewer can play them convincingly. Even fewer can play them without words. With Lange they all come as standard. While seemingly playing an antagonist, Lange makes a surprisingly gratifying character.

Tom Felton's frail Camille is Therese's arranged husband, and Oscar Isaac's strong Laurent is Therese's extra-marital affection; these two actors are also solid as they play friends and enemies with polar opposite characteristics.

While by employing a comedic tone director Charlie Stratton takes away some gravity from the serious subject, he nonetheless makes the antique material accessible by wider audience. It is a rather simple story with nothing mysterious about its plot or its characters' feelings and motives, but at the same time, so cleverly ambiguous on the moral ground that you cannot easily decide for which character to root.

wow. powerhouse performances

[mompaxton-481-121381 · 6/10 · 25 August 2015]

I have never seen a performance by Elizabeth Olsen before this, assuming she was about as "good" as her sisters, meaning not good. But she gave a really great performance. And to stand on her own next to Jessica Lang, that is high props. She is extremely beautiful and really is something to watch in the future.

Other than the distraction of a few Harry Potter Alums I was really taken with this movie, it was a very well written storyline and I didn't see the end coming. The actors were well casted and all carried their own. Having put this movie on the back burner for so long i'm really glad I watched it now. Wish I had watched it sooner. A real sleeper surprise.

Fantasies and dreams

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 20 March 2015]

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

OPPORTUNITY LOST FOR A SUBJECT NOIR THAT HAD THE POTENTIAL OF A SHAKESPEAREAN TRAGEDY

[msunando · 6/10 · 25 June 2020]

Young Therese (later played by Elizabeth Olsen) is left in the custody of her aunt Madame Raquin (Jessica Lange) by her father who leaves for Africa. Madame Raquin knows that he will never return and assigns Therese to be the caregiver to her sickly son Camille. Time passes by and Therese gets used to the life of confinement in the Raquin home, caring for Camille (Tom Felton) and eventually surrenders to an arranged and unexciting marriage to him. Then comes an opportunity dor the family to move from Vernon to Paris where Camille gets a clerical job, Madame Raquin rents a shop and sets up their home upstairs. One evening, Camille brings home his old friend Laurent (Oscar Isaac), a dark haired, handsome man, and a new world of excitement and adultery beckons Therese. Laurent and Therese embark on a clandestine and passionate affair that spells doom for Camille as they together hatch a plan to eliminate him.

Everything proceeds according to their plan with Camille out of the way, and the family's well wishers insist upon Therese now marrying Laurent, looking at the misery of the women, of course totally unaware of the sinister plot that led to the situation. Once married, however, the couple is soon consumed by the guilt of their crime and the ominous presence of Camille's shadow in the relationship turns matters bitter. During one such friction, Madame Raquin also learns about the truth and turns antagonistic, albeit she can do little as she is now paralyzed physically.

"In Secret" is an adaptation of the novel Therese Raquin written by Emile Zola, and could have been a tragedy of an epic Shakespearean dimension. The drama noir is accentuated by the dark setting in Paris with a depressing and poorly illuminated shop and house above. Director Charlie Stratton however makes a half hearted attempt to capitalize on the dark setting and the resultant mood with an unconvincing treatment of the psychological tussle with conscience, thus turning the tragedy into a rather soft and mellow climax. Not enough was done to delineate the "blood on the hands" state of the doomed couple that could have emphasized the extreme consequence of the once passionate relationship. Elizabeth Olsen and Oscar Isaac do their bit, but Jessica Lange is the showstopper here with a powerful portrayal of Madame Raquin, a controlling matriarch with firm hands on the reins of her family.

Suffering and loving...in secret

[cinematic_aficionado · 6/10 · 30 May 2014]

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.

Depressing, Dark, and Melodramatic Period Movie

[VickiHopkins · 4/10 · 9 June 2014]

Where do I start? Reviewing this melodramatic movie that leaves you dead at the end (no pun intended), is going to be a task. I can honestly classify it as the most depressing film I have seen in a long time. The story is apparently based on a writing by the name of "Thérèse Raquin," written in 1867 by Emile Zola.

