The Secret Agent

[MikoTython]

Bueller ? Bueller ?

Looks good - I'm on vaykay now, will see it tonight at the theatre. Review to follow...

[MikoTython]

Bueller ? Bueller ?

Looks good - I'm on vaykay now, will see it tonight at the theatre. Review to follow...

Have to say I found the nature of the conflict vaguely, and for that reason, poorly drawn. Attractively atmospheric, but did not draw me in - probably my own limitation. It was, in some respects, so subtle, the adversaries so pedestrian & comical, I’m not sure it did justice to the era.

[Dicktar2023]

I saw this today, and I'm still trying to process it.

On the one hand, this movie has a sense of being lived-in that is unrivaled. This movie has vibes. I feel like I could step into this movie and find my way to the local library.

On the other hand, I wish it cared more (or at all) for basic storytelling. The indifference to coherent backstory is almost surreal. Despite hours of movie and several shots at exposition, I'm still not sure how Amando came to be in Recife. Or what happened to his wife (she must have also been on the evil industrialist's [shirt] list, right? Should I not be curious about that?). Or what happened to his mother.

That's ok if I know those things are being left intentionally vague. But I feel like I just missed something (or a lot of things). I hate that feeling more than anything in a movie.

So...mixed feelings.

[3dender]

I saw this today, and I'm still trying to process it.

On the one hand, this movie has a sense of being lived-in that is unrivaled. This movie has vibes. I feel like I could step into this movie and find my way to the local library.

On the other hand, I wish it cared more (or at all) for basic storytelling. The indifference to coherent backstory is almost surreal. Despite hours of movie and several shots at exposition, I'm still not sure how Amando came to be in Recife. Or what happened to his wife (she must have also been on the evil industrialist's [shirt] list, right? Should I not be curious about that?). Or what happened to his mother.

That's ok if I know those things are being left intentionally vague. But I feel like I just missed something (or a lot of things). I hate that feeling more than anything in a movie.

So...mixed feelings.

We watched this last night, finally, and loved it. It's definitely my favorite film of 2025 so far, though haven't seen many notables like Sentimental Value (that's next).

I think the feeling of "missing something" that you describe is totally intentional. The main theme of the movie is the impossibility of memory/knowledge in a society/world that is completely corrupt. It's incredibly sad, which is contrasted in a fascinating way with the vibrant/joyous world they depict very often on screen (e.g. set during Carnival). And the cinematography deserved at least a nomination if not an outright win... can't recall ever seeing such colors on screen, it was gorgeous.

The narrative structure is a little disjointed, and it's probably a little too long, but we definitely didn't feel the length. Any other movie we would have broken up into two viewings but this one when we finally looked up there was only a half hour left. I'd mark a point or two off for it feeling a little more disjointed than the director probably intended (I think a lot of that feeling, again, is intentional).