Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Starring: Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, Mark Strong, Benedict Cumberbatch, Toby Jones, John Hurt, Ciaran Hinds
Director: Tomas Alfredson
Rating: 5/5
When a film is being called one of the best British movies in many a year and there is already Oscar talk before the movie is even released you know that you have something special on your hands.
And Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy really has not disappointed as Tomas Alfredson and an all star cast have delivered one of the best movies of 2011- yes it is that good!
Set in the 1970s, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy finds George Smiley (Oldman), a recently retired MI6 agent, doing his best to adjust to a life outside the secret service.
However, when a disgraced agent reappears with information concerning a mole at the heart of the Circus, Smiley is drawn back into the murky field of espionage.
Tasked with investigating which of his trusted former colleagues has chosen to betray him and their country, Smiley narrows his search to four suspects - all experienced, urbane, successful agents - but past histories, rivalries and friendships make it far from easy to pinpoint the man who is eating away at the heart of the British establishment.
Right lets get the one possible negative out of the way first before I head a whole load of praise on this fabulous movie. The slow pacing of the film my irritate some - but I felt that it just cranked up the tension and the questions.
Tinker Tailor Solider Spy is, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the best political thrillers that I have had the privilege to watch - it hooks you from the word and it really a very absorbing watch.
The movie’s great strength, apart from a strong script, is it’s fabulous cast with the likes of Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, John Hurt, Mark Strong and Tom Hardy on board this movie could never fail.
Oldman is simply superb, and the Oscar talk surrounding his performance it totally justified, in what is a really understated and controlled performance from the actor.
Benedict Cumberbatch is also excellent in what is a much bigger role than I expected but he really holds his own well against the more experienced big screen actors.
This is a great piece of filmmaking from Alfredson, the man behind Let The Right One In, as he creates uncertainty and paranoia at every turn - not just for the cast but also for the audience.
Alfredson has made a quick bleak and dark movie that has the Cold War threat hanging all over it from start to finish.
This is a stunning piece of filmmaking that keeps you gripped from beginning until the very end throw in some tour de force performances and you have a movie that we will be talking about for a long time.
Very rarely do movies live up to the hype around one but Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is one that bucks the trend this is a gritty spy movie that shakes off all the glitz and glam that has been added to this genre by James Bond.
And as if I can't praise this movie anymore there is one more point to make... the script, the director and the cast all, thankfully, respect the intelligence of the audience - something which is very rare in filmmaking at the moment.
Tinker Tailor Solider Spy is in cinemas now
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw