My take is that Majiid's son set up the surveillance probably without his father's knowledge. The long shot towards the end of young Majiid being forcibly taken from the Laurent home iis extremely sad.

A film more about the viewer than what appears onscreen. We must know, we demand to know what it all means but the are no satisfying answers.

Maybe it's only surprising to me because I don't read many film reviews, but I'm disappointed by how much the professional critics seem to have missed in this film. One of the themes of this film is that the meaning of events or of the characters' lives is often "hidden" in plain sight, played out in the margins of what otherwise seem like long, boring, straight shots. This film, with its restrained direction and unresolved mysteries, is a great antidote to hollywood movies.… Collapse

I find it interesting that Michael Haneke's "Cache (Hidden)" won the Best Director award for Haneke at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival and that it received an 83/100 on Metacritic, putting it in the category of "UNIVERSAL ACCLAIM" and that it received an 88% out of 100 on Rotten Tomatoes with only 15 out of 121 reviews rating it "rotten." Surely the awards and the opinions of the handpicked jury members of the Cannes Film Festival and all the opinions of the countless credible and legitimate scholars of film crumble in the face of Dustin C's and fjuan n's and Maz D's towering infallible authority. These three erudite individuals clearly have something to teach all those countless lowly credible and legitimate scholars of film. In fact, Dustin C, fjuan n, and Maz D should each teach a course titled "How to Understand and Decipher Complex and Sophisticated Meditations on Bourgeois Discontent and Alienation, Racial and Class Privilege, and the Importance of Boundary Transgression Narratives" at Harvard. They clearly know so much about these subjects. Or maybe they should just keep their infantile mouth shut.… Expand

Caché is an breathtaking, exhilarating film, with the most deliciously ambiguous ending since Before Sunset (though I may even prefer the way this film ends over that one). This was, at least for me, the best film of 2005. I haven't left the theater so infused with a sense of giddiness (and unease?!) since I walked out of Mulholland Drive over four years ago.

Best movie of the year (I know that is not saying much this year). Terrifying, creepy, torturous to watch but absolutely brilliant and thought provoking.

An incredible film - Haneke deserves to be up there with those few directors who make consistently excellent films about difficult issues.

This movie is simply outstanding. The grip Haneke maintains on his audience is very tight and the movie builds to a level of unbearable tension... Also, it's a little peculiar that the metascore dropped 3 points from one negative review out of SF.

Great film...very French in that the ending is ambiguous. The first movie I've been to in long time where I didn't hear anyone talking during the film and you could have heard a pin drop in the theatre. Some shockingly violent scenes (one made the whole theatre gasp). Good acting, good directing, good movie.

A refreshing breath of French Air. A view of French racism that in these Post-Katrina days we can see is different from and even more unconcious than our own.

Wonderful movie!

It's a truly great movie with many open ended questions. I never considered it a "thriller" and find the repetition of this term in many of the film's slatings, indicative of it's crirtics' attitudes to films as a whole.

[***SPOILER***] The film was riveting. But questions remain: why such a violent action (suicide) to rupture the life of Georges and his family when just the existence of the videos would have been sufficient??? What does the meeting of the two sons at the final credits portend???

This movie plays directly on the emotions, and will stick with you long after you leave the theatre. American movies, even the good ones, generally feel the need to resolve everything. With Cache the pleasure is in the mystery -- those who appreciate it will leave the theatre looking over their shoulders.

Ranks alongside the most important movies of this century so far by a director who is pushing his theories & techniques like a knife straight into the gut of those who fear depth liking all to be surface & superficial.Will be remembered for many years to come-an examination of European culture/history & sensibilities as it stands today:throws up more questions as it answers-as it was intended to do and bursts the bubbles of those who think theyre clever.look at this movie with both eyes open.The perforances are up there with the best i've ever seen as well-you basically forget they are 'acting'. Especially for those who take cinema seriously.… Expand

This film restored my faith in intelligent and artistic movie-making. For those of you complaining that it was "boring" or "had no ending," perhaps something starring Jennifer Aniston would be more your speed.

Top notch. Not hollywood, which seems to offend people on this sight but you americans don't live in the real world which gives credit to those of you who can look outside with an open mind.

Complex, fascinating film--worth repeated viewings.

Mick LaSalle has it all wrong. Cache is the furthest movie from a fraud that I have seen in several years. The movie has not been affected by either politics or poltics: simply, this movie is a masterpiece.

Great Movie! Not for those who don't like Austrian/French films though.

Haneke's best film yet. An absolutely spellbinding thriller that masterfully combines the personal with the political. Binoche and especially Auteuil are wonderful as the intellectual couple at the center of the film. Engimatic, provocative and chilling. Pay really close attention to the last shot of the film, it points the whole movie to an entirely different direction depending on your interpretation. Excellent film.… Expand

Outstanding study in film technique with a (not so) open ended story. The cliffhanger is a doozy and the violence is unexpected and powerful. It is not a movie for the casual thriller fan seeking a creaking door mystery and requires a good deal of patience. It will be rewarded.

I couldn't take my eyes off the screen--even during my third viewing of the film.

Great film. Weaves the personal and the political into a seamless whole - and the past and the present (including the US invasion of Iraq).

This was , by far, one of the best films I have ever seen. It not only had me spellbound but it made me think for days to follow. It isn't about who filmed or who didn't film the family's home but much more about the GUILT felt (or that SHOULD be felt) for the mistreatment of Algerians. The man felt guilt and whether or not this was ALL in his head, the guilt was real. I think Americans, overall, aren't intelligent enough to understand the racism in it or the sophistication it requires to "get" it! If you want a film you can understand then I suggest you see a Disney movie or watch the umpteens of bad sitcoms on today's television sets. But don't come in here and rate a movie for which you weren't armed/equipped to understand. But then again: typical American reaction and display of stupidity and foolishness.… Expand

The interesting thing to me about the "user" reviews for this movie is how polarized they are, and how reminiscent that is of the current political climate in America. It can't be coincidence. I know that people often call movies "critical darlings" and say that they aren't amde with "normal people" in mind, but I feel this conflict is more about people having opposing mindsets, and that a certain mindset will mostly enjoy this movie and be patient with it, and another mostly will not. Anyway, I am in the camp that enjoyed it...its vagueness, its deliberate pacing, its allegory, its lack of sympathetic characters. I felt like someone had put itching powder on me for two hours watching it, and that is an accomplishment in itself. Maybe you have to suspend disbelief a bit to enjoy the movie, but what the hell...is that so bad? Movies can be of all sorts of different natures, and one like this is not bad because it is a departure from formula. I loved the stretches of inactivity, because it was an opportunity to THINK...like real life gives. No music...how cool. Heavy handed? Not really...there weren't repeated images of the Algerian conflict thrown around. Most was left for you to fill in. The issue was with how the people were. Someone once said that creating something that all people feel strongly about, whether good or bad, is great art. In the case of "Cache", I have to agree.… Expand

I have to be one of those that really like this film (funny, how polarizing it is, isn't it?) I admit to only possessing a hodge-podge understanding of French colonialism of Algeria and the immigrant Algerian-French community, but a well crafted take on universal themes of 'responsibility', 'guilty', 'heredity' and other Big Ideas. Wonderfully portrayed. Had I known and seen it in the theatre, I would have missed the rich abundance of visual cues (not to mention the ending!). Hurrah for DVDs.… Expand

Fascinating; keeps one on the edge of their seat with a substantial aftertaste; thought provoking.