EL SECRETO DE SUS OJOS A.I.E. - THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES

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EL SECRETO DE SUS OJOS A.I.E. – THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES is a subtitled Argentinian drama. It follows a retired Federal Justice Agent as he revisits an old case in the hope of turning it into a novel. The film was classified ‘18’ for one scene of sexual violence and brief strong nudity.

The central rape and murder of a young woman is shown briefly during the opening moments of the film, including sight of the woman’s terrified and screaming face as her attacker rips open her top to expose her breasts and then thrusts into her. While this brief scene is the narrative core from which everything else in the film follows, it goes beyond the allowance for the ‘discreet’ portrayal of sexual violence permissible by the Guidelines at ‘15’.

At ‘15’ the BBFC Guidelines also state that ‘nudity may be allowed in a sexual context but without strong detail’. Two scenes exceed this test. In one scene, we are shown the fully naked dead body of the female victim, bloodied and bruised and with breasts and pubic hair visible. In another scene, a man reveals his semi-erect penis to a woman after being taunted repeatedly about whether he could perform sexually. Although no sexual activity takes place during either scene, the context within which the strong nudity occurs (the aftermath of a rape and verbal sexual taunting), meant that the scenes in question possessed a sexual tone more appropriately placed at '18'.

The film also contains multiple uses of strong language and some scenes of the bloody aftermath of murders.