Secrets and Lies

by Mike Leigh

Secrets & Lies was awarded the Palme d'Or for Best Film at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival. It tells the story of Hortense, a young black Londoner who goes in search of her birth mother. Hortense's voyage of discovery leads her to Cynthia - a depressed, unmarried, white woman who has uneasy relationships with both her second daughter and her brother. Hortense's attempt to uncover the hidden, almost forgotten, world of her parents fundamentally affects each of the characters. The film culminates in a lunch party at which the characters reveal the secrets that have blighted their lives, and with this outpouring of truth comes the possibility of renewal.

Genres: British Literature, Film, Drama

Paperback

First published June 1, 1997

Reviews

[Mind the Book · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hortense: - No, of course not. Er... what about outside Holborn Tube Station?

Något jag inte gör särskilt ofta, även om jag nog skulle önska det, är att närläsa ett manus och sedan omedelbart därpå se filmen. Förmodligen sökte jag efter dvd:n på ebay och fann även boken.

Det där kändes redan som ett svunnet London. Faktiskt det London jag inte tyckte särskilt mycket om när jag kom hit sent 80-tal. Även om det är charmigt med A-Z-bläddrande och byte av Walkmanbatterier i stället för Google Maps och Spotify.

Men Timothy Spall och de andra är fantastiska skådespelare. Säger inte det här allt om den irriterande frun i filmen: "In another house, in a room with a blue wall, a woman [...] stands stencilling leaves on to a blue Art Nouveau umbrella stand. She works intensively."

[Simon Sweetman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading the script - only saw the movie one time, back when it was released around 20 years ago and liked it (apart from the bit where he yells, "Secrets And Lies!" in an otherwise grand monologue near the end; it was as if anyone watching might have forgotten the name of the film or something). Good taut script too. The dialogue is sharp, there's not a lot of room there but the 'acting' around the dialogue helps to flesh out the class/race/family issues.

[Florencia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely reading, one easily submerges in the story.

[Yousseif Abdellatif · Rating 4 out of 5]

What makes Secrets and Lies so vital is Mike Leigh's ability to point out how economic dependence is used as a leash to keep critical voices silent.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny and makes you laugh out loud. Mike Leigh is a genius of British characters and the unusual circumstances they find themselves in.

[Abbi Dion]

Genial.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent movie and screenplay that won the Palme d'or at Cannes. Explores divisions between races, classes, genders and families in a non-stereotypical and ultimately warm manner.