Movie: The Secret Agent
Running Time: 2:40
Nominated for: Best Picture, Leading Actor, Casting, International Feature
How I watched: AMC
When it had me: Immediately
When it lost me: The very end, unfortunately
What systems does it challenge: Dictatorship, Corruption
This movie was engaging.
Did you know that Netflix has asked all of its directors to dumb down their movies? They want more exposition and they want the filmmakers to tell and not show because they know that most of us are on our phones while we sit at home and watch shows so they want it easier for us to follow along. Frankly, I'd rather you make something so good that I want to put my phone down to focus on it.
That's what The Secret Agent is. It is complex and they throw you right in the middle of intrigue, only scattering clues along the path as you go. The lead actor, Wagner Moura possesses a combo of charm, warmth and mystery in Pedro Pascal proportions and I was completely drawn in.
The setting is (mostly) 1977 and the vibe is spot on. The colors, music, fashion, even the soft focus of the camera completely evoke the era in a very immersive way.
Get ready for what I'm about to say next: this movie is 2 hours and 40 minutes and I find the running time completely justified! I know. It's shocking for me to say so. There were so many characters and intertwining storylines that they actually used the time in a constructive and non-repetitive way. In fact, they left me wanting more. I still had questions at the end.
The main thrust is that the main character is on the outs with his dictatorial government (as well as some others) and is in hiding until he can get new paperwork that allows him to leave the country with his young son. You know, the kind of story they will be telling about Americans in five to eight years. There is a mix of realism, surrealism and absurdism in the filmmaking styles but it always stay grounded on the main goal.
Ok, the end is where they lost me a little. It was so engaging and immersive that when they made a choice to pull back on the story telling style for the ending it felt anti-climactic. I have read up on reasons for the way they told the story and these ideas may work on an intellectual level but in reality it was a small let down. If they had nailed the end, this would have been in my top five movies of the year. It isn't but its still really great film making.
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