In short, the movie is about a young girl, who after her mother dies, is placed with her aunt and her sick, coughing cousin. Jessica Lange plays a controlling mother (Madame Raquin), who orchestrates Therese's life at every turn. Her father passes away, and Therese is left with a small annuity. No doubt for her own financial gain, she insists that Therese marry her cousin. Unfortunately, he is not appealing in personality or looks, while she on the other hand is attracted to handsome men and deals with an uncontrollable sex drive.

When they relocate from the country to Paris, down a dark and dingy street to open a shop, Therese meets Laurent, a friend of the family. It doesn't take long for the two of them to fall into a lust-driven, sexual relationship that borders on the ridiculous as they meet in secret. Her domineering aunt has no idea that while she is tending the store below, her niece is copulating like a nymphomaniac upstairs in the room she shares with her son. Though you are led to believe it is love between the two, I frankly thought it bordered on physical obsession. Her lover knows how to control her need for him by pleasuring her at every turn, just as well as her aunt who manipulates her to do her bidding.

As far as Therese's husband, played by Tom Felton, he is a boring and idiotic man, and a mama's boy. His relationship with his mother is frankly as sickly as his health (cough, cough), as his mother dominates and coddles him into adulthood.

Laurent, as sexually driven as Therese, wants her all to himself. He suggests that they orchestrate an accident to do away with her husband. After all, accidents happen every day. Therese is hesitant to carry out the plan, but Laurent takes it to the end when the three of them go boating. He pushes her husband overboard, beats him with a paddle, and they watch him drown. Of course, they are dragged back to shore feigning a terrible boating accident wherein he loses his life. His body is recovered, buried, and no one is the wiser, except for one family friend who has her suspicions.

Of course, after the murder and time passes, Laurent and Therese marry and live together with Madame Raquin at the shop. Their relationship turns sour very quickly, as guilt for murdering Camille and their debase personalities come to the forefront. In the meantime, Madame Raquin has a stroke, no doubt brought on by her excessive grief over her son's death, and is left unable to move or speak. As she is confined to a wheelchair, she discovers through their yelling fights with one another that they murdered her son.

Well, where does this leave this sordid tale of dysfunctional family, adultery, lust, and whatever else you want to term it? It comes to an end where Therese and Laurent grow to hate each other so much they plot each other's demise. In the end, they both go mad as a hatter, and commit suicide in front of Madame Raquin, who finally obtains justice for her son's murder. The scene is no Romeo and Juliet moment, believe me. Instead, it is a sad commentary to two selfish people who committed a senseless murder that leads to no happy ending.

As far as performances, Jessica Lange, I thought carried the insatiable grief about her son's death to a psychotic level. Whether it was the intention of her performance to do so because of the script, I have no idea. However, I thought it felt excessive. Elizabeth Olsen's portrayal, as well as Oscar Isaac's, as the colliding lovers (definitely not star-crossed lovers), were well done conveying the characters' crazy drive for sex and ultimate demise due to guilt that borders on lunacy.

The setting overall, especially in Paris, is very dark and gloomy, which frankly mirrors the story. The costumes were mid-Victorian era and dull in color for the most part.

If you like depressing, dark, and dramatic period movies that leave you feeling uninspired, this one is for you.

Well done, but it won't cheer you up very much

[neil-476 · 7/10 · 23 May 2014]

In 19th century France, Therese is sent to live with her aunt and her cousin, sickly mummy's boy Camille. On reaching adulthood, her aunt marries Therese off to Camille and they move to Paris. There, Camille meets childhood friend Laurent who embarks on a passionate and forbidden affair with Therese which culminates in them wishing to be rid of Camille.

