Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy - Movie Review

It's brilliant but don't expect to pop this one into the DVD player and not pay attention.

Synopsis

In the bleak days of the Cold War, espionage veteran George Smiley is forced from semi-retirement to uncover a Soviet agent within MI6.

Who's In It

Gary Oldman - An outstanding performance
Colin Firth - He's no Mr. Darcy in this
Ciaran Hinds - I really like this guy
John Hurt - Excellent supporting role and brilliant one-liners
Mark Strong - This guy really needs a leading role
Tom Hardy - the blond 70's hairdo is befitting
Benedict Cumberbatch - wins the prize for camp hairdo

What I Thought

Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy is based on the book of the same name by John le Carré. Interestingly he is listed in the cast and makes a cameo at the Christmas party in the film.

The story centers around a mole in a high position within MI6 and how Gary Oldman's character goes about ferreting him out.

The egg shell wallpaper added a lovely touch

The cast is really strong as can be seen by the roster above. For a large part it basically is a bunch of old men sitting around smoking cigarettes and pipes. John Hurt is excellent but by far and away its Oldman's performance that really pulls this all together. His portrayal of his character George Smiley is eerily brilliant. I've not seen The Artist yet but it really is the best performance I've seen in a long time. It really has to be seen to be believed. I also wanted to note that Laura Carmichael from Downtown Abbey makes an appearance in a small role. It's good to see TV people getting onto the big screen.

Also worth noting is the make-up in this movie is excellent. Each character is made up to look much older than they actually are and it very believable. The period hairdos are also brilliant.

This is a long movie. It can be slow at times but you need to pay attention or you may miss something. In fact, watching it at home maybe better as you may want to pause it and discuss what the fuck is going on. Also don't be fooled by the trailer, there's not a whole lot of action in this movie.

Memorable Quotes

Surprisingly there were a couple of real corkers:

"I don't know about you George but I feel seriously under fucked."

"It'll take us five hours to get drunk on this monkey's piss!"

"You really are a poison dwarf, Toby. Why don't you fuck off to his majesty and stop trying to involve me in your little cabaret."

Rating

4/5

Definitely worth a watch, especially for Oldman's performance.

Trailer

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