Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

[Compi716]

Saw it this weekend. I thought the movie was just good...UNTIL THAT ENDING MONTAGE. Damn, that is how you end a movie! Fantastic ending, and really made me walk out of the theater loving it.

 

[CapedCrusader14]

FINALLY get to see this tomorrow after waiting for so long.

 

[Rowsdower!]

Finally saw this last night. What a stellar movie. Definitely one of the best films of the year. Why the hell did the Globes ignore it? Did it snag any noms at all? It damn well should have.

Spoiler

One thing is still eating away at me though. Why could Smiley remember seemingly everything about Karla except what he looked like?

I know someone here suggested that Smiley actually WAS Karla the whole time and had someone else posing as him when Prideaux was captured. That is possible, but if the movie is following the book, then we know that's not the case because as I understand it, the books make it clear that they are two separate characters (though I haven't read them).

For those that have read the book... did the meeting between Smiley and Karla actually go as he described it? Was he actually unable to remember what the man looked like and was there a reason given, other than a lot of time had passed?

 

[CapedCrusader14]

Saw it. An absolutely excellent spy thriller. Gary Oldman deserves more praise and awards for his role in this. Benedict, Tom, Colin and everyone else puts in a fantastic performance. The plot is easily engaging.

The film does have some pacing issues such as some scenes going too long, or too short. But it doesn't detract the film enough to make it immediately bad.

The cinematography was top notch as well.

 

[flickchick85]

Spoiler

One thing is still eating away at me though. Why could Smiley remember seemingly everything about Karla except what he looked like?

Memory can be a fickle thing. There are people who were hugely important in my life when I was younger that I've lost contact with - I vividly remember certain things about them, and can recall many memorable times we had as clear as day, but their faces? Total blur these days. Besides, [blackout]Smiley didn't know at the time that it was Karla (not sure how he eventually found out). He was just another faceless mark Smiley was supposed to try and turn. He probably only remembers the meeting at all because of the silent treatment and the fact that he kept his lighter. So in his mind, before he later found out who he was, he was just "that guy who kept my lighter." Not exactly "face etched in my memory" type of stuff.[/blackout].

I also think story-wise, [blackout]it was meant to represent just how long and taxing the spy life had been for Smiley. They'd been chasing "Karla" - and what Karla represents - for so long, no matter the cost and countless sacrifices, that he can barely remember what they were even after to begin with.[/blackout]

 

[Rowsdower!]

Memory can be a fickle thing. There are people who were hugely important in my life when I was younger that I've lost contact with - I vividly remember certain things about them, and can recall many memorable times we had as clear as day, but their faces? Total blur these days. Besides, [blackout]Smiley didn't know at the time that it was Karla (not sure how he eventually found out). He was just another faceless mark Smiley was supposed to try and turn. He probably only remembers the meeting at all because of the silent treatment and the fact that he kept his lighter. So in his mind, before he later found out who he was, he was just "that guy who kept my lighter." Not exactly "face etched in my memory" type of stuff.[/blackout].

I also think story-wise, [blackout]it was meant to represent just how long and taxing the spy life had been for Smiley. They'd been chasing "Karla" - and what Karla represents - for so long, no matter the cost and countless sacrifices, that he can barely remember what they were even after to begin with.[/blackout]

Ah, yeah, that makes sense. I forgot that he didn't initially know it was him. And yeah, that also does work as an indication of how long these guys have been in the game and tracking this person.

I think I figured out who Karla is, though.

Spoiler

 

[Blue Sugar]

Good movie, though with the expectations I had with the amazing cast, the fantastic trailer and my love for Tomas Alfredson I can't help but feel disappointed.

I thought it lacked rhythm and I thought they tried to pack it with too much information and plot-points, taking away from the visual experience and the acting. And some of the visual narrative is a bit clumsy. The movie never worked up any tension for me, despite it's great atmosphere.

Though still it got some amazing performances and the visuals are amazing, the DP shines here. Love the detailing of it all too. But the story never grabbed me.

6/10

 

[Drz]

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy - Blu-ray Review

It’s funny but the Blu-ray became available for purchase on Play.com faster than its hitting theaters in my home country hah. So instead of seeing this in a cinema experience it came down to watching this on my room and watching all the special features & commentary.


The movie is based off the 1974 novel of the same name by John Le Carré. Set in London 1973-1974 the story flows of the British Intelligence known as the Circus (MI6), as a Soviet Union mole is suspected among their amidst.


The movie is a very slow and silent espionage spy thriller. It’s pretty much a battle of wits and human emotion between 7 people and it’s filled with paranoia. Is there a mole? Who is the mole? How long has he or she been working? Who can you truly trust?


