shadowy rooms, double agents and mundane tasks like reading government files becoming heart pounding risky situations with danger around every archive block. Tinker Tailor has all these things in full force but with added shadows, twice the knowing conversations and a risky archive scene that isn't ironically heart pounding, it's just stressful brilliance.
Mr. Smiley (Gary Oldman) is a MI6 agent forced into retirement which turns him into the perfect candidate for seeking out a double agent in his old offices, 'The Circus'. And from that point the film jumps around from place to place, time to time in an attempt to unravel the mystery.
The film looks bleak. The colours,even in the day,range from washed out brown to a wistful blue. It does a great job at creating that cold war atmosphere where everything is depressing and everyone is betraying everyone else. A good portion of the film takes place in shadow that somehow looks awesome, though it results in scenes where you can't really see anything.
The film has a tendency for jumping around in time without ever directly pointing it out, it's brilliant, if a little hard to keep up with. When films put up a 'Berlin November 1943' every time they change to a new period I always think "I'm not that dumb I can tell it's a different time now." I've always wondered why films feel the need to break character so badly, does the fourth wall mean nothing to them? Smiley's glasses play an important role in this, as he changes them at the start of the film. So if he is in a scene with the other specs then we are back in time. Clever right? Also, the time travel is only ever direct. Mr. Smiley tends to think of something, then we go back in time to see what in in his mind. Once I got used to it I was fine with it and never found it overly confusing. That's not to say however it's not a confusing film. It's a spy movie. So it does go around the houses a bit.
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| Mark Strong, proving that when his hair thins out, he'll still be cool as all hell |
I would write a paragraph all about the actors that rocked it and the ones that failed to serve up the goods but seriously, Gary Oldman can be anything, from a coked up mad man to and quiet pensive MI6 agent. He nails it all. Mark Strong, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt, even the creepy pedophile from Atonement(Benedict Cumberbatch)It's one of those big old British ensemble casts that is gonna nail it no matter what (I realize the irony in this paragraph)
So who's the director then? Tom Hooper? Stephen Daldry? No, it's the Swedish director of one of the best 'horror' films in recent years(Let the Right One In) Tomas Alfredson. That pedigree does not go to waste however.He builds the tension in brilliant ways and in some cases makes the tension appear out of nowhere and then smashes it across your face. He never shy's away from the necessary gore and I am always a big fan of symmetry in my shots.
If you are willing to have a little clarifying conversation with someone after you see the movie then it's hard not to love the impressive performances (Check that Cumberbatch, amazing.) the wonderful cinematography,and an emotionally moving story.
JO
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