Ida Cuéllar’s debut feature documentary, The Secret of Doctor Grinberg, delves into the enigmatic vanishing of Mexican neurophysiologist Dr. Jacobo Grinberg in 1994.
This compelling film, featured at Sheffield Doc/Fest, introduces Dr. Jacobo Grinberg, a UNAM academic who sought to bridge shamanism, telepathy, and rigorous scientific inquiry. His sudden disappearance in December 1994 sparked a police investigation, forming the core of Ida Cuéllar’s captivating yet somewhat unsatisfying documentary. Cuéllar, known for her commercials, clearly poured passion into this project, which received its international premiere at the festival’s digital edition.
Cuéllar’s visually arresting documentary evokes mixed feelings. It feels overstuffed for its runtime, hinting at a richer narrative suited for a Netflix mini-series format, where the story’s intricate paths could be explored more thoroughly. The pacing leans towards exposition, akin to rapidly reading a Wikipedia entry. Despite its personal nature, the director’s perspective remains somewhat elusive, lacking a clear viewpoint to fully connect with Grinberg or the interviewed friends, family, and colleagues.
While Dr. Grinberg’s scientific work didn’t achieve mainstream recognition, remaining largely within Mexican academic circles, this film effectively brings him into the spotlight. It prompts viewers to contemplate his unconventional theories, which often challenged mainstream scientific thought. Grinberg’s central focus was consciousness, positing its existence independent of the material world. This concept, as the documentary reveals, seemingly provided a scientific basis for phenomena like divination, telepathy, and psychokinesis, blurring the lines between science fiction and reality. Intriguingly, Grinberg also authored fiction, and his own life story, as presented, mirrors a captivating narrative.
Echoing David Fincher’s Zodiac, The Secret of Doctor Grinberg embraces ambiguity. Dr. Grinberg was last seen on December 8, 1994, preparing for a research expedition to Nepal. However, he vanished without a trace, never embarking on the journey. Initial suspicions fell upon his wife, María Teresa, but later shifted towards his frequent, covert travels to CIA-linked scientific conferences in the US. Years passed, and the case went cold, leaving his grieving family without answers or closure.
The documentary bookends with striking cosmic imagery and black hole visuals, interspersed with excerpts from Grinberg’s writings, suggesting a profound, almost destined quality to his disappearance. This interpretation, framing his vanishing as poetic justice for a thinker who sought to transcend earthly understanding, proves more compelling than theories of CIA involvement or romantic betrayal, which lack concrete evidence. However, the documentary could have benefited from greater journalistic rigor and objectivity to complement its exploration of the intangible.
The Secret of Doctor Grinberg is a Spanish production by Polar Star Films, Primo, and Ida Cuéllar.
