I Need Secrets
March 24, 2011 9:35 AM Subscribe
I'm looking for examples of movies wherein the protagonist is keeping something secret, and feels guilty about it.
I'm not interested in secrets like "There's someone trying to overthrow the government," but am interested in ones like "I'm having an affair" or "I'm an embezzler." I've found a few, but I know there must be many more for me to watch. Bonus points for movies that include awkward conversations due to said secret.
Thank you!
I'm not interested in secrets like "There's someone trying to overthrow the government," but am interested in ones like "I'm having an affair" or "I'm an embezzler." I've found a few, but I know there must be many more for me to watch. Bonus points for movies that include awkward conversations due to said secret.
Thank you!
The Machinist.
posted by phunniemee at 9:38 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by phunniemee at 9:38 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Fargo.
posted by sharkfu at 9:39 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by sharkfu at 9:39 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Chinatown.
posted by goalyeehah at 9:39 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by goalyeehah at 9:39 AM on March 24, 2011
Rachel's Getting Married
Little Children
The Informant!
posted by Sticherbeast at 9:40 AM on March 24, 2011
Little Children
The Informant!
posted by Sticherbeast at 9:40 AM on March 24, 2011
Pleasantville
posted by goalyeehah at 9:41 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by goalyeehah at 9:41 AM on March 24, 2011
I haven't seen it since it just came out last week, but heard a recent NPR interview (Fresh Air, I think) that made it sound like Win, Win would meet this criterion.
posted by wuzandfuzz at 9:42 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by wuzandfuzz at 9:42 AM on March 24, 2011
Response by poster: My goodness--I went to make myself a cup of tea and came back to 11 movie suggestions!
Thank you, hivemind--I've seen some of these, and will look the rest up.
Keep 'em coming...
posted by aimeedee at 9:44 AM on March 24, 2011
Thank you, hivemind--I've seen some of these, and will look the rest up.
Keep 'em coming...
posted by aimeedee at 9:44 AM on March 24, 2011
Sophie's Choice
posted by Beardman at 9:49 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Beardman at 9:49 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Oh, also City Island! Evvvvveryone's got secrets in that one, and I seem to recall lots of awkward conversations about them. It's definitely more of a lighthearted family comedy/drama. It was available on Netflix Instant when I watched it a month ago, if you have that.
posted by wuzandfuzz at 9:53 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by wuzandfuzz at 9:53 AM on March 24, 2011
Happiness
posted by Sticherbeast at 9:53 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Sticherbeast at 9:53 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Far from Heaven.
posted by Melismata at 9:56 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Melismata at 9:56 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Unfaithful.
Maybe Same Time, Next Year, though you never see the other spouses.
(great flick, esp. if you dig Alan Alda and/or Ellen Burstyn)
posted by Glinn at 9:58 AM on March 24, 2011
Maybe Same Time, Next Year, though you never see the other spouses.
(great flick, esp. if you dig Alan Alda and/or Ellen Burstyn)
posted by Glinn at 9:58 AM on March 24, 2011
Happiness
I question this. Which protagonist in that movie keeps a secret and feels guilty about it?
posted by John Cohen at 10:01 AM on March 24, 2011
I question this. Which protagonist in that movie keeps a secret and feels guilty about it?
posted by John Cohen at 10:01 AM on March 24, 2011
Shrek
posted by martinX's bellbottoms at 10:09 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by martinX's bellbottoms at 10:09 AM on March 24, 2011
The web of deciet only partly involves the protagonist, but there's an awful lot of what you're talking about (particularly the awkward/revealing conversations) in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which is currently available for streaming via Netflix.
posted by Narrative Priorities at 10:10 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by Narrative Priorities at 10:10 AM on March 24, 2011
It's a little on the nose but Secrets and Lies is all about that.
posted by Bonzai at 10:12 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by Bonzai at 10:12 AM on March 24, 2011
Insomnia (preferably the original, not the US remake).
posted by flod logic at 10:13 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by flod logic at 10:13 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Magnolia (there's not really a central "protagonist" as it's an ensemble piece, but secrets and guilt drive pretty much all the plot lines)
posted by mkultra at 10:16 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by mkultra at 10:16 AM on March 24, 2011
I don't know how widely available (or good) its various film adaptations are, but Crime and Punishment is all about this.
posted by mkultra at 10:19 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by mkultra at 10:19 AM on March 24, 2011
A History of Violence.
