Download the movie trailer in QuickTime, and read a comprehensive synopsis of the plot and characters that includes actors' names.

Reviewer Julian Lim rates the film and investigates the meaning of class differences and their depiction in art. Lim also explores the title.

African journal reviews the film under the title Method and Madness. Charl Blignaut discusses Leigh's actors and the acting methods.

Choose from Windows Media Player or QuickTime to watch the trailer for this surprise hit about a young black woman who finds her mother is white.

Popular critic Ebert addresses the significance of the film's title, and shares some of the dramatic moments of the story with his audience.

Chronicle critic Edward Guthmann calls the film heartbreaking, and lauds director Leigh for generosity and forgiveness toward his characters.

Read a review by Examiner critic Barbara Shulgasser that examines the effectiveness of Leigh's filmmaking and lets readers in on a secret.

Read a review from a journal of film reviews, news, and interviews. Find a link to Spliced's picks for the best and worst films of 1996.

Browse two critics' reactions to "Secrets & Lies." Desson Howe calls it tear-inducing, and Rita Kempley calls it magnificent melodrama.