The Secret Agent (2025 film)

The Secret Agent
Brazilian teaser poster
PortugueseO Agente Secreto
Directed byKleber Mendonça Filho
Written byKleber Mendonça Filho
Produced by
  • Emilie Lesclaux
  • Kleber Mendonça Filho
  • Wagner Moura
  • Brent Travers
Starring
CinematographyEvgenia Alexandrova
Edited byMatheus Farias
Eduardo Serrano
Music by
  • Mateus Alves
  • Tomaz Alves Souza
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • 18 May 2025 (2025-05-18) (Cannes)
  • 6 November 2025 (2025-11-06) (Brazil)
Running time
158 minutes[1]
Countries
  • Brazil
  • France
  • Germany
  • Netherlands
LanguagePortuguese

The Secret Agent (Portuguese: O Agente Secreto; Brazilian Portuguese: [u aˈʒẽt͡ʃi seˈkɾɛtu]) is a 2025 Brazilian historical political thriller film written and directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho. It stars Wagner Moura as Marcelo, a teacher caught in the political turmoil of the final years of the Brazilian military dictatorship, attempting to flee persecution.

The film had its world premiere at the main competition of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival on May 18, where it received widespread acclaim, winning the Best Actor prize for Moura, Best Director prize for Mendonça Filho, alongside the FIPRESCI prize.[2][3]

Plot

Set in 1977, Marcelo, a technology expert in his early 40s, is on the run. He arrives in Recife during carnival, hoping to reunite with his son but soon realizes that the city is far from being the refuge he seeks.

Cast

  • Wagner Moura as Marcelo / Armando
  • Carlos Francisco as Seu Alexandre
  • Tânia Maria as Dona Sebastiana
  • Robério Diógenes as Euclides
  • Maria Fernanda Cândido as Elza
  • Gabriel Leone as Bobbi
  • Roney Villela as Augusto
  • Hermila Guedes as Claudia
  • Isabél Zuaa as Thereza Vitória
  • Alice Carvalho as Fátima
  • Laura Lufési as Flavia
  • Thomás Aquino as Arlindo
  • Igor de Araújo as Sergio
  • Udo Kier as Hans
  • João Vitor Silva as Haroldo

Production

Development

The film is written and directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho, who wrote the script over three years.[4][5] The film is a co-production between Brazil, France, Germany and Netherlands.[1]

The film marks Wagner Moura's first Portuguese language production in eight years.[6][7] German actor Udo Kier also appears in the film, marking his second collaboration with Mendonça following Bacurau (2019).[8]

Filming

Principal photography took place during ten weeks in Brazil, with shooting taking place between Recife and São Paulo. Production wrapped in August 2024.[9][10]

Release

The film had its world premiere at the main competition of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival on 18 May 2025,[11] where it competed for the Palme d'Or,[12] and earned a 13-minute standing ovation at the end of its screening.[13] A few days after its premiere, Neon acquired North American distribution rights to the film, while MUBI acquired the rights for the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America excluding Brazil, and India.[14][15]

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 100% of 35 critics' reviews are positive.[16] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 87 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Steve Pond of TheWrap pointed out that "cohesiveness or coherence are not high on [the film's] list of attributes", "but [the film's] messiness is part of its charm".[17] David Ehrlich of IndieWire gave the film a 'B+' score, concluding that "always compelling, but sometimes more sedate than its material demands — [it] is often at its most alive during its detours".[18]

Accolades

Award / Festival Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Cannes Film Festival 24 May 2025 Palme d'Or Kleber Mendonça Filho Nominated [19]
FIPRESCI Prize Won [20]
AFCAE Art House Cinema Award Won [21]
Best Director Won [19]
Best Actor Wagner Moura Won

