A private investigator (Rómulo) hires an elderly man (Sergio) to go undercover in a nursing home in El Monte, Chile.[7] Rómulo's client alleges that her mother, Sonia, is being mistreated by the nursing home staff.
Sergio poses as a new resident of the nursing home to investigate these claims. During his stay, he interacts with several residents, including Berta, Marta, and Rubeira. Berta, who has lived in the nursing home for twenty-five years and has never been married, becomes infatuated with Sergio and even expresses to the home's director her desire to marry him. Marta, who suffers from dementia, frequently asks strangers passing by to take her to her mother's house. Sergio discovers that Marta steals other residents' belongings, including Sonia's. At one point, Marta escapes but is eventually brought back by the police. Rubeira also suffers from memory loss and longs to see her children and grandchildren. Sergio requests photographs of them from Rómulo and shows them to Rubeira.
After conducting his investigation, Sergio concludes that Sonia is being treated well, except for one instance when the nurses forget to give her medication. He informs Rómulo that no crimes are being committed and returns home to his family in Santiago.
Release
The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on 25 January 2020.[8][9] In August 2020, Gravitas Ventures acquired US distribution rights to the film, and set it for a 1 September 2020 release.[10] The film was released in the Netherlands on 10 December 2020 by Cinema Delicatessen.[11] It was broadcast on PBS in the United States on 25 January 2021 as part of their POV program.[12]
Reception
Critical response
On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 94% based on 71 reviews, with an average rating of 7.6/10. The critical consensus reads "Warm and funny, The Mole Agent offers audiences a poignant reminder that it's never too late to forge new connections and embark on new adventures."[13] On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 69 out of 100, based on 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[14]
Glenn Kenny of The New York Times gave the film a positive review commenting: "The film’s people are moving, and the payoff is compassionate, humane and worth heeding.".[15] Nick Allen of RogerEbert.com rated the movie three stars out of four writing: "The documentary succeeds with its tenderness, while vividly reminding us how easily society can forget its elders."[16]
In March 2023, it was announced that Netflix had ordered a television series adaptation of the film with Michael Schur executive producing and starring Ted Danson.[23]
