REVIEW: “The Secret Agent” (2025)

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“The Secret Agent” begins with a visually stunning scene showcasing the beauty of PanaVision filming. We see Marcela (Wagner Moura) driving his bright yellow Volkswagen Beetle in rural Brazil, stopping at a dilapidated gas station for fuel. After a brief, tense interaction with a corrupt police officer, Marcela continues his journey to Recife, the primary setting for the rest of the film.

The film opens with a striking sequence that immediately showcases the beautiful visuals of this captivating thriller. Director Kleber Mendonça Filho and cinematographer Evgenia Alexandrova used classic PanaVision lenses and equipment to film “The Secret Agent,” giving it a wider, cinematic feel and a look reminiscent of 1970s films. But it’s more than just a stylistic nod; the camera work truly pulls you into the story’s lively world.

While “The Secret Agent” isn’t obviously a political film, the political climate of 1977 Brazil is central to this gripping thriller. The opening titles call it “a time of great mischief,” but that’s a mild description of the reality. Brazil was under a brutal military dictatorship for twenty years, and anyone who spoke out against the government faced persecution and was often silenced.

In Recife, Marcela finds Dona Sebastiana (played by the wonderful Tânia Maria), who secretly provides shelter to political refugees in one of her apartment buildings. We soon discover Marcela is actually one of these refugees, originally named Armando – a former engineering teacher and researcher. The fact that he wasn’t a significant threat to the government highlights just how widespread the persecution was during that time, a point the film’s director skillfully emphasizes.

A flashback reveals that Armando was leading a promising university project researching lithium batteries. A dishonest government official, Ghirotti, saw how valuable the research was and tried to shut down Armando’s department. Ghirotti planned to steal the research and sell it to a private company he had invested in. Armando and his wife, Fatima, fought back, making themselves targets of Ghirotti’s corruption.

In 1977, Armando is grieving the recent loss of his wife, and his son, Fernando, is being raised by his grandparents. Armando tells Fernando his mother died of pneumonia, but the circumstances seem fishy, particularly considering a previous encounter with Ghirotti. Meanwhile, Ghirotti discovers Armando is somewhere in Recife and decides to have him killed. He hires two hitmen from São Paulo – a tough ex-soldier named Augusto and his stepson, Bobbi – to find and eliminate Armando.

“The Secret Agent” is a complex story, and this is just a brief overview. Several other important characters drive the plot. We see compelling scenes with Armando’s worried father-in-law, Alexandre (Carlos Francisco), who works as a cinema projectionist. The Chief of Police, Euclides Cavalcanti (Roberio Diogenes), is a corrupt official carrying out the regime’s orders with his two sons. Equally fascinating is Elza (Maria Fernanda Cândido), who leads a resistance group dedicated to helping Armando escape the city.

Coordinating all the different elements of this film was a real challenge, but seeing Filho pull it off is captivating. He approaches his work with calm confidence, consistently breaking from convention. Neither he nor the movie feels constrained by typical formulas or expectations, which allows for a unique creative freedom. However, this freedom doesn’t always serve the film well. For example, the scene with a talking severed leg attacking people in a park feels bizarre and disrupts the overall tone. While inspired by a strange, real-life news story and intended to represent the government’s oppression, it’s ultimately a jarring and distracting moment.

Given the film’s sprawling narrative, it’s understandable that some characters don’t get the attention they deserve. However, there’s still a wealth of detail to appreciate in Filho’s work. His beautifully crafted scenes vividly recreate 1970s Brazil, making the most of every visual element. He expertly captures everything from the intense heat to the energy of Carnival, fully immersing the viewer in this tumultuous time. Wagner Moura delivers a standout performance in a role that grows increasingly nuanced, and he serves as a strong anchor for a truly impressive film.

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2025-11-26 18:58