The Secret Agent: A Gritty Political Thriller Set in 1970s Brazil’s Military Rule

One of the biggest hits this awards season was I'm Still Here. It is a drama about the cruelty of the military rule in Brazil in the 1970s. Now, there is another film about the same topic. It could also be popular when awards come again. This new film is called The Secret Agent. It is not as gentle as I'm Still Here, but it is exciting and full of style. It is a political thriller made by Kleber Mendonça Filho. The story happens in Recife, a city in northeast Brazil, during the busy carnival week. The movie has sex scenes, shoot-outs, bad hitmen, and old cars. It even shows a shark with a cut-off human leg inside it. You might think Quentin Tarantino would love this movie.

Even though the movie looks bright and flashy, it is about real worries and sadness of normal people. The hero is not a secret agent at all. Wagner Moura, known for Narcos and Civil War, plays Marcelo. Marcelo is tall and handsome like a spy, but he is a quiet man. At first, he is seen driving a yellow Volkswagen Beetle into Recife. The movie takes its time to tell who he is and his story. Marcelo is a widower. He fought against a powerful man in the government who tried to steal his research. That was a big mistake. Marcelo wants to see his young son again. His son lives with Marcelo’s late wife’s family. Marcelo also wants to find papers so he can leave Brazil. For now, he works secretly at a public records office. He hopes to find proof his mother was real. He also stays in a safe house for people against the government. A kind old woman looks after them.

Filho and the actors make characters who are either very good or very bad. Marcelo finds a dead body at a gas station before he reaches Recife. No one has taken it away. So, he knows life is tough now. But he is shocked to learn two killers are after him. He is also upset by the local police chief’s bad behavior. The police chief is very bad. When he reads that 91 people died during carnival, he happily bets more will die soon.

Even with danger and corruption, Marcelo watches Recife’s strange events with surprise. He laughs at a two-faced cat, his son’s wish to see Jaws, and many people having sex in public. There is also a strange story about the cut-off leg in the shark. Some people might find the movie too long or wandering. It is more than two and a half hours. It shows many characters who want to leave Brazil, like the people at Rick’s Café in Casablanca.

A big theme is what people remember and what they forget. Filho grew up in Recife and wants to keep its details alive in the movie. These details add fun and sadness. Marcelo looks sad too because he won’t stay in Brazil much longer.

When the story seems slow, it gets exciting again. The killers drop a body from a bridge. A secret helper offers to make a new passport for Marcelo. There is a great chase through the city streets at the end. It is bloody and well done. But like I'm Still Here, the movie leaves some questions. For example, whose leg was in the shark?