In Secret

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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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.

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.

I liked it. I think it's pretty Shakespearean, so if you enjoy those kind of stories, you will like this one. Great acting.

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.