Review of Every Secret Thing (2014) by Chazzyc . — 01 Jun 2016

18 year old Ronnie Fuller (Dakota Fanning) and Alice Manning have just been released from Juvenile Hall after serving 7 years for the kidnapping and murder of the bi-racial granddaughter of the county's first black judge. When asked about the crime, Alice continually insists that she is innocent, a victim of Ronnie's machinations, including Ronnie planting her jack in the box at the scene of the murder to frame her. Ronnie is working at a sandwich shop in town, while Alice spends most of her days apparently aimlessly walking around town eating junk food, but lying and telling her mother she is searching for employment as per her request. Alice also secretly dreams of finding validation through reality TV stardom. Alice's mother Helen Manning (Diane Lane) is a teacher at the elementary school, and it is apparent she and her daughter have a contentious relationship. Helen is ashamed of Alice being overweight, her unsophisticated tastes, and her lack of interest in the kind of things Helen likes. Two weeks after Ronnie and Alice return home a couple are shopping in a furniture store with their young curly-haired bi-racial daughter, Brittany Lyttle. While the couple are arguing about couches their daughter goes missing, prompting panic. The two detectives assigned to the case that come to visit the parents include detective Nancy Porter (Elizabeth Banks), who worked on the Fuller/Manning case, which still haunts and traumatizes her. Soon the connection between the current case and the previous kidnapping becomes apparent, including the resemblance between Brittany and the previous kidnap victim...

Amy J. Berg has created a drama with a strong and emotional plotline, but unfortunately her direction is uneven and the story doesn´t grip you the way it should in my opinion. The subplots are not really fleshed out and they end up way too much on the sidelines to really add to the story. Or for that matter being dramatized properly. There´s illogic plotholes and the driving force of the drama is wobbly. And yes, you can complain about the fact that Nicole Holofcener (screenplay) and Laura Lippman (novel) has written a piece that goes down the stereotypical road in many ways and push all the prejudice buttons. At the same time it raises questions about the justice system, how kids can be held responsible for unspeakable crimes and the accountability of parents in those cases. The pace is however slow and despite Diane Lane and Elizabeth Banks adding weight to the cast, "Every Secret Thing" is not close to for example Denis Villeneuve´s "Prisonsers" with a semi similar plot. "Every Secret Thing" has potential, but fails to deliver.