If Therese had only had TV, she would have watched enough to know that this sort of thing never ends well. Emile Zola's 1867 novel Therese Raquin, retitled here, may have suffered in that characters who should be unsympathetic turn out to be quite likable and rather sad. Therese (Elizabeth Olsen) trapped into a life she doesn't like by a domineering aunt, understandably turns to an affair with wild abandon as it brings her joys she has never known. Tom Felton, not someone whose work as a child actor has appealed to me, is turning out to be quite good as an adult: he makes Camille into someone whose failings are not his fault (although I think he could have gone for a better haircut. I digress). Jessica Lange, on the basis of this film, is not ageing particularly attractively, but has become an actress of a stature one would not have expected from the 1976 King Kong: her overbearing mother/aunt, while not sympathetic to start off with, suffers terribly in more ways than one, and you end up feeling sorry for her. Only Laurent (Oscar Isaac) doesn't seem to have much in the way of redeeming qualities other than being a) hot and b) a good painter. I suspect that this may not be what Zola intended.

This film is lushly photographed, and contains good supporting performances from assorted unexpected British actors.

I have to finish with a "but" - but it's not much fun, not that tragedies ever are. It's all a bit glum and - importantly - not very uplifting (Les Miserables was glum, but left you feeling that there is something redemptive in human potential - that's not the case here, I'm afraid). So this is good, of its sort, but I can't say I came out of it feeling particularly enriched by it.

Oft filmed Zola abysmal waste of time.

[st-shot · 4/10 · 30 April 2014]

Is Emile Zola's novel, Therese Raquin, in the public domain? With a dozen silent, sound and TV productions one would think the last word had been beaten out of it by now but back it comes in this sluggish bore probably made on the cheap in Serbia by a hack taking his swing (and missing by a country mile) at the big time featuring a tired scenery chewing performance by Jess Lange so abrasive you can almost hear her teeth grinding.

Therese (Liz Olson) in a loveless arranged marriage to her sickly cousin Camille (Tom Felton) is bored, emotionally abused and sexually unfulfilled living in the country. When the opportunity to re-locate in Paris presents itself her heart soars but the frustration dynamic remains upon arrival, wiling her days away in a drab shop, her nights spent watching Madame Raquin (Lange) and friends play dominoes. When an old friend of Camille's, Laurent (Oscar Issac) makes the scene the passion amps up and tragedy awaits.

In its rather shapeless telling director Mike Stratton mutes In Secret's power with sluggish pacing and tepid desire from his star crossed lovers in passionate moments as he pays lip service to censors with self conscious compositions that render most scenes with a stiffness and restraint.

As Therese, Olson is wide eyed, dull and out of her depth, stretching little as she goes from innocent to cold conspirator. Oscar Issac gives a spot on imitation of Tony Bennett at times and that's part of the problem. He's more Rat Pack than 19th Century gentleman. Lange starts strong but soon veers into screeching ham in no time. In addition a group of minor supporting characters (the domino crowd) move en masse about the film like a gaggle of geese with insipid self importance and disapproving glances.

Standing on it's own In Secret flaccidly fails on all levels. When compared to the 1980 television version featuring the powerfully passionate performances of Kate Nelligan and Bryan Cox with the redoubtable Mona Washburne turning in a wonderfully measured performance as Madame Raquin it looks more like a community theatre production.

An impressive novel well told on film

[tao902 · 8/10 · 25 May 2015]

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.

Such a dark story but hoping for better costumes.

[jannatsbacanii · 6/10 · 5 October 2020]

I'm a sucker for historical accuracies and I was expecting Therese to have fancier hair styles but she just ties her hair in a low bun but her dresses really does help us relate to her character BUT I love the storyline.

Uninspired Period Drama

[estebangonzalez10 · 4/10 · 5 June 2014]

"It's always the ones in the corner you have too worry about."

Kind of like in the same way that the main character, Therese, is trapped in a loveless marriage in this period drama directed by Charlie Stratton, I felt trapped in this dull and lifeless film. To be honest, I checked this film out because of the cast: Elizabeth Olsen, Oscar Isaac, Tom Felton, and Jessica Lange are all superb actors, but their characters never had much depth. There were major problems with the adaptation of the screenplay from Émile Zola's 19th century novel, "Therese Racquin," while the pacing was an issue for me as well. The production design transported me to 19th Century Paris very well, but the English language used never felt like it was from that period. In Secret does begin with some promise and I actually was drawn to the characters, but after 20 or so minutes it began to lose its appeal as it became hard to sympathize with any of the characters. We've seen this sort of Shakespearean tragedy played out many times and much better than it is done here. Jessica Lange is the only one who actually raises above from the rest of the cast and tries to salvage the movie, but it is expected considering her character had to undergo the most emotional ranges. Her character is the strongest thing about In Secret where she slowly transforms from an unsympathetic character to a sympathetic one.

