The Secrets We Keep(2020)
Parents need to know that The Secrets We Keep is a revenge thriller set in the United States after World War II. Without spoiling the titular secrets, they involve a rape, an ordeal that the victim (Noomi Rapace) replays over and over, trying to recall the events, which are shown to viewers as shadowed flashes. The storyline hinges on questioning how much trust we place in our memories, especially when dealing with trauma. Watching the film creates inner conflict: We know to believe women, but the film creates a situation in which viewers won't be sure they should. We want to see a woman who's been brutalized take back her power, but is violent revenge the right solution? And we've all learned we need to forgive, but does that extend to Nazis? In addition to the sexual assault, violence includes shootings, physical attacks, a kidnapping, a finger being cut off, and a hammer used as a weapon. Expect a couple of instances of strong language ("bitch," "c--t"), alcohol consumption as a form of torture, and constant smoking (typical for the era). Sex is shown positively between a married couple; the man's naked bottom is shown.
The Secrets We Keep(2020)
GREENE: It's so interesting. I just think about a lot of the things that you've talked about. Like, if Maja is someone who wants to find strength, you could see there being strength and saying proudly to the world, I am Roma, and I have been through these horrible things, and we are, like, a proud, strong people. But in this case, she was - in her search for strength, somehow it meant keeping secrets and just not even revealing that side of her.
GREENE: Wow. You know, I just think about the power of this movie on someone who watches it. Like, I feel like I'm going to go into my own, you know, neighborhood now and just wonder. You know, like, this was a small, quiet suburb where, you know, someone who you never would have expected had these incredible, painful secrets. I feel like I'm going to look at everyone on the street and just sort of wonder...
RAPACE: Yeah. I was actually at dinner yesterday, and I probably went a little bit too honest because I was asking my friend things about his childhood that he was like - oh, wow, nobody ever asked me this. And I was like, you don't have to answer. And then he was like, no, but I want to. And then we started talking about secrets, I guess, and those that you can't speak about. But the moment you start speaking about it, it's almost like you're bringing oxygen into dark rooms in yourself that you thought had to be closed and lonely and shut forever. And as soon as you let a little bit of daylight in, a little bit of emotional oxygen into those hidden places, I think it's the first step to heal and to deal with them.
In 2016, author Lara Prescott was awarded the Crazyhorse Fiction Prize for the first chapter of her debut novel. This provided to be a noteworthy prize, as it helped the author to publish her first novel in 2019. The Secrets We Kept is a spellbinding tale of love, truth, secrets, danger, war and power. With a thrilling plot, The Secrets We Kept proved to be an enthralling novel from start to finish. 041b061a72