Mikey & Nicky couldn't fit the bill better. It's kind of what the entire film is about.
One False Move.
Reversal of Fortune has some content you may be interested in, but I don't know how explicit you want the issues of secrecy and guilty feelings to be.
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.
posted by heatvision at 10:20 AM on March 24, 2011
Mikey & Nicky couldn't fit the bill better. It's kind of what the entire film is about.
One False Move.
Reversal of Fortune has some content you may be interested in, but I don't know how explicit you want the issues of secrecy and guilty feelings to be.
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.
posted by heatvision at 10:20 AM on March 24, 2011
Peeping Tom
I Love You Man
Punch Drunk Love
Festen
Oldboy (possibly)
posted by rhizome at 10:38 AM on March 24, 2011
I Love You Man
Punch Drunk Love
Festen
Oldboy (possibly)
posted by rhizome at 10:38 AM on March 24, 2011
Notes on a Scandal
posted by yellowbinder at 10:40 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by yellowbinder at 10:40 AM on March 24, 2011
Memento is a different sort of take, but I think it fits.
posted by Lifeson at 10:52 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by Lifeson at 10:52 AM on March 24, 2011
In the Company of Men
The Man Who Wasn't There
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
posted by burnmp3s at 10:59 AM on March 24, 2011
The Man Who Wasn't There
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
posted by burnmp3s at 10:59 AM on March 24, 2011
Oh also The Crying Game, (and no it's not the "secret" that the film is well known for).
posted by burnmp3s at 11:07 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by burnmp3s at 11:07 AM on March 24, 2011
Spiderman 2 (arguably most superhero movies, but this is one where the secret andefforts to conceal it have a very personal weight)
Also, not a movie, but Mad Men is driven largely by this theme.
posted by kagredon at 11:13 AM on March 24, 2011
Also, not a movie, but Mad Men is driven largely by this theme.
posted by kagredon at 11:13 AM on March 24, 2011
It depends on who you think the protagonist is, but I think Catfish might fit the bill.
posted by heyheylanagirl at 11:40 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by heyheylanagirl at 11:40 AM on March 24, 2011
The Swedish version of "The Vanishing." Very CHILLING, and I never say that.
posted by amodelcitizen at 11:45 AM on March 24, 2011
posted by amodelcitizen at 11:45 AM on March 24, 2011
Alfred Hitchcock used guilty secrets extensively in his movies. Vertigo is mentioned above, but also:
Rope
Dial M for Murder
Lifeboat
Psycho
Orson Welles also used them in
The Third Man
The Stranger
and arguably Citizen Kane
posted by chrisulonic at 11:47 AM on March 24, 2011
Rope
Dial M for Murder
Lifeboat
Psycho
Orson Welles also used them in
The Third Man
The Stranger
and arguably Citizen Kane
posted by chrisulonic at 11:47 AM on March 24, 2011
Jane Eyre. There are many; my favorite Jane is Charlotte Gainsbourg.
posted by Fui Non Sum at 12:39 PM on March 24, 2011
posted by Fui Non Sum at 12:39 PM on March 24, 2011
Oh, let me second Woody Allen's Crimes and Misdemeanors.
posted by BostonTerrier at 1:26 PM on March 24, 2011
posted by BostonTerrier at 1:26 PM on March 24, 2011
The 2007 film Atonement is centered around a secret kept by one of the protagonists. Interesting film, but not a pleasant watch.
posted by Anything at 3:09 PM on March 24, 2011
posted by Anything at 3:09 PM on March 24, 2011
Response by poster: Thanks, trusty hivemind--this list will keep me going for quite a while! I've seen about a third of these but will rewatch those as well. I've already queued up a bunch of them on Netflix, just in time for the weekend...
Cheers!
posted by aimeedee at 8:54 AM on March 25, 2011
Cheers!
posted by aimeedee at 8:54 AM on March 25, 2011
Seconding Atonement as a truly gut-punching instance of this theme.
posted by bjrubble at 9:06 AM on March 26, 2011
posted by bjrubble at 9:06 AM on March 26, 2011
Identity, maybe? I'm not sure he knows he's keeping a secret.
posted by xax at 9:17 AM on March 28, 2011
posted by xax at 9:17 AM on March 28, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Victorvacendak at 9:36 AM on March 24, 2011