Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)

[bigsleepj]

A teaser trailer for a film based on one of my favourite spy-novels is currently slated for an end of the year release (or September, depending on where you live). This movie is worth any film-lover's notice based soley on its cast alone, which consists of a who's who of British top actors: Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, Mark Strong, Ciarán Hinds, Benedict Cumberbatch and John Hurt. There should be a law against having so many good actors in a film.

Its the 1970s. British Secret Intelligence (MI6, known also by its code-name 'The Circus') has been infiltrated by a spy / mole who is passing information on agents and activities to Communist Russia. Retired spymaster George Smiley (Gary Oldman) is called in to help root out the agent, who may have been planted by his old nemesis, a KGB director known only by the code-name KARLA. But the suspects are not only close colleagues and friends, but some are tied to him personal ways.

Well, that's the synopsis of the book, in any case. For a book mostly set in and around London its odd to see Instanbul in there, but if the movie can keep the core themes of the book (which take a very very bleak view on spycraft in general and the grim paradoxes associated with it) then it should prove to be a good, thought-provoking movie. John Le Carré books are difficult to adapt because they tend to have complex emotional arcs that take place mostly in the heads and souls of the characters. They also tend to have very complicated, layered (if painstakingly logical) plots, which can bog a film down, like it did The Russia House.

Also, the film has previously been adapted in the 1970s by the BBC in an extremely well-made but painstakingly slow* miniseries starring Sir Alec 'Obi-Wan' Guiness. Guiness has had many good roles on film but his turn as George Smiley is possibly his best performance (in my opinion), so Oldman has terrifyingly large shoes to fill. Also KARLA was played by a very young but very bald Patrick Stewart who manages to have a small but memorable performance without saying a word.

* The reason I'm calling it slow is not because I hate things that are slow in general; I just think they could have easily truncated some of the material towards the end instead of trying to fit in as much of the book's plot as possible. As I said, the complex plot can bog things down.

[Yuki-Anne]

This looks awesome.

[bigsleepj]

New Trailer. I barely recognize some of the actors - that's a good thing.

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

Can't stand the era but that's quite a cast and the trailer was great. Thanks for sharing J!

[bigsleepj]

Currently the movie is generating a great deal of 'award buzz' among those who saw it. It would be interesting to see if this movie can become this year's 'big' award film.

[Radical Dreamer]

I've been hearing a lot of excitement about this movie for the last few weeks now, and I can absolutely see why. XD Based on cast alone, I'm pretty stoked to see it. I haven't ever heard of the source material before, but it sounds pretty intriguing. Honestly though, all I had to hear was "Benedict Cumberbatch" and "Gary Oldman" in the same sentence to get interested in this one. XD

[ich1990]

I have my eye on this one. John le Carre is a masterful writer, and The Spy Who Came in From the Cold was a superb film. This film has a lot of good history behind it.

[Cognitive Gear]

I'm not sure how I missed this thread back in July... but this movie has a lot going for it. Almost too much, I want to be skeptical but can't be.

Anyways, definitely excited to see this as soon as I can. I hadn't heard of the book series prior to this, but Johnnie has good taste, so I will probably have to check it out.

[GeneD]

Benedict Cumberbatch with blonde hair. o_O

It does look very interesting though, so will definitely keep an eye out for it.

[Sheol777]

I am double curious to see this because the character Elim Garak from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was based off this book.

[bigsleepj]

And in other news, author of the book says that the book and movie are very different and he's more than okay with that. Since Le Carré is not known to gush about film versions of his books (he's been very open about his disappointment on the film version of The Spy who Came in From the Cold, even appearing in a Criterion DVD extra stating just that) I consider this a good sign.

“The film, through my very personal prism, is a triumph,” says the author (real name David Cornwell),

On the relationship between the book and film he says: “It’s not the film of the book. It’s the film of the film, and to my eye a work of art in its own right. I’m very proud to have provided Alfredson with the material, but what he made of it is wonderfully his own.”

As for comparison’s between Guinness and Gary Oldman in the role of Smiley, the author says: “if people write to me and say, ‘How could you let this happen to poor Alec Guinness,’ I shall reply that, if ‘poor Alec’ had witnessed Oldman’s performance, he would have been the first to give it a standing ovation.”

And in something vaguely related: in the follow-up miniseries to the original TTSP, Smiley's People, there is a small first-time appearance by some who guy who apparently had a role in Harry Potter.

[Yuki-Anne]

Oooh... I really like that the author likes it. It looks pretty intense...

[bigsleepj]

Update: The movie was released this weekend in England; US release is slated for December.

Most major British film critics are going insane for the film.

It was certainly a brave undertaking, tackling what is not only one of the greatest espionage novels ever, but one whose 1979 serialisation by the BBC lingers in the memory of everyone of a certain age. It’s a pleasure and a relief, then, that the film succeeds in its own right. It is a superior whodunnit thriller and a very grown-up one, devoted not to guns, girls, gadgets and glamour, but to the little grey cells. And in plumbing George Smiley’s grey matter, Gary Oldman has understood the illusion of being a nondescript sort of little man with a remarkable mind, authority and a gut full of secret sorrows and sins behind the serious spectacles.

[Agloval]

If I can spare the cash for a ticket I might go and see it in the next week or so.

[bigsleepj]

Welcome back from holiday. Let me know what you think.

[Agloval]

I saw the film this afternoon. I certainly enjoyed it, it's a very taut thriller. It felt a bit top-heavy to me, but I think that's quite possibly because I'm not used to watching films which contain this much information, not always obviously signposted.

Anyway, would recommend to anyone who enjoys quiet grey-and-brown spy movies about unpleasant people.

(Disclosure: I haven't read the book -- the only Le Carré I've read is The Looking Glass War, which I thought was a fine downbeat plot in unexceptional prose.)

[bigsleepj]

(Disclosure: I haven't read the book -- the only Le Carré I've read is The Looking Glass War, which I thought was a fine downbeat plot in unexceptional prose.)

I'd agree with that. It was meant to be the most level-headed, realistic depiction of the spygame, so arguably its a bit much. But it was written early in his career and his later novels, like TTSP and its two sequels, as well as The Mission Song are better on the whole. Still very top-heavy, though.