The Secret Agent

Love how KMF constructs a highly paranoid political thriller by simply piling up everyday scenes -- he shoots streets and urban faces and places, as well as the elusive memory each one of them carries through time, like no other contemporay brazilian filmmaker -- to depict a society pervaded by insidious -- but not invisible -- violence and a nearly unbearable state of urgency and fear. Cinema/our cinematic memories as the only way to escape -- that's why its 70s look feels so cozy to watch, as our very dreamy ways to (re)create past lives, past times, the worlds we live in vs the worlds we choose to live in. It loses some of its hard-boiling qualities with the wooden present-day material and not every attempt of being laid-back and wacky works. It's lovely how every single name in the cast has time to shine. Wagner's performance is truly career-best. Split diopters 🤗