Review: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)

Title: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
Starring: Gary Oldman, John Hurt, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy,
Director: Thomas Alfredson

Genre: Suspenseful spy movie. This review only gives an introduction to the plot. It does not spoil it.

Verdict:  It is a well made movie and has good acting. It is engaging but a bit slow. If you are looking for James Bond, this is not it.

Score:  6.5 out of 10

I watched this movie with a lot of anticipation. It was announced to be a film version of an excellent BBC serial by the same name. It is about MI-6 the British Intelligence agency during the seventies when the fear of a cold war hung over the western world.  The top layer of MI-6 is referred to as the Circus and it is led by a weary looking old man called Control played by John Hurt. He has five top notch spies as his closest team members and it is their job to gather intelligence to discover and thwart any gains the Russians are trying to achieve. The Russians are not just watching. They have a spy agency and it is run by someone called Karla whose name the British agents keep mentioning in an ominous tone.

In this situation, Control learns that the Russians have succeeded in planting a mole at the very top of MI-6's  'The Circus'. Accordingly the whole movie centers around identifying who among the five is the one working for the Russians. One of the five is agent George Smiley played by Gary Oldman, who is given the task of finding out who the mole is.

The movie is very atmospheric and at some times has a lot of intrigue and suspense. The movie is a bit slow but that was not what disappointed me. It did not give any thrill of watching a spy movie. The fact that most of the spies were old men - some beyond retirement age, also did not help. OK I knew I should not be looking for Jason Bourne or James Bond but still the whole story had the atmosphere of a boring government office. I think that part was realistic but did not offer much in terms of entertainment.  It is well made and has good acting. But it did not give me any kick. I will give this movie a 6.5.