Director: Tomas Alfredson

Writer: Bridget O’Connor, Peter Straughan,

Starring: Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt, Mark Strong, Toby Jones, Ciaran Hinds, Benedict Cumberbatch, David Dencik

 

Story: After Control (Hurt) hears there is a double agent with the higher ups in the MI6 he starts to recruit trusted spies to uncover the truth. After the first mission with Jim Prideaux (Strong) goes sour Control sets out another attempt with formerly retired agent George Smiley (Oldman).

 

Smiley teams with young agent Peter Guillam (Cumberbatch) and rogue agent Ricki Tarr (Hardy) to investigate the truth. The five names that could the suspects are

• Percy Allenline (Jones)
• Toby Esterhase (Dencik)
• Roy Bland (Hinds)
• Bill Haydon (Firth)
• And Smiley himself.

 

Can Smiley uncover the truth with all the plot turns unfolding around every corner?

 

Verdict: This British thriller based on the novel by John Le Carre and a remake of the drama with the same name made by the BBC is a very engrossing story. Having recently being nominated for three Oscars including best actor for Gary Oldman this is one spy thriller to be watching. The cast is wonderfully ensemble of British talent who all shine through out. With Oscar season coming up I suggest you watch this movie before.

 

Story Mark 10/10 Brilliant story, which unfolds at a perfect pace.

 

Character Development Mark 9/10 Each characters secret unfolds as you learn more about the character.

 

Star Performances: Gary Oldman his Oscar nomination is well deserved. Overall every single actor gives a top performance through out.

 

Favourite Character: Ricki Tarr the agent with truth and more detailed reason for it to be uncovered.

 

Least Favourite Character: Billy Hayden stuck up agent very un-likable character thanks to brilliant performance from Colin Firth.

 

Best Part: The story itself really

 

Worst Part: May struggle to make a mark in the US with a British heavy cast.

 

Best Quote: Smiley ‘We are not so very different, you and I. We’ve both spent our lives looking for the weaknesses in one another.’

 

My Rating 92%