The story is set during the 1860's in Paris as we are introduced to a forced marriage between Thérèse Raquin (Elizabeth Olsen) and her cousin Camille (Tom Felton) by his domineering mother, Madame Raquin (Jessica Lange). Therese was raised by Madame after her mother passed away and her father decided to leave her in their care before moving to Africa. Therese grew up playing nurse to the often sick Camille, and eventually was forced to marry him. Camille cares for Therese as a brother, but doesn't really show any affection towards her as a husband, which leaves Therese sexually repressed. One day Camille brings an old friend home. His name is Laurent (Oscar Isaac) and he soon begins a secret affair with Therese behind Camille's back, which eventually leads to tragic consequences.

This is the third film I've seen Olsen in over the past two weeks, and despite not choosing the best projects for her I still consider she is a talented actress. She has not reached the same level she did in Martha Marcy May Marlene, but she is someone whose movies I'm always looking forward to. Despite this, I still didn't like the character she played in this film and didn't believe the chemistry she shared with Oscar Isaac on screen. This period drama really relies on that strong chemistry, but other than the forbidden love premise the film doesn't have much going for it. The film explores common issues we've seen in other better films. In Secret uncovers the tragic consequences of dark secrets and how they can end up destroying you. Only Jessica Lange fans might leave this film satisfied because she does deliver the strongest performance in the movie, but nothing else works very well in this uninspired film.

Mommy dearest.

[dbdumonteil · 7 January 2020]

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.

Good but could of been better

[deexsocalygal · 6/10 · 5 August 2020]

The 1st half of this movie reeled me in & my eyes were glued to the screen in anticipation of what would happen next. The movie is about a girl who's father dies & she is stuck living with her selfish Aunt & cousin. Her Aunt uses her inheritance to buy a horrid shop & forces her to marry her cousin. They all live together above the dark depressing shop. She works in the shop with her Aunt. Her husband is a frail sickly man who coughs all the time & pays very little attention to her. He works outside the shop. She doesn't love her husband & is bored with her life. One day after work her husband brings home a friend. She promptly begins having an affair with him. They fall in love & decide to murder her husband so they can be together. They murder him. This is where the movie becomes dull. They should be happy they don't have to sneak around anymore. They should start planning what they want to do with their lives but instead they start fighting. It's really dumb because she tells him stuff like she loved her husband- she didn't. She makes him feel bad all the time, acquising him of killing her husband with unnecessary roughness & prolonging his agony. Stupid stuff like that when it was something they both wanted & longed for when he was alive. Spoiler Alert: don't read any further if you don't want to know how it ends. The husband buys poison to kill the Aunt (& possibly her too?) But they both end up drinking the poison themselves committing suicide. The worst character in the movie that you hate the most- - the selfish Aunt is left the sole survivor. The end.

A tale of tragic secret affair.

[Reno-Rangan · 7/10 · 4 October 2016]

I never heard of it, but I found it accidentally and then decided to watch after learning it has a good cast. I mean not that they are the very popular ones right now in the Hollywood, maybe except Elizabeth Olsen, but awesomely played their roles. All the main four characters were very crucial throughout the narration. Like the title say, it was about a secret love affair between a young married woman and her handicapped husband's close friend. In between them, a mother of one of them played an important part in the story that brings a twist in the later part.

An affair means, going any extent to achieve what they want for the permanent basis. But not all the affairs, but in this one it gets darker while the story progresses. One thing I liked very much was the tale never intended to label any of its characters as a villain. That balance was so brilliant, but I did not know that, so I always expected something very bad to happen and then, except in one scene which changes the course of the rest of the film. The cinematic feel is there, but it was more like in the real life event.

