Click here for the review of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

SPOILERS must be tagged with the "SPOILER" tag!

I fucking LOVE these types of thrillers, maybe because I like to work while watching a film. I don't subscribe to formulaic templates that films have to grab you with high stakes and spectacle. This film has been criticized by people who clearly don't understand that this film isn't going to reward the viewer with sensationalistic thrills. Thrillers like this are sparse. The really good ones over the past few years have been "Syriana" and "Michael Clayton." I suppose that the Swedish "The GIrl with the Dragon Tattoo" could fit into this category, but that movie had a lot of lurid thrills. I'll agree with James that densely-packed narratives usually play better on television, so there will be more examples there.

I've read the book, so the film will have few surprises, but I don't remember every single detail, so I'm eager to see how the story plays out on screen.

This kind of film is right up my alley as well, as I'm a big fan of slow-burn thrillers. One of the best old releases I've seen this year is Martin Ritt's The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, which is also based on a John le Carré novel. In that film, Smiley is much more of a background presence, but his cold and sinister actions ultimately play an important part in determining the fates of the main characters. It will be interesting to see him in a more central role.

I've been looking forward to this one all year. Unfortunately, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy doesn't open anywhere near me until the 23rd, so I guess I'll just have to wait a little while longer.

I just want to highlight the [currently] one comment James has on his Rotten Tomatoes review of the film, because it makes me giggle.

"WOW OK? y wud anywon want to watch this when theirs twiglight and transformers out. this movie is compleite crap and anyone who DISAGREES is a idiot SIR. REALITY CHECK GIVEN.

first of all lettuce take a look at TWIGHTLIGHT. not only is there more action, but theirs an hot girl with the vampire wolf. NOW TAKE A LOOK at transformers. um instead of 1 movie!!! lets goo here!!!! 3 MOVIES!!! this is just 1 movie transformers already has 3 and is too ahead of this spy drama CRAP.

GOOD RIGHTING IS THE KEY TO GOOD MOVIES. MOVIES LIKE THIS COULD LEARN FROM TRANSFORMERS."

Good righting.

LMFAO!!!!

Yes, good righting is key. Better than bad lefting.

Proof that trolls are an integral part of our internet entertainment experience.

Yes this movie just needs the class that only Optimus Prime can deliver.

It's a shame the states are only just getting to see this, it really is one of the best films of the year.

So how many people are going to just wait for the David Fincher English language remake?

This is why I hate message boards. I used to get delicious stuff like this directly in my e-mail box. Now I have to hunt around to find hate messages like this.

Lettuce?

I think a lot of people who are criticizing the movie didn't pay attention. TTSS demands complete and undivided attention. People aren't used to that. They think they can divide their time between glancing at their cellphone, visiting the refreshment stand, whispering to their friends (or texting them), and watching the movie.

My only exposure to the movie was watching the mini-series during its initial run more than 20 years ago. Aside from Guinness' performance, I didn't remember anything. I understood the movie completely, although there were details I missed. I read the book *after* seeing the movie (took me a couple of days) but before writing the review. So it's not a case of my understanding the movie because I was familiar with the source material. It's a case of my understanding the movie because (a) I'm familiar with the genre and the author and didn't expect chases and explosions, and (b) I focused on the movie rather than on extraneous things (including my bladder, which was a little uncomfortable by the end due to my having drank a little too much coffee beforehand).

I'm old enough to remember the mini-series with Alec Guinness. I too don't remember all the details, but Guinness' performance was outstanding; he was made for the role. I'm just afraid that the two-hour movie will suffer in comparison.

I also remember the Guinness version — it's only 32 years ago — like it was yesterday. Not having read the book at the time, I also remember how I knew who the Mole was long before he was unmasked. It all came down to the structure of the adaptation and which of the "stars" was getting screen time. Despite my elephantine memory, I'm looking forward to seeing the new version. All the reports so far indicate this is a reasonably faithful shot at retelling the story. It should be good. I'm hoping so anyway.

This film is good; I agree with James' three star rating. You do not need to have read the book to be involved in the story of this film, though it does feel compressed. The mole suspects are not really fleshed out, but I'm not sure they needed to be. This film succeeds on the strength of the plot. Having read the book, I found the film to be a terrific companion piece, since it visualizes the story in imaginative ways. The atmosphere is suffused with quiet paranoia. I was listening to the discussion on slashfilmcast, where the hosts were mostly critical film. While they make some strong points, I just can't agree that this film wasn't engaging.


I look forward to reading comments from anyone else who's seen the film.

That just HAS to be someone from the Reelviews boards. Has to be. Brilliant. The question is, who?

I wish I had done it.

That's the best comment I've ever read.

Though I would like it even more if I believed it was in earnest.



Don't be silly. They're hiring Brett Ratner.

Saw this two nights ago...best movie i've seen in a long time.

The slow build, the constant tension of not quite knowing what was going on. I felt like I WAS the protagonist, taking each piece of information and figuring out how it fit.

Man oh man, James was right though, go into this and PAY ATTENTION! Piss before you go in, because if you leave or miss anything you are screwed lol. I need to see it again to take it all in.

I was mesmerized the entire time. Left the theater with the two friends I saw it with, we talked about it the whole car ride, then for another 2 hours after getting home.

Good stuff.

I would be interested to hear your opinion on the slashfilmcast discussion of the film, where two of the hosts really disliked the film. This film has a number of detractors unfortunately.

I saw it about a week ago and thought it was excellent and would find a place on my Top 10 for 2011 but my one gripe (from someone who hasn't read the book or seen the mini-series) is that:

Big spoiler



Aside from that I can't believe people keep complaining about how boring it is since I was enthralled the entire time and it is very well acted - especially Gary Oldman who gives a magnificent understated performance. Reminded me why he has been a favorite of mine since the 90's.

About the spoiler:

Honestly, I figured it was him mostly due to

I don't disagree with James' rating, but I'm not happy with his review. He isn't wrong that it is very dense and demands attention and is perhaps compressed, but these are the things expected from this sort of film. While obviously I respect his skill and experience as a reviewer, I would have liked to have seen more analysis on the actual film making and less on the writing/source material/medium. Perhaps your philosophy on reviewing is different than mine, James, but I've always felt that you have to criticize something based on what it intends to be and how successful it is based on that context. While this doesn't preclude it from comparison to other works, I think that TTSS deserved better.

I actually agree with you here, for those of us that LOVE this kind of movie...this was brain porn. I've since watched this movie again and still was riveted the whole time through. Maybe it's just the lack of "thinking" movies in past years that has starved me for this kind of thing, but I can't praise this movie enough.

I think if you like this kind of movie, it's in the top of the heap, but if not...it's boring as hell.