Marcelo, a former university researcher, is on the run in Recife during Brazil's notorious military dictatorship. He seeks asylum in Mendonça Filho's hometown to get closer to the son he had to leave behind, while trying to escape the destructive forces that have shattered his life. Told in three parts and across multiple timelines, The Secret Agent weaves together family portrait, corruption, and personal vendettas into a hypnotic noir thriller. Shot with vintage Panavision equipment that recreates the visual style of the 1970s, this is both a moving tribute to those destroyed by the dictatorship and a playful engagement with genre conventions—full of film references, humor, and a dark tension that never lets go. Brazil is caught in violence, corruption, and persecution, but individual resistance lives on.