If you expect that O Agente Secreto has the same plot as Ainda Estou aqui, you may end up feeling a little confused. Just because both films have dictatorship as their backdrop does not mean that their approach to it will be the same. Kleber Mendonça Filho’s new film is fiction and at times even borders on folklore, but it offers reflections on the society in which we live.
The plot of the film, set in 1977, tells the story of Marcelo, played by Wagner Moura, a professor specializing in technology, who leaves São Paulo to try a new life in Recife, fleeing his mysterious past. Gradually, the plot reveals the reasons why Marcelo is in town, revealing that he is being persecuted and that his safety in the city is about to end.
Although the film is classified as a drama, it transcends the boundaries of the genre and explores other layers, including thriller for moments of suspense, action during chase scenes, and even comedy, where the character Dona Sebastian, played by Tânia Maria, makes everyone in the movie theater laugh.
In addition to taking place during the dictatorship in Brazil, the film is set in old Recife, which becomes a character in the film. Those familiar with Kleber’s filmography understand his appreciation for his hometown, as in Retratos Fantasmas, which shows many places where the secret agent also appears, especially the São Luiz Cinema.
International reputation
Having been screened at festivals around the world, the film has already won several awards, including Best Director for Kleber and Best Actor for Wagner at the Cannes Film Festival. Selected by the Brazilian Film Academy to represent Brazil at the Oscars, it has already attracted the attention of the international press, with The Hollywood Reporter naming Wagner Moura as the favorite to win the Best Actor award.
Kleber Mendonça and Wagner Moura are set to begin touring the United States to further promote the film, including appearances on talk shows. Wagner appeared on The Kelly Clarkson Show, while Fernanda Torres followed suit for the campaign for Ainda Estou Aqui (I’m Still Here), appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live.
The actor also attended the Governors Awards, an event promoted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which is responsible for the Oscar jury, celebrating prominent professionals in the film industry. The ceremony has two award categories, each dedicated to recognizing careers and contributions to the audiovisual industry.
Attending this event is a form of networking among people in the industry, from actors to producers, and each one ends up receiving a certain amount of recognition, which is already a big step in the campaign.
Although the story is fictional, the narrative illustrates the importance of preserving Brazilian history, the memories that the country erases or forgets, not only from the time of the dictatorship, but also from current events. This is made explicit when Kleber portrays the Miguel case in the film, which took place in 2020, where a mother lost her son after he fell from the 9th floor of a luxury building in Recife. At the time of the accident, the mother, who was a domestic worker at the time, was on the first floor walking her employer’s dog, having left the child under the supervision of her employer, the first lady of Tamandaré, Sari Corte-Real.
Kleber leaves us with this question of what is chosen to be remembered and how a people end up forgetting the memories and stories of their own country, whether they happened in the last century or five years ago.
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The article above was edited by Beatriz Gatz.
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