Secrets & Lies (1996) (Criterion Collection) UK Only [Blu-ray] [2021]

Arrived promptly good price.

Probably Mike Leigh's biggest international success, after winning the grand prize at Cannes it did quite well in the U.S., both at the box office and at the Oscars where it was nominated for nearly ever major award. At the time, it was arguably his most accessible film and one of his most accomplished, and it remains a masterpiece, a brutal but hopeful one. Like many of his films, there's a wonderful ensemble, and Blethyn, Jean-Baptiste and Spall are especially good, delivering career performances. Much of the drama revolves around the relationship between Blethyn's character and the daughter she put up for adoption, and each and every one of their scenes is remarkable. Their first scene together in the coffee shop (which plays out in an unbroken 8+ minute take) teeters between comedy and immense sorrow, and it may very well be best thing I've seen in any of Leigh's films. I originally thought it was a tremendous bit of writing that was also incredibly demanding towards its actors, but that's not how Leigh works - his films are typically 'written' during an extensive 6-month rehearsal, where he and his actors create the scenes and dialogue through improvisation. They shape and edit this material, getting it all on paper, so by the time they get to shooting, everything is tightly scripted. However, given the way the lines and action have been conceived, the screenplay remains a very organic extension of the performers themselves. Leigh isn't the only filmmaker who's worked in this manner (and that number grows when you consider filmmakers who have crafted scenes, if not entire films, this way), but among those who are still alive and active, he certainly has gotten the most out of this approach, and "Secrets & Lies" is a marvelous example of it.Despite its success, the DVD for this film went out-of-print in the U.S. many years ago, but thankfully it's been reissued on Blu-Ray in the U.K., and if you live in the States, I highly recommend getting a region compatible or region free player and importing this disc, because it's a wonderful looking disc. The detail is wonderful, the film grain is all intact, and the transfer is as good as one would hope, with no glaring artifacts - it looks like a film shot on film without any tomfoolery to compromise that. Certainly the best way to see this film at home, and if you're new to Mike Leigh, it's a good place to start.

...and I haven't seen the brilliant and hilarious piece on any other DVD. To have it on a DVD with such a good feature film is double brilliant. The 25 minute comedy monologue is written and performed by the exceptionally talented Jim Broadbent and directed by Leigh. It is one of the best pieces of writing you'll ever witness, and the portrayal by Broadbent is worthy of Peter Sellers. Why these things don't get shown more often is a mystery, but if you love British satire at its sharpest then you'll have to have this DVD.Secrets and Lies is also a classic Leigh film, but definitely not a short, it surprised me how long this film was, British movies are usually very economical in length. Emotionally draining and uplifting at the same time, Leigh puts in some humorous touches to stop it degenerating into a soap opera and the acting all round is superb. Has some good camera angles like the entire (long) bbq scene shot from two static positions, one a lowish patio based angle, the other facing the house from high up. It gave the film a casual artiness that lifted it out of the ordinary from most British mainstream movies, and you can see why the French liked it so much. What kept it British was the depiction of working class Londoners with their small lives and petty differences and odd little habits, but there is no doubt at all that Mr. Leigh had been studying the unique and intimate art of French film making leading up to this great project. As for the content, this sort of thing is generally made more on the continent too, although Leigh and Loach between them, in their different styles, have made the British now into world class social realist movie makers.

a cast, plus brilliant theme plus brilliant script, add superlative acting of Brenda Blethyn the working class mum lacking self esteem, and desperate to be wanted, more than the typical gritting slice of working class life.

One of my favourite Mike Leigh films as well as simply being one of my favourite films (of any director). I’ve watched “Secrets and Lies” numerous times since I first saw it on Channel 4 in the mid 1990’s and watched it again last night, and it still has all the appeal that it had when I first watched and enjoyed it.Every one of the main cast are superb as well as actors (some of whom are familiar faces in Leigh’s films) who are on screen for literally only a few seconds are equally good, but whenever I’ve watched this film, I always notice just how brilliant Claire Rushbrook is in the role of “Roxanne”. I love Mike Leigh’s films and so it follows that for me, his directing in “Secrets and Lies” is fantastic. The story is in essence quite simple, but given the way the narrative plays out, that story is told really well, with perfect pace whilst also managing to avoid explaining all aspects of the story and of some of the characters history – leaving the viewer to make their own assumptions about some very important parts of the story – something that works really well here. But everything about “Secrets and Lies” seems to work really well…

excellent film, well acted, very poignant storyline well worth a watch

Perfect story telling

One of my favourite movies, ever. And, believe me, I have watched thousands of movies. Interesting fact: Although Mike Leigh clearly wrote the plot, many of the scenes were improvised. Amazing cast really played up to the challenge. Brenda Blethyn did NOT know who was playing her daughter in the pivotal scene where they meet. She was truly confused, and had to just "go with it". A touching, interesting and insightful film with some truly touching performances. Enjoyable from start to finish, but some difficult moments depicting family ties, misunderstandings, resentments and more. Brenda Blethyn and Marianne Jean-Baptiste were both deservedly nominated for Oscars; also nominated for Best Picture, Director and Screenplay. Winner of the Palme D'Or and Best Actress for Blethyn at Cannes. Winner Best Actress BAFTA.

Great to have this brilliant movie.

Wie geht man damit um, wenn ein Teil seines Lebens verborgen bleiben soll? Haftet heute immer noch die Schande, so wie damals? Mit viel Emotionen (untypisch für Britische Filme) wird hier die langsame Aufdeckung der Vergangenheit gezeigt und Stereotypen gekippt. Können sich zwei solch unterschiedliche Welten zusammenfügen? Ende gut - alles gut; Ehrlichkeit währt doch am längsten.

j adore tout simplement , j attends la suite avec impatience !!! je le regarde souvent et je le conseil aus personnes qui aiment les séries poliçieres