How will you find a spy that is disguised right before your eyes?
Tuesday, January 17th, 2012As Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy opens, Smiley, an aging Cold War spymaster in The United Kingdom, is being pushed into retirement. It soon starts to become very clear to the government, though, that there’s a mole within the intelligence agency, and Smiley is named to investigate his previous comrades.
He contacts a young co-worker still in the agency to assist him to find out what upper-level intelligence agent is playing footsie with the Russians.
Much intrigue ensues as Smiley makes small moves this way and that, revealing little things that lead to bigger revelations. This film is as intricately plotted and purposely dense as any in memory, yet it all adds up astoundingly well. I watched Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy streaming in top quality.
The Cold War atmosphere and inbuilt paranoia of the spy world is captivated perfectly by stylish Swedish director Tomas Alfredson (“Let the Best One In”), and the cast is a virtual who’s who of male UK acting royalty — Colin Firth, John Hurt, Ciaran Hinds, Toby Jones, Mark Robust.
In the end though, it is much Oldman’s film, thanks to a restrained tour de force performance. Smiley is weathered, worn and beaten down by life, but he’s also a quiet, sure force of something that resembles good.
Oldman is George Smiley, the mild-mannered MI6 agent brought back from retirement to turn out a mole in the “Circus” – the in-house, in-joke name of the top-secret Brit agency. Somebody is leaking critical information to the Soviets, somebody high up in the tiers, and Smiley, calmly considering the world thru his thick-rimmed glasses, is the man to hunt him down. Just watching Gary Oldman and his trenchcoated brethren march down the damp, ill-lit streets of Cold War London is enough to make you shiver.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is, as anticipated a spy movie, and so it is much about secrets and lies, trust and betrayal, deals and paranoia – the definition of our humdrum lives.
All I desire from you is one codename: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy…
Helena Sewartz is an impassioned movie critic that enjoys the drama, mystery and thriller class. As well as watching movies and performances she likes reading and she’s an active volunteer at her local theater. You'll find her Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy review as well as other useful information about Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy streaming at her website about free online movies streaming.
