Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

This has been a film that I have been looking forward to for some time. With the hugely talented cast including Gary Oldman, Toby Young, Mark Strong, Colin Firth, Kathy Burke and Benedict Cumberbatch, it was always going to be a must-see film. In preparation for this, I watched the television series from 1979 starring Alec Guinness as George Smiley. I am in two minds whether this was useful or not, on the one hand it filled in a lot of gaps and provided the back story, on the other hand it meant that I had a very good idea about what to expect in terms of pace, dialogue and obviously the ending.

George Smiley (Gary Oldman) is an intelligence officer working for MI6 (otherwise known as The Circus) who is forced to leave with his boss Control (John Hurt) after a bungled shooting incident in Budapest involving Circus agent Jim Prideaux (Mark Strong). After Control’s death, Smiley is rehired as it becomes apparent that there is a mole within the Circus passing information over to the Russians. To assist him, Peter Guillam (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Mendel (Roger Lloyd-Pack) have to undertake risky operations in order to get the information they require without the suspects noticing.

When Prideaux is repatriated, he confirms to Smiley that Control knew that there was a mole high up in the Circus and that part of his mission to try to undercover that mole. He also disclosed that there were four suspects, all of whom are given code names based on the Tinker, Tailor nursery rhyme. Further information is revealed to Smiley by British agent Ricki Tarr (Tom Hardy) who had a love affair with a Soviet trade delegate.

The story continues with Smiley ultimately identifying the mole.

The film is set in 1973 and particular care has been taken to make it look as authentic as possible and it must be said that the cinematography is excellent. There is a sense of weariness and slow decay that deeply permeates the film almost as if everyone knows that the game is up and that they cannot trust anyone at all. The pace is slow and lethargic, but this matches the mood perfectly. The atmosphere is intense, bordering on claustrophobic at times and there is a constant undercurrent of suspicion and oppression which each character goes through as the story continues.

In terms of performances, this has to be the best ensemble put together in quite some time. Lead by the masterful Oldman in a rare ‘good guy’ role, each actor steps up and performs in a measured and understated fashion – there are no show-offs in this film at all. The standout performance clearly comes from Oldman, who somewhat channelled Guinness’s Smiley, but also made his own mark on the role in a quiet but devastatingly effective way. Other notables include Cumberbatch who is excellent and Strong and Firth who were both impressive, particularly in their emotionally charged final scenes. A special mention should be for Kathy Burke who plays Connie, a former Circus researcher, for the best line in film this year: “I don’t know about you George, but I feel seriously underfucked!”

I thought the pace was just about right, the performances were powerful and believable. However, I didn’t feel engaged with the film and it will not make my top three of the year – top five definitely – but not top three. I’m still undecided if it works as a standalone film;  there is so much going on, that without knowing the back story, it would be difficult to keep track of who’s who and where all the various activities lead to.

Verdict: A brooding, atmospheric and intelligently made film, with superb performances from all cast members, but you need to have read the book or watched the TV series to fully understand what is going on. That said, it is a recommended watch and is well worth the trip to the cinema.