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THE SECRET AGENT
The Secret Agent is so easily pleasurable that its best parts get better while talking about them after credits roll. “Marcelo” (Wagner Moura) is tremendous as a widowed father and former professor in hiding from a corrupt, vindictive official (Luciano Chirolli) and the forces under his control amid the final years of the Fifth Brazilian Republic’s military dictatorship. Written and directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho, The Secret Agent is stylish and metaphorically rich, informed equally by ’70s paranoid thrillers and anti-fascist cinema. It’s both disciplined and languid, with a soundtrack that carries breezily through transitions and into long periods of tense, slow-burning plot marked strategically with barefaced, bloody brutality committed by a father-stepson hit man duo, stepson Bobbi (Gabriel Leone) being a standout performance. Brazil’s colonial history is woven expertly into the story of a man in danger—without extractive capitalism, there would ultimately be no story or danger, after all. Despite this, The Secret Agent is warm. It’s funny without relying just on dark comedy, and the excellent ensemble cast—whether the characters wish to hurt or help “Marcelo”—brings color and life to the film. It’s fresh, enchanting, and thought-provoking. See it before it snags the Oscar for Best International Picture. R. LUCY GORDON. Cinema 21 through Dec. 18; Regal Bridgeport.
SENTIMENTAL VALUE
Films about filmmakers always risk being pretentious and self-indulgent—there’s nothing worse than an artist telling you how good and important their art is. Sentimental Value wisely sidesteps this pratfall, delivering a sophisticated family drama exploring the power and limits of self-expression. Sisters Nora (Renate Reinsve) and Agnes (Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas) are understandably suspicious when their estranged father Gustav (Stellan Skarsgård), a once-legendary film director, reenters their life. Gustav wants Nora to star in his comeback opus, a deeply personal drama about his suicidal mother, but when Nora turns down the role, Gustav instead hires an American ingénue (Elle Fanning), unleashing a flurry of repressed sadness and anger within the family. Rather than give in to melodrama, Sentimental Value mostly lives in a space of unspoken tension and microagressions. Gustav isn’t actively malicious, but he doesn’t realize how quietly devastating his words and actions are to his daughters, who don’t know if his new project is a genuine attempt to reconnect or an exercise in self-mythologizing. Director Joachim Trier and co-writer Eskil Vogt capture these complex emotions in a sharp, subtle script, matched by understated performances by the film’s exquisite cast. Sentimental Value’s ending leaves something to be desired—a little too neat for a story this messy—but it’s a well-observed look at complicated family dynamics and the pain and beauty that can come of them. R. MORGAN SHAUNETTE. Cinema 21, Laurelhurst, Living Room, AMC and Regal locations.
ELLA McCAY
Ella McCay, the title character of James L. Brooks’ new film, is a divisive character. Some people—notably women, like her aunt Helen (Jamie Lee Curtis) and her secretary (Julie Kavner)—think she’s brilliant. Others, like her father (Woody Harrelson), admit to being afraid of her. Her boss (Albert Brooks) tells her she’s brilliant, but too wonkish and irritating to succeed in politics. Unfortunately for Ella, when her boss is tapped for a Cabinet seat, she succeeds him as governor of an unnamed state. She’s so unpopular people boo her at her own inauguration; she’s nearly brought down by a scandal so tame and bewildering Leslie Knope would probably roll her eyes at it. I love Brooks for championing characters like Ella, who reminded me of both Lisa Simpson (whom Brooks helped usher into being) and Jane Craig, the protagonist of Brooks’ masterful Broadcast News. Here, I found myself less interested in Ella than the world she inhabits. It’s a world in which people make one baffling, unbelievable choice after another, but I loved being there regardless. This is mostly due to an unbelievably stacked cast, but also Brooks’ ability to coax winning performances out of them, even if the script is wanting. PG-13. CHRISTEN McCURDY. Living Room, Studio One, AMC, Cinemark and Regal locations.
SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT
Silent Night Deadly Night’s latest iteration ushers in the return of a horror icon determined to slay the holiday season harder than Mariah Carey. Rohan Campbell plays Billy Chapman, a Santa suit-wearing serial killer scarred after being made an 8-year-old orphan on Christmas Eve, while Ruby Modine takes her turn as Billy’s co-worker-turned-crush Pamela Sims, whom he meets after moving to the town of Hackett, Minn. Pamela fares better this time around, not to give too much away, with more consideration afforded to her character development than in the original. Written and directed by Mike P. Nelson, this second remake of the 1984 film adds a much-needed boost for the uneven seven-film holiday horror franchise. Bucking the half-sequel, half-remake trend plaguing horror, Silent Night, Deadly Night succeeds in retelling a beloved classic in a modern voice. Nelson’s take feels refreshing yet true to the source material. While the original Billy killed with little concern for guilt or innocence, this updated Silent Night, Deadly Night knows audiences want to see social evil punished—since, let’s face it, nobody else really seems up for the task. These so-called victims have it coming, and Chapman’s kills and handsome mug are the gifts that keep giving for horror fans. NR. RUDY VALDEZ. AMC, Cinemark and Regal locations.
