The essential ingredient for a gripping political thriller is a consistently captivating sense of suspense, but that's exactly what's absent from this lengthy and frustratingly complex story unfolding in 1977 Brazil during the final years of its military rule. The narrative centers on Armando (Wagner Moura), a former academic who becomes the target of manipulation and false accusations by a powerful, dishonest businessman (Luciano Chirolli) after refusing to cooperate with him. This leads to threats against Armando’s life, forcing him to fight for his reputation and survival. However, he finds himself entangled in a network of lies, crime, and danger involving a questionable police officer and his associates, two brutal assassins, a group of Brazilian and Angolan political exiles living in secret, and an elderly man mistakenly identified as a Nazi refugee rather than a Holocaust survivor. The setup seems rich with possibilities for an absorbing story, but it ultimately falls short due to several significant flaws, primarily an overly drawn-out plot that spends too much time exploring the intricacies of government research funding and sociopolitical disagreements concerning regional Brazilian culture and politics—material that often feels dull and uninteresting. Adding to these issues, director Kleber Mendonça Filho employs a jumbled mix of filming techniques and storytelling approaches that frequently disrupts the film's rhythm and overall presentation, including numerous unnecessary scenes that test the viewer’s tolerance as the story progresses. It’s clear this filmmaker would have benefited from greater self-discipline, understanding when to cut material and successfully maintaining a level of tension that, unfortunately, largely disappears around an hour into the movie. The film also includes a contemporary storyline featuring a history student (Laura Lufési) tasked with transcribing surveillance recordings of Armando taken during his ordeal, a task that strangely fascinates her and motivates her to investigate what happened to him. This subplot feels entirely superfluous and raises the question of its purpose, easily removed without harming the rest of the film. I honestly can’t understand how this overlong production became the top contender at this year's Cannes Film Festival, earning four awards—including best actor and director—as well as a Palme d’Or nomination, the festival’s most prestigious prize. There are far better political thrillers available that would be a more worthwhile choice than this disappointing film.

Source on TMDB