EVERY SECRET THING (2014) - Movie Review

Director: Amy Berg
Starring: Elizabeth Banks, Diane Lane, Dakota Fanning, Danielle Macdonald, Common
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery
Writer: Nicole Holofcener
Runtime: 93 min
Rated: Rated R for some language and disturbing images
Buy This Movie: DVD (Amazon), Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV

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Synopsis:

From a producer of FOXCATCHER and based on the novel by New York Times best-selling author Laura Lippman, EVERY SECRET THING is a gripping psychological thriller about the chilling consequences of the secrets we keep. Detective Nancy Porter (Elizabeth Banks) is still haunted by her failure to save the life of a missing child from the hands of two young girls. Eight years later, another child goes missing in the same town just days after Ronnie and Alice (Dakota Fanning and newcomer Danielle Macdonald), the two girls convicted of the former crime, were released from juvenile detention. Porter and her partner (Nate Parker) must race against the clock to prevent history from repeating itself. But as they begin to investigate the girls and their families, especially Alice's protective mother (Diane Lane), they unearth a web of secrets and deceptions that calls everything into question.

Review:

Academy Award-winning actress Frances McDormand made her debut as producer with this film, which is based on American journalist and author Laura Lippman's crime novel "Every Secret Thing". The adaptation is penned by Oscar-nominated "The Last Duel" co-writer Nicole Holofcener, and it's directed by documentary filmmaker Amy Berg, whose 2007 doc "Deliver Us from Evil" was nominated for an Oscar. With all this impressive behind-the-scenes pedigree, a haunting premise and an all-star cast, does this mystery drama deliver on its promises ?

Basically resembling a ripped-from-the-headlines drama, the film gives us plenty of dark psychological depths to admire from afar, but never quite gets close enough for the viewer to get any actual insight. It's built more like a police procedural than a psychological drama, while at the same time attempting to mimic Denis Villeneuve's superiorly complex 2013 movie "Prisoners". It's unfocused, but thankfully due to its short running time it doesn't meander too much. It's also visually drab, boring the eye with a dull color palette and not a single memorable shot. It looks like something made for Netflix.

The cast is the film's saving grace. Without spoiling the movie's plot I can say that Diane Lane and Danielle Macdonald give out chilling performances that are fascinating to watch. This was one of Macdonald's first major roles, and it's one hell of a breakout performance. Both actresses might have even earned some awards recognition had the movie been better written and directed. Dakota Fanning, Elizabeth Banks and Nate Parker are fine, but don't have much to work with, so they just kind of fade into the plot. There are also a slew of supporting characters that make brief appearances hinting at deeper connections to the plot, but quickly disappear without doing anything significant. Child actors Brynne Norquist and Eva Grace Kellner are also quite good as the younger versions of Macdonald and Fanning's characters.

It's unfortunate that Lippman's novel received such a poor adaptation. The premise is great, and the story's twists are interesting, but Berg just didn't know how to dig deeper into its dark core. This failure to fulfil its lofty ambitions is probably why the movie basically disappeared into oblivion. It doesn't even have a Blu-ray release after ten years. It's perfectly watchable if you like crime stories and don't mind a depressing story, but there are so many better choices out there.

SCORE: 6/10