Overview
A technology expert's quest for peace spirals into chaos as he confronts his past in a city rife with danger.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Dense
- Violence
- Mild
- paranoid
- brooding
- visceral
- arthouse movie night
- political cinema discussion
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as an ambitious, visually striking, emotionally rich political crime thriller whose detours and formal messiness can also make it feel overlong or convoluted.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Marcelo returns to Recife during Brazil's military government and encounters threats, police pressure, and political intrigue.
Wagner Moura's protagonist is presented through the connected names Marcelo Alves, Armando Solimões, and Fernando Solimões.
Critics specifically praised the striking 1970s aesthetic and vivid, vibrant scenes.
The protagonist's mysterious past and return to Recife are inseparable from the Brazilian military dictatorship and its continuing threat.
Films like The Secret Agent, and why
The Lives of Others
shared political paranoia, historical repression, and morally shadowy thriller atmosphere
Z
shared authoritarian-state setting, vivid period style, and politically charged personal suspense
Bacurau
shared brazilian political history, genre hybridity, and tense social allegory
Movie Details
- Director
- Kleber Mendonça Filho
- Release Date
- 2025-07-23
- Runtime
- 161 min
- Rating
- 7.2 / 10 (884)
Cast
- Wagner Moura
- Alice Carvalho
- Gabriel Leone
- Isabél Zuaa
- Maria Fernanda Cândido
- Udo Kier
- Robson Andrade
- Rubens Santos
- Licínio Januário
- Joálisson Cunha
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Hulu
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Secret Agent about?
- A fugitive technology expert finds that returning to 1970s Recife offers no escape from dictatorship-era surveillance, manipulation, and buried identities.
- What is The Secret Agent like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Secret Agent as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as dense.
- Is The Secret Agent violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Secret Agent as mild.
- What did critics think of The Secret Agent?
- Critics broadly regard the film as an ambitious, visually striking, emotionally rich political crime thriller whose detours and formal messiness can also make it feel overlong or convoluted.
- Which films are like The Secret Agent?
- Films with a similar feel include The Lives of Others, Z, and Bacurau.
- How long is The Secret Agent?
- The Secret Agent runs 161 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Secret Agent?
- In United States, The Secret Agent streams on Hulu.