References

  1. ^ a b c "O AGENTE SECRETO (THE SECRET AGENT)". Festival de Cannes. Retrieved 16 May 2025.
  2. ^ Murray, Miranda (24 May 2025). "'It Was Just An Accident' by Iran's Jafar Panahi wins Cannes' top prize". Reuters. Retrieved 28 May 2025.
  3. ^ FIPRESCI, at Cannes International Film Festival. "International Federation of Film Critics". Retrieved 27 May 2025.
  4. ^ "Kleber Mendonça Filho en dit plus sur son prochain film, « L'agent secret »" [Kleber Mendonça Filho reveals more about his upcoming film, The Secret Agent]. Chaos Reign (in French). 15 November 2023. Retrieved 18 February 2025.
  5. ^ Keslassy, Elsa (1 May 2024). "'Civil War' Actor Wagner Moura to Star in Kleber Mendonça Filho's '70s-Set Political Thriller 'The Secret Agent' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 18 February 2025.
  6. ^ "Wagner Moura set to lead political thriller 'The Secret Agent'". Thehindu.com. 2 May 2024. Retrieved 18 February 2025.
  7. ^ "Honored at CCXP, Wagner Moura says he thinks less about his career and more about life: 'I want to feel comfortable in my own skin'". O Globo. 5 December 2024. Retrieved 18 February 2025.
  8. ^ Debruge, Peter (9 November 2024). "At 80, Udo Kier — Who's Starred in Everything From Andy Warhol's Films to 'Ace Ventura' — Looks Back on a Lifetime of Cult Encounters". Variety. Retrieved 18 February 2025.
  9. ^ Nesme, Romaine (26 August 2024). "Le tournage de "The Secret Agent" avec Wagner Moura vient de se terminer" [FILMING OF "THE SECRET AGENT" WITH WAGNER MOURA HAS JUST FINISHED]. Trois Couleurs (in French). Retrieved 18 February 2025.
  10. ^ Toledo, Marina. ""O Agente Secreto": filme de Kleber Mendonça com Wagner Moura encerra filmagens". CNN Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 18 February 2025.
  11. ^ "The Screenings Guide of the 78th Festival de Cannes" (PDF). Festival de Cannes. 8 May 2025. p. 2. Retrieved 8 May 2025.
  12. ^ "The films of the Official Selection 2025". Festival de Cannes. 10 April 2025. Retrieved 10 April 2025.
  13. ^ Berkani, Mohamed (19 May 2025). "Festival de Cannes 2025 : "O agente secreto", extraordinaire plongée dans le Brésil de la dictature militaire des années 1970 dans un passionnant thriller" [Cannes Film Festival 2025: "The Secret Agent", extraordinary dive into Brazil of the military dictatorship of the 1970s in an exciting thriller]. France Info (in French). Treize minutes de standing ovation pour Kleber Mendonça Filho et son équipe après la projection de son dernier opus, O agente secreto (L'Agent secret) [Thirteen minutes of standing ovation for Kleber Mendonça Filho and his team after the screening of his latest opus, O agente Secreto (The Secret Agent)]
  14. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (21 May 2025). "Neon Takes North American On Buzzy Brazilian Pic 'The Secret Agent'; Can Distrib Go Six Palme d'Ors In A Row? – Cannes". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
  15. ^ Keslassy, Elsa; Ritman, Alex (22 May 2025). "Mubi Acquires Kleber Mendonça Filho's 'The Secret Agent' for U.K., India and Latin America". Variety. Retrieved 22 May 2025.
  16. ^ "The Secret Agent". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
  17. ^ Pond, Steve (18 May 2025). "'The Secret Agent' Review: '70s Brazilian Romp Includes Wagner Moura and a Rampaging Severed Leg". TheWrap. Retrieved 18 May 2025.
  18. ^ Ehrlich, David (18 May 2025). "'The Secret Agent' Review: Wagner Moura Tries to Leave History Behind in Kleber Mendonça Filho's Beautifully Remembered Period Thriller". IndieWire. Retrieved 18 May 2025.
  19. ^ a b "Festival de Cannes 2025 : la Palme d'or est attribuée au film "Un simple accident", de l'Iranien Jafar Panahi". France Info (in French).
  20. ^ Lang, Jamie (24 May 2025). "Kleber Mendonça Filho's Brazilian Epic 'The Secret Agent' Wins Fipresci Award at Cannes: 'A Rich, Strange and Deeply Troubling Story'". Variety. Retrieved 24 May 2025.
  21. ^ Neglia, Matt (24 May 2025). "The 2025 Cannes Film Festival Award Winners". NextBestPicture. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
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