SHEFFIELD DOC FEST 2020: The Secret of Doctor Grinberg
SHEFFIELD DOC FEST 2020With the recent proliferation of true-crime documentaries, thanks in no small part to Netflix, intriguing stories can occasionally be lost in the mire. The Secret of Doctor Grinberg, sounding like an old fashioned B-movie or long-lost episode of Scooby-Doo, fortunately doesn’t have that problem, benefitting from a mysterious story that could quite easily belong in The X-Files.
Ida Cuéllar’s feature-length debut centers around the disappearance of Dr Jacobo Grinberg, a Mexican academic who sought to understand the potential of telepathy from both a scientific and shamanistic standpoint. In December 1994, he mysteriously vanished without a trace, with Cuéllar’s study cross-cutting between assessments on the importance of his work, opinions on the circumstances of his disappearance and the possibility of a connection between the two.
This may seem like a frustrating approach, with further information on the case being delayed in favour of sections dedicated to his work, but it gives the film a nice rhythm whilst also layering the evidence in a way which makes the closing arguments more rounded. Whilst the film is slightly too enthusiastic in regards to the legitimacy and significance of Grinberg’s work, enough groundwork is laid for suspicions to be raised, even if some avenues aren’t explored to their fullest potential.
Unsurprisingly, Grinberg’s disappearance is the most interesting aspect of the story, with sources of contention ranging from small-scale personal disputes to larger notions of government cover-ups and meddlings from a higher power. This is very much an expository account of events, attempting to cover a wide variety of angles rather than honing in on specific theories, occasionally to the detriment of providing a sizeable body of evidence. Naturally, some explanations seem more plausible than others, with Cuéllar’s clear passion for the project hindering his ability to excise some of the tangential information. However, the core interviews of disgruntled family members, ex-police officers and journalists are edited crisply, with information being conveyed efficiently and even-handedly. .
Even with the standard mix of interviews and archival footage, Cuéllar’s presentation is immaculate, with the moody cinematography in the reconstructions aptly capturing the murky nature of the story. Crucially, these scenes never feel gratuitous or exploitative, but rather provide a cinematic quality befitting of the subject matter. There is a palpable sense of dread throughout, not so much a lamentation of a life cut short but rather a trepidation in uncovering just how tangled this web is.
As a counterpoint to this darkness, Grinberg’s own personal recitings of his work, which bookend the film, are accompanied with sumptuous images of the cosmos and black holes, enhancing the otherworldly nature of the scientist’s investigations. Compared with the uneasy outcome, these passages pay homage to a man who, for better or worse, was fixated on the notion of consciousness and the potential ways in which people can connect. Though it may not fully succeed in honouring the man it so lovingly portrays, The Secret of Doctor Grinberg is still a well-crafted, mysterious tale that makes a mark in an oversaturated market.