O Agente Secreto – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

THE SECRET AGENT (O Agente Secreto, NYFF 2025) – Review by Diane Carson

September 23, 2025September 27, 2025 Diane Carson brazilian films, Kleber Mendonça Filho, Maria Fernanda Cândido, NYFF 2025, O Agente Secreto, surrealistic, The Secret Agent, Wagner Moura

A complex dramatization of tragic history comes to vivid life in Brazilian writer/director Kleber Mendonça Filho’s The Secret Agent (O Agente Secreto). Set in 1977 Brazil, academic leftist and technology expert Armando retreats to his home town of Recife to reunite with his son, hoping also to elude violent retaliation perpetrated under General Ernesto Geisel’s military dictatorship, a rule characterized by rampant corruption and indifference to human life.

Festivals Reviews

THE SECRET AGENT (Cannes FF 2025) – Review by Diane Carson

June 11, 2025June 10, 2025 Diane Carson brazilian films, Cannes FF 2025, Cannes’ Best Director award, dramatization, Kleber Mendonça Filho, O Agente Secreto, The Secret Agent, Wagner Moura

A complex dramatization of tragic history comes to vivid life in Brazilian writer/director Kleber Mendonça Filho’s The Secret Agent (“O Agente Secreto). Set in 1977 Brazil, academic leftist and technology expert Marcelo retreats to his home town of Recife, hoping to elude violent retaliation in the military dictatorship rampant with corruption and indifferent to human life. Using a pseudonym in an attempt at concealment, Marcelo opposed a government minister ready to exploit and monetize scientific researchers’ discoveries while also disbanding the university department. For his ethical stand, Marcelo earns candidacy for targeted elimination.