No ones are evil and no ones are heroes, but everyone does all the good and bad things in their life and how serious those harmful acts, particularly how it destroys who are all involved in it was the film excellently told. It was based on the 150 years old French novel. It is also set in at the same time, I mean the 1860s, Paris. The recreation of the era was very good, but my only concern was the pace and the length of the film. Feels boring in some parts, other than that I got no issue with it. Having good actors with a decent direction, still it is like to belong in the B movie category. Though the overall effort from everyone was amazing and that's the reason you should watch it.

6.5/10

Depressing but great acting

[phd_travel · 7/10 · 24 June 2017]

Emile Zola's dark novel of adultery murder and guilt was shocking for it's time 1860s. So it's good to keep that in mind when watching this. Nowadays we are used to this kind of lot in many a film noir.

I watched it for the good actors and actresses in it. Oscar Isaac is really quite different here as the lover/murderer. He can really act and race / time period. So versatile. Elizabeth Olsen looks quite beautiful much more so than in her other movies. Maybe the period get up suits her. Her acting is actually quite good. It's hard to make an unsympathetic character watchable but she does it. Jessica Lange acts the role as mother in law very well. Only she could act this way. Tom Felton is made to look pretty scary as the consumptive husband.

First of all this is an gloomy and depressing story and the dark grim setting and cinematography make things seem even gloomier.

Worth one depressing watch.

DON'T ROCK THE BOAT

[nogodnomasters · 6/10 · 9 May 2019]

This 19th century love story is based on a Zola novel by the same title. I am not a literary giant and have never read Zola, but I have read Flaubert (Madam Bovery), which the opening on this film caused me to draw comparisons which continued to the end. Thérèse Raquin (Elizabeth Olsen) is abandoned by her father and raised by her aunt.She spends her life in near isolation from the outside world as does her sickly cousin Camille (Tom Felton) who she eventually marries as she knows no other life. As her passions flair, missionary position Camille fails to satisfy her as she takes up with Laurent (Oscar Isaac) an old friend of the family. Her loves move into a stage of on screen passionate quickies until an apparent foul play incident turns this into a ...well somewhat less boring love story which now feels hurried and shortened.

A "Lifetime " film for people who are over 140.

Parental Guide: No F-bombs. Numerous sex scenes. Brief Olsen nudity.

Lust

[darkdementress · 4/10 · 13 January 2021]

This movie isn't about love, it's about lust and cheating and destroyed lives. If it was suppose to be about love, then they did a very bad job at telling that story. Maybe most people don't know the difference? This movie was quite dark and awkward but not utterly terrible. The acting and filming was good, but the portrayal of love was way off. Sad and depressing story. Meh.

Love and Hate in Paris

[richard-1787 · 7/10 · 24 February 2014]

This is actually a well-made movie, but I suspect it will pass largely unnoticed.

The acting is uniformly good, the script, adapted from Émile Zola's first important novel, Thérèse Raquin, nicely done. Jessica Lange should get some sort of commendation for her performance of the older Mme Raquin once she has had her stroke and can only communicate with her eyes and facial expression. Though she is a hateful character in the novel, you can't help feeling sorry for her once she is trapped in her body, and abused by her daughter-in-law and her second husband.

The photography is also good, sometimes very beautiful. It captures both the countryside outside Paris, and the gloom of 19th-century Paris's crowded, narrow streets before Baron Haussmann created the wide boulevards we know and love today.

The problem here is that this is a uniformly gloomy story, and the movie doesn't change that any. It also moves too slowly. Granted, having read the novel several times I already knew the plot, but the movie did not hold me. I kept looking at my watch, wondering how much longer it would take to get to the grizzly, melodramatic end.

Fans of Ms. Lange should definitely see this movie for her performance. Oscar Isaac's Laurent is too "nice" for the bestial character in Zola's novel, but that may have been a director's or a producer's choice to make the movie more appealing to his fans and American audiences in general. Elizabeth Olsen is very convincing as Thérèse, but it's not an appealing role. Any sympathy we might feel for her early on is not developed, and quickly lost once she turns shrewish.

