Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Tomas Alfredson, 2011): UK/France/Germany

Reviewed by Kathleen Amboy.  Viewed at Paseo Nuevo, Santa Barbara, CA.

  Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy are the code names for a list of possible double agents working within “the Circus” (British Intelligence).

It is the early 1970’s at the height of the Cold War, wherein a covert operation in Hungary goes awry, and Control (John Hurt), chief of the circus, and his second George Smiley (Gary Oldman), are subsequently put into moth balls.

Once Control is out of the picture, Smiley is requested by the Minister in charge of British Intelligence to secretly investigate an allegation by Agent Tarr (Tom Hardy), regarding a top mole within the circus.

Tarr explains to Smiley how he gathered this intel, after having a brief affair with the wife of a Soviet agent that he was tailing.  Upon his report to the circus, the Soviet was bumped off, the wife was abducted, while he was ordered back home and promptly thrown under the bus with an accusation of being a double agent.

Smiley enlists the help of Agent Peter Guillam (Benedict Cumberbatch), his right-hand man, and the two set about conducting a process of elimination.

Based on a bestseller of the 1970’s, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carre, is loosely based on true events.  The film contains a highly contorted plot of such intricate details, with jump cuts back and forth from past to real time, that should one even blink an eye, a host of details become muddled.

With its retro 70’s mustiness, it is an entertaining film – just don’t turn your head, sneeze, or blink an eyelid.  Produced for fans of the book, with a great cast, including one of my favs Gary Oldman, who always comes through, it does have a lackluster ending.