The protagonist of the movie is George Smiley played by Gary Oldman. He’s old, experienced, calm, thoughtful and the ultimately planner here, but quite frankly also the ultimate paranoid more or less in the story. The whole movie is played by a variety of talent with Benedict Cumberbatch playing Peter Guillman. Colin Firth as Bill Haydon, Tom Hardy as Ricki Tarr, David Dencik as Toby Esterhase, Toby Jones as Percy Alleline. You also have Mark Strong & John Hurt playing minor supporting characters. Incredibly well casted assembly with Tomas Alfredson as the director.
I won’t speak more of the plot as that would go more into detail, but the basic premise is that this is 1974 British intelligence trying to figure out who truly could be the Soviet Union mole and what is the big game picture here. It’s a silent, slow burned movie that deals with Agents having to go to against each other despite having been loyal partners for around 2 decades and more. It’s very subtle and emotional. I’d like to add that the setting is incredible well done, from clothing, atmosphere, to the hardware people used back then to their mannerism. The production value was incredibly detailed to say the very least. Cinematography was a bit overdone however, like I mentioned the movie is slow, I do feel it had some rather pointless scenes that truly didn’t add anything to the movie.


Blu-ray Extras:


The Blu-ray is filled with extras. However a lot of it is simple interviews of the writer, director and actors giving their insight on the movie, the book it’s adapting, how familiar we’re they with the Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy and so forth. There are some good thoughts shared there, but at the end of the day this isn’t anything new and comes off as a rather norm feature in dvd/blu-ray.


Deleted scenes are also included and I’m thankful they’re deleted, because they add nothing to the overall story and movie already has scenes that show the exact same portrayal of these characters, so yeah good thing these didn’t drag the movie along, even though it’s just 5 minutes of deleted scenes.


There are also audio book samples, which I think is rather nice as each chapter is like one hour long, but at the end of the day who wants to leave their television open and listen to someone talk for an hour? The point of a television is to see moving picture. I guess they couldn’t get any episodes of the old television series for copyright reasons or other reasoning, but I would have found that more suitable then this.


I think the coolest special feature was a 30 minute interview with John Le Carré who wrote the novel, getting his insight and how his real life inspired the novel and he gets really deep into how his life effected this book, really getting down to the mannerism of the MI6 agents of the 70s. He even talks about how he felt Smiley was a character he felt was the father he never had and his own social awkwardness. Really its incredible how much he talks about his own life and even how World War 2 effected and molded him as a person. It’s too much to simply summarize.
Now for the biggest treat (for me at least) is re-watching this movie with the commentary of Gary Oldman & Tomas Alfredson! I’m a big fan of commentaries so there is obvious bias here, but re-watching the movie, knowing how the story unfolds but with the added emotional drama between the agents at each other’s throats with Tomas and Gary giving insight, debating, pondering and joking about the context just makes it much more fun to watch. They talk about how they adapted the scenes, what we’re cut, point out important little details that my eye didn’t notice the 1st time I viewed and so forth. Very pleasant to watch and listen.


Conclusion:


Pretty decent movie, I’d say what makes it unique amongst other spy thrillers is the slow, silent, paranoid filled run it had, with decent extras and a digital copy + DvD included, I felt the it was a well worth purchase. Recommending this movie for fans of: spy genres, cold wars. and the actor Gary Oldman.

 

[Boom]

I'm assuming the Blu-Ray available on Play.com is region locked.

Universal Studios has announced the British spy film Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy for Blu-Ray in March. The film was adapted from the popular best-selling novel of the same name written by John le Carré*and directed by Tomas Alfredson.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is currently up for 3 Academy Awards, including best actor, best adapted screenplay and best original score. Gary Oldman leads an all-star cast that also consists of Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Toby Jones, Mark Strong and Ciarán Hinds.

The film made a bigger splash overseas, but is still one of the more talked about films of 2011 in America. I liked a lot of aspects of the film, but found some of it a little too hard to follow.

It’s*definitely*a*thinking*man’s film, but it still can enjoyed by those looking for Oscar caliber performances, in which they won’t be disappointed thanks to Gary Oldman. It’s an intricate chess game of a film that rewards the audience for their patience.

Our very own Will gave the film a perfect score in his review. Here’s what he had to say.

To sum it up,*Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy*is one of the best and most elegantly crafted films of the past five years. Rarely, if ever, does it take a step in the wrong direction. In a word it is pretty much perfect.

The Blu-Ray disc will be presented in a Blu-Ray/UltraViolet Digital Copy combo pack and it will feature a 1080p video transfer and a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track. Here’s a confirmed list of special features.

Feature Commentary with Tomas Alfredson and Gary Oldman
Behind-the-scenes featurette
Interviews with Tomas Alfredson, Peter Straughan, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth and Tom Hardy
Interview with author John le Carré
Deleted Scenes

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is expected to be released on March 20th, 2012.

http://****************.com/news/tinker-tailor-soldier-spy-coming-bluray-march/

 

[Rez]

I'll give this movie a second watch, but on my first I was entirely underwhelmed. The first scene hooked me and then nearly everything after tried to undo that. Complete lack of any tension and a needlessly complex narrative for what is ultimately a pretty simple story overshadows fantastic acting and individual moments of greatness.

 

[Whiskey Tango]

Finally got to see this and thought it was excellent. Didn't have too hard a time following it, I still have a few questions but I think I'll watch it again before I send it back. It's impossible to watch a movie around here without distractions.

le Carré has been on my to-read list for some time, maybe I'll get around to it now. I think I'd like to read this.