Have You Seen It?
Have you watched any of the awards shows this year? Ever since I was little, I have loved watching those shows with my mom and sister to see the latest fashion on the red carpet. This year, though, there is one more thing to be on the lookout for the Academy Award winner for Best Documentary Feature.
This year Chile has an entry called El Agente Topo (The Mole Agent). I first heard about this film while on a walk with my friend Rocio. She told me that she had just watched it and it was incredible. She gave the synopsis that an investigator hires an elderly gentleman to investigate a retirement home. The best part, it’s an actual documentary, so the older adults in the retirement home are just themselves - they have no idea they are in a movie! Anyone who knows me knows that the elderly hold a very dear place in my heart. Naturally, I had to see this film, and thankfully, it is available on Netflix.
(WARNING SPOILERS IN THIS SECTION)
The film centers around Sergio, an 83-year-old man hired by a private investigator in Santiago to work as an undercover agent in a retirement home, exploring robbery and abuse accusations.
When private investigator Romulo Aitken hires Sergio, he is a newly widowed man ready to embark on something more than walking around his local mall. Upon arrival at the retirement home, Sergio sets out to find the ‘target,’ an elderly woman named Sonia whose daughter has contacted Romulo. As time goes on, Sergio becomes emotionally invested in the welfare of the residents and begins to see them as friends more than potential thieves. In one scene, Sergio pleads with Romulo to use his connections to get photos of a woman’s family, which he uses to remind her of her children and grandchildren's names. As Sergio begins to deepen his friendships, Romulo grows increasingly aggravated with the lack of tangible evidence of theft or abuse. The movie ultimately ends with Sergio's monologue to Romulo on how the only crimes being committed in the retirement home are not those that you can get tangible evidence of. It is a crime of loneliness.
As someone separated from their family and friends by thousands of miles, this movie really hit home, and I cried like a baby at the end. Since the people in the film are not actors, their words have a weightiness about them that strikes at the heart of pure human honesty - no matter how tough it is to hear. It was revolutionary in many ways for me to see and hear what life in a retirement home is like. Shamefully, I have never wondered what it must be like for the lucid residents to interact with those that are not. It was heart-wrenching to hear the stories of those that their families had not visited in years. It really made me appreciate the family I do have and want to protect them at all costs.
Director Maite Alberdi is not an unknown here in Chile and the documentary world in general. She has made numerous films portraying the elderly, people with down syndrome, hairdressers, and lifeguards, to name a few.
In an interview with the Lincoln Center, Maite stated that she originally set out to make a completely different film, one that was focused on the private investigator, Romulo Aitken. A former member of the Policía De Investigaciones De Chile (similar to the FBI in the United States). While Maite was working as Romulo’s assistant and shooting a film that focused on him, he received a new case. This case would ultimately lead to the introduction of Sergio. The focus of Maite’s film changed when she saw how Sergio was changing due to his work as a mole and becoming more concerned for the actual care of the members of the retirement home. The rest is, as they say, cinematic history.
Since Chile has been submitting films for Best International Film, there have only been two that made the shortlist and brought home the award.
In 2012 the film No by Pablo Larraín was nominated and made the shortlist. No is based on the unpublished stage play El Plebiscito written by Antonio Skármeta. The main character René is an in-demand advertising man working in Chile in the late 1980s. The film focuses on the advertising tactics in the political campaigns for the 1988 plebiscite when Chileans voted on whether or not dictator Augusto Pinochet should stay in power for another eight years.
The campaign took place over 27 nights of television advertisements, in which each side had 15 minutes per night to present their point of view. The “No” campaign took a lighthearted artistic approach to the vote, while the “Yes” side focused on economic data. The film ends with the actual footage of Pinochet handing over power to newly elected president Patricio Aylwin. This film is available on Netflix.
The other film to be nominated and the only one to win was Una Mujer Fantástica (A Fantastic Woman) by Sebastián Lelio.
This film follows the life of transgender singer Marina shortly before and immediately after her partner Orlando dies. Upon his death, she constantly faces scrutiny by the police, Orlando’s family, and Orlando’s ex-wife. Throughout the film, Marina stays true to herself and her love for Orlando.
She displays constant strength that reaches its peak at her opera concert. The role of Marina is played by Daniela Vega Hernández, a Chilean actress and mezzo-soprano singer. At the Academy Awards in 2018, Vega became the first transgender person in history to be a presenter at the ceremony. That same year, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world. This film is available on Amazon Prime.
If you are stuck at home in quarantine like Santiago or in need of a different movie to watch along with your dinner, El Agente Topo is it. I will say I was surprised by the huge emotional impact it had on me. Some of that is due to my physical distance from my family, and some of that is due to the universal feelings of isolation we are all going through. The film is a must-see and perfect for what we are all feeling nowadays, the desire to be closer to our families than ever before.