A fine production of a not particularly appealing novel.

-----------------------

I watched this movie again last night, this time focusing on the question: why was this movie made?, or more specifically, what audience did the creators think it would appeal to? Though not as disagreeable as in the novel, the romantic couple are still very hard to sympathize with here, especially Laurent. There were a lot of very beautifully lit sex scenes with the two of them, however. He, in particular, was often shown bare-chested with a light that made his skin look beautiful, all rosy pink and flesh tones. Perhaps, then, this movie was made for women in their teens, 20s, and 30s, who fantasize about having sex with such a "pretty" man? (In the novel, Laurent is repeatedly described as bestial, which is not the case here.) Is this meant to appeal to readers of Harlequin romances?

Olsen

[ljubicacodemaster · 1/10 · 11 July 2022]

Just because of you, the movie is not worthy of watching. You were shooting this movie in my town, and you said lot of bad things about us and my country. Shame of you.

Very dark and intense story, efficiently and simply told....

[skalwani · 8/10 · 28 February 2014]

When I usually go to see movies which cover a past period of time, I take the trouble of not reading too much about the background or skipping the book it is based on, so that I may judge the product purely on its merits and the strengths of the entire production crew that went into it's making. It pleases me to share with you that "In Secret" ranks as one such fine effort, right from the beginning it transports you to the mid-1800s era of rural France, and tells us the story of little Therese Raquin (Elizabeth Olsen). This effort has good production values, for not even a single moment does your attention drift away from the development of the characters, seeing them grow up, make the ties binding to the extent that Therese clearly suffers from the over bearing domination of her mother-in-law, played brilliantly by Jessica Lange. She gives the entire movie a continuation of the thread for the story, at times you feel her looks, demeanor and restrained but piercing performance, towards the end, are very absorbing. Hats off to the casting crew for making the right call here, she was born to play this role.

I wish to thank my fellow cinema mates - Isabelle and Lisa (you know who you are!) - for sharing their insights with me post the viewing. Correct use of lighting does give this piece the right feel of the suffocating & dreary lower working class Paris conditions, the same dark focus and clever use of perspective subtly nudge the viewer into feeling very tense as the story of betrayal develops. The very same way the characters demons grow, speaks to the way all of them absorb the souls of the players and share them with us flawlessly. As my fellow cinema watchers also shared with me, this movie is not for everyone, and only serious lovers of subtle simple but powerful period stories will appreciate this work. I suspect they are also right in anticipating that we may see many more French literary pieces coming to life on the big screen in the next few years. I give this movie an 8 star rating, simply because I appreciated every frame contributing to the telling of the story, no wasted effort or superfluous diversions whatsoever.

I expected more passion

[ggmcheartagram · 7/10 · 28 October 2015]

I thought from the trailer that this was going to be a very passionate tale about a girl stuck with a horrific husband who falls for his best friend and a murder is then committed and covered up but that we would still be rooting for the lovers. Now that was pretty much what it was about but i just expected a lot more passion than there actually was and her husband wasn't horrific at all he was actually a really nice guy who is very unwell. Now i did feel for Therese getting stuck with marrying her sickly cousin but the outcome was undeserved and rather sad but yeah i know that is the point and that is the reason the story goes where it goes, however I definitely didn't end up rooting for the lovers. They actually ended up really annoying me when their relationship turned so quickly. The film did manage to powerfully support the saying 'be careful what you wish for' though. I won't lie, i mostly just watched this for Oscar Isacc and yes he is good as usual but also a bit bland as is Elizabeth Olson. Jessica Lange started off well but she then started overacting just like she did during her last stint on American Horror Story, Shirley Henderson was also very irritating. Definitely worth a watch though if you enjoy period dramas but this probably won't be one that i revisit. I will however be reading the book at some point in the hope of finding the passion that i expected to be present.

Nope!

[pangipingu · 2/10 · 6 October 2021]

Huge disappointment! Strong cast but awful script and editing, so much so that the movie's pacing seems unnatural and split.