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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer:
Mike Leigh (writer)
Release Date:
25 October 1996 (USA) more
Tagline:
Roxanne drives her mother crazy. Maurice never speaks to his niece. Cynthia has a shock for her family. Monica can't talk to her husband. Hortense has never met her mother.
Plot:
Successful black woman traces her birth mother to a lower-class white woman, who denies it; emotions run high as everyone's secrets are exposed. full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 29 wins & 20 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(4 articles)
Producer Channing-Williams Dead
(From WENN. 14 April 2009, 5:05 AM, PDT)
British Filmmakers Rebuff Hollywood
(From Studio Briefing - Film News. 13 January 1998)
User Comments:
A great layering of memorable characters more (109 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Timothy Spall | ... | Maurice Purley | |
| Phyllis Logan | ... | Monica Purley | |
| Brenda Blethyn | ... | Cynthia Rose Purley | |
| Claire Rushbrook | ... | Roxanne Purley | |
| Marianne Jean-Baptiste | ... | Hortense Cumberbatch | |
| Elizabeth Berrington | ... | Jane | |
| Michele Austin | ... | Dionne | |
| Lee Ross | ... | Paul | |
| Lesley Manville | ... | Social Worker | |
| Ron Cook | ... | Stuart | |
| Emma Amos | ... | Girl with Scar | |
| Brian Bovell | ... | Hortense's Brother | |
| Trevor Laird | ... | Hortense's Brother | |
| Claire Perkins | ... | Hortense's Sister-in-Law (as Clare Perkins) | |
| Elias Perkins McCook | ... | Hortense's Nephew |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Secrets et mensonges (France)
more
MPAA:
Rated R for language.
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
142 min | USA:136 min
Language:
Color:
Color (Metrocolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Iceland:L | South Korea:15 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Chile:14 | Finland:S | Hong Kong:IIA | Netherlands:AL | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:7 | UK:15 | USA:R
Filming Locations:
Holborn Underground Station, Holborn, London, England, UK more
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Most of the script was improvised. Writer/director Mike Leigh told each of the actors what his/her part in the story was and they each developed their own characters. more
Quotes:
Cynthia Purley:
But sweetheart, I can't be your mother!
Hortense Cumerbatch:
Why not?
Cynthia Purley:
Well... look at me!
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in 50 Films to See Before You Die (2006) (TV) more
Soundtrack:
Happy Birthday to You more
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (109 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Secrets & Lies (1996) moreRecommendations
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It took a second viewing of Mike Leigh's 'Secrets and Lies' to reveal the depth of its genius. I love character-driven drama, and this film succeeds in creating indelible portraits. Even the social worker is quirky and memorable instead of just furthering the plot and being patently sympathetic.
I could write quite a lot about Blethyn's riveting performance. How drained she must have been after sustaining a character who seems always at the height of emotional pressure. Opposite her, Jean-Baptiste seemed as cool and smooth as could be. The contrasts created by these personae even extended to costume and decor.
I decided to watch this movie again because after a BBC Shakespeare binge I wanted to see everything Ron Cook has been in. And while the Stuart scene is really somewhat incongruous to the rest of the family plot, Cook's scene as the bitter, drunk 't****r' works for me perfectly. So do the scenes of photo sessions -- and it's a matter of observing this film in terms of clarity of personal vision. The occupations of photographer and optometrist seem to lend metaphors of spirituality -- for Maurice, the ability to see people as they are, and for Hortense, the ability to understand how others see the world. The wall of smoke that Cynthia and Roxanne seem to keep in front of them. The disparity between the images created for the formal portraits and the truth of the personalities in them. In a distinctly un-sappy way, Leigh has explored the old adage that "the truth will set you free."
If one reads a paragraph describing the main plot -- the adopted child seeking out her birth mother -- a very clear idea of a movie-of-the-week story comes to mind. 'Secrets and Lies' is nothing like that, and shows a mastery of vision and a cast of great talent. My roommate agreed, saying he thought this was one of the best films he's seen this decade.