Our Secret takes the universal concept of a family dealing with grief and presents it in a way that’s both deeply naturalistic and lacking ambition.
Director: Grace Passô
Genre: Drama
Run Time: 108′
Berlin Film Festival Screenings: February 14-19, 2026
Release Date: TBA
Death is one of life’s few constants, which means so is grief. Everybody will deal with loss at some point in their lives, but it’s the way we deal with the emotional fallout that dictates its power over us. This is the central thesis at the heart of Our Secret (Nosso Segredo), and director Grace Passô presents it in a way that’s both deeply personal and universally relatable.
However, the film’s lack of narrative momentum, and tendency to repeat similar ideas without reframing the lens they’re presented through, leaves the finished product feeling overly familiar and unambitious.
Our Secret presents an interwoven web of narratives, following the individual lives of a family dealing with a recent loss. We see how each of these characters deal with their grief in sharply different ways, whether it’s indulging themselves in nostalgia or pushing themselves away from the world entirely. The only person who seems to understand the weight of the family’s grief is the youngest son, whose concerns about his crumbling domestic sphere repeatedly go unheard.
Our Secret is a deeply allegorical film, using several bold metaphors to present how the silent effects of grief can manifest in countless forms. From the house’s electrical system cutting out, to an unnoticed rot growing through the walls, it’s immediately clear what Passô is attempting with this story. Grief is a physical burden, and one that must be actively watched and maintained to keep under check.
The problem is that Our Secret fails to present anything deeper than this, using several subplots to ultimately say the same thing. The characters are all dealing with grief and loss in their own ways, but Passô’s screenplay spends too much time jumping between perspectives to allow any of them to actually flourish to their full potential. Just when it feels like a truly original point is being made, the film cuts itself short and jumps to something else.
This can make Our Secret quite a frustrating viewing experience, demanding slightly too much patience from the audience before rewarding them with a conclusion that neither subverts expectations nor feels entirely innovative. Admittedly, the film makes up for this on some level with its impressive technical craft; Passô’s direction and Wilssa Esser’s cinematography create a very immersive aesthetic that keeps the viewer engaged even when the plot reaches its most stretched and overindulgent moments.
Ultimately, Our Secret is a film that feels dictated by a simple concept rather than a concept that has naturally evolved into a full-length story. There’s probably a very strong short film in there somewhere, and the technical craftsmanship is very impressive, but the story feels quite underbaked and doesn’t quite warrant its bold conclusion.
Our Secret (Nosso Segredo): Movie Plot & Recap
Synopsis:
A Black Brazilian family in the city of Belo Horizonte struggles to rebuild their lives after a recent loss. Caught between memories and nightmares, and unable to express what they feel to each other, a mother and her children try to evade the pain of grief by immersing themselves in their individual routines.
Pros:
- Deeply personal story that uses visual metaphors in reliable and confident ways.
- Impressive visuals and bold editing that immerses the viewer in the story.
Cons:
- Unambitious storytelling that merely follows characters objectively but fails to offer a critical lens on their stories.
- Jumps between subplots and cuts short their development instead of letting them evolve naturally.
Our Secret (Nosso Segredo) premiered at the Berlin Film Festival on February 14-19, 2026. Read our Berlin Film Festival reviews and our list of 20 films to watch at the 2026 Berlin Film Festival!