Juan Jose Campanella Movies
- 2009
A man uncovers some long-held secrets when he investigates a murder long thought to be a closed case in this drama from filmmaker Juan Jose Campanella. In the 1970s, Argentina has fallen under the control of a military junta and a fair trial is becoming an increasingly uncommon event in that nation's courts. When a woman is found raped and murdered while her husband is at work, two traveling laborers confess to the crime, but only after suffering a severe beating at the hands of police. Decades later, Benjamin (Ricardo Darin), who has recently retired from the court, decides to write a book about the case, based on his belief that the two men were wrongly convicted. While his close friend Irene (Soledad Villamil), a judge, is wary of Benjamin's plans, a fellow court employee, Sandoval (Guillermo Francella), is eager to help him. A photograph alerts Benjamin to the possibility that Gomez (Javier Godino) may have been the real culprit, but after thirty years finding Gomez and finding conclusive evidence against him is no simple task. And as Irene eventually becomes part of the investigation, Benjamin has to come to terms with his unspoken love for her. El Secreto De Sus Ojos (aka The Secret In Their Eyes) received its North American premiere at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 2007
In exchange for her getting him off the hook with Detective Tritter, Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein) forces House (Hugh Laurie) to take full-time clinic duty, resulting in some truly childish behavior from both of them. The main plot involves rape victim Eve (Katheryn Winnick), who bypasses psychiatric counseling in order to tell all her problems to House--who, in a pivotal moment, opens up to Eve in a way that he has never opened up to anyone else before. Meanwhile, a homeless patient (Geoffrey Lewis) suffering from terminal lung cancer insists upon playing mind games with Cameron (Jennifer Morrison), ultimately forcing her to confront her own past. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2005
Angela Lansbury guest stars as Eleanor Duvall, the wealthy and politically powerful mother of suspected serial rapist Gabriel Duvall (Alfred Molina). The SVU team has built up a persuasive case against Gabriel, accusing him of preying upon illegal aliens who are in no position to testify against him. Using her hotshot lawyer Jason Whittaker (Bradley Cooper) as her mouthpiece, Eleanor threatens dire consequences against the detectives if they continue to "harrass" her son--and she has the clout to back up these threats. The situation becomes painfully personal when, shortly after Gabriel is released for lack of evidence, Assistant DA Novak (Diane Neal) is savagely attacked. Rita Moreno costars as a feisty immigrant-rights activist. Originally telecast May 3, 2005, "Night" is the first episode of a two-part story which concluded the same evening on the Law&Order: Special Victims Unit's "sister" series Law & Order: Trial by Jury, with that show's regulars Bebe Neuwirth, Kirk Acevedo and Fred Dalton Thompson appearing in both episodes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2005
Two young girls, Kerry Lynn Palmer and Dana McNamara, are raped and murdered--fourteen years apart. At the time of the first murder, Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) had nailed Gordon Rickett (Matthew Modine) as the perpetrator, only to let Rickett slip through his fingers. Now, Stabler is determined to sweat a confession out of Rickett for both murders, even if it means interrogating the suspect nonstop during the 24 hours he is able to keep him in the holding tank. But Stabler's colleagues are worried: will he be able to retain his professional detachment, or will his all-consuming hatred of Rickett get the better of the desperate detective? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2004
Even while recovering from wounds sustained in a shootout, Detective Fin Tutuola (Ice-T) insists upon following a new lead on a case he'd worked on as undercover cop years before. Having promised a woman who has since been murdered that he would locate her drug-addicted daughter, Tutuola intends to keep his promise, teaming up with rookie narcotics-squad cop Mike Sandoval (Nicholas Gonzalez) for that purpose. Along the way, Fin has a bittersweet reunion with his estranged son Ken (Ernest Waddell) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
A family wedding brings out the best and the worst in the various parties involved in this warm but pointed comedy-drama. Rafael Belvedere (Ricardo Darin) makes his living running the restaurant ran by his father, Nino (Hector Alterio), and the combination of a stressful job and familial tensions are wearing him down to a frazzle. Rafael is divorced from his wife, Sandra (Claudia Fontan), he's all but a stranger to his daughter, Vicky (Gimena Nobile), and it's been almost a year since he last paid a visit to his mother, Norma (Norma Aleandro), who is battling Alzheimer's in a retirement home. Rafael has a girlfriend, Naty (Natalia Verbeke), but after a long day of work and dealing with his father, she finds he rarely wants to do anything but watch old reruns on television. With Norma's health declining, Nino decides that he wants to renew their wedding vows and give his wife the nice church service he couldn't afford when he was younger; however, arranging the affair turns out to be far more complicated than either Rafael or Nino imagined, and the circumstances lead to some profound changes for father, son, and the rest of the family. El Hijo de la Novia was directed by Juan Jose Campanella, who in recent years has been dividing his time between helming feature films in his native Argentina and directing episodic television in America. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ricardo Darín, Héctor Alterio, (more)
- 2000
In 1980, Jorge (Ricardo Darin) is a serious fiction writer who meets Laura (Soledad Villamil), an aspiring young actress. The two fall in love, and although they emerge unscathed from Argentina's years of military dictatorship, their romance has more difficulty surviving Jorge's fear of commitment. Following their break up, Jorge finds himself falling into a moral and professional slump, and things only start to pick up when Laura reappears in his life. The film, which stretches over 20 years, was directed by Juan Jose Campanella, who returned to his native Argentina after many years spent in New York directing the likes of The Boy Who Cried Bitch and Love Walked In. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ricardo Darín, Ulises Dumont, (more)
- 1998
- R
In this throwback to films noir of the 1940s, Jack Morrisey (Denis Leary) is a pianist and songwriter who has been touring the club circuit with his lady love, Vicky (Aitana Sanchez-Gijon). Jack and Vicky have talent, but they haven't gotten the breaks; they're stone broke and at the end of their collective rope when Eddie (Michael Badalucco), a private eye who knows Jack, makes the couple an offer. Fred Moore (Terence Stamp), a very wealthy man who is something of a fan of Jack's music, is attracted to Vicky. Fred's money and property are, for legal reasons, primarily in the name of his wife, who wants a divorce. If Eddie can provide hard evidence that Fred is cheating on his wife, she'll stand to keep most of his money in a divorce, and Eddie will be kicked back a good chunk of change. Eddie, in turn, will be more than happy to share his wealth with Jack and Vicky, if Vicky would be willing to seduce Fred for the purposes of creating blackmail photos. Though she was a major star in Latin America, this was only the second English language film for Aitana Sanchez-Gijon, after her appearance alongside Keanu Reeves in A Walk in the Clouds. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
