We Brits don’t usually like our treasured classics tempered with especially by foreigners (God forbid!) so I approached this new re-make of John Le Carrie’s consummate thriller ‘Tinker, Tailor Soldier, Spy’ with caution. This old-school spy story set in the scary Cold War period in the 1960’s which has more than a hint of truth in its plot (‘le Carrie’ aka David Cornwall had been in the S.I.S.) is a tale of treachery and traitor(s) that relies so much its complicated murky plot to completely engage us rather than revert to the fast paced overblown violent action that is the norm in most espionage movies today.
The story opens with a bungled mission in Budapest which ends in a Brit M16 Agent being shot, and when the authorities are tipped off that this is a result of Soviet mole in their midst, ex master Spy George Smiley is forced out of retirement to unearth the traitor. Smiley, (stunningly played here by Gary Oldman almost aping Alec Guinness’s performance in the original), enrolls an enthusiastic newcomer Peter Guillam (a fascinating Benedict Cumberbatch) to dig through all the Agency (known as The Circus) dirt to unearth their man.
 |
| Tom Hardy on the Set |
It’s a slow burning complicated story that demands our attention but keeps one in eager anticipation of the outcome. It’s helped by the fact that the film is swamped with a who’s who of some of the best contemporary Brit actors … the four ‘suspect’ Agents are played by Colin Firth, Toby Jones, Ciaran Hinds and David Dencik. And the rogue Agent Ricki Tarr who retuned to help in the hunt is another chance for Tom Hardy to show what an impressive (and hot!) actor he is.
I’ll confess that although I have fond memories of the 1979 Award–Winning-TV Series I dont remember too much detail beyond the impressive performances of Sir Alec, and the delightful discovery how wonderful the sublime comic actor Beryl Reid was as Connie Sachs another Agent (a part almost edited now and played by Kathy Burke). But I do now think having Swedish filmmaker Tomas Alfredson to direct this was an inspired choice as he added both a dark edge, more depth and a his very personal twist on this quintessential Brit movie. Following Danish filmmaker Lone Scherfig’s wonderful interpretation of a 1960’s London in the stunning ‘An Education’, I’m thinking that maybe these Scandinavians know more about us than we do, or maybe it’s their fresh take on something so familiar that help make their work so compelling.
Due to be released in the US this Fall …. put it on your list esp. if you are an anglophile.
★★★★★★★★
Labels:
