The Secret Agent

Kleber Mendonça Filho's Cannes prize-winning period thriller follows an academic caught between a corporate cover-up and police corruption at the height of Brazil’s military takeover.

Armando (Wagner Moura) may have the look of a spy, but this postgraduate researcher is nothing of the sort. After a mysterious incident sends him on the run, he returns to Recife to see his son and find safe passage out of the country for both of them. Living under the care of Dona Sebastiana (Tânia Maria), he assumes the identity of Marcelo and lies low, quietly working at the Identification Office.

But when Police Chief Euclides (Robério Diógenes) places Armando’s life under a magnifying glass and gives hitman Augusto (Roney Villela) an opening to hunt him down, Armando will seek the help of everyone in his community to throw them both off the scent.

The Secret Agent premiered at the 78th Cannes Film Festival, where it won four awards, including the prizes for Best Director and Best Actor. Wagner Moura went on to receive an Oscar nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, one of the four nominations, including Best Picture.