Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Alfredson is a precise watchmaker who can find surprising emotions under an ice sheet of formally perfect and fetishistic-style directing. A film in which he essentially only thinks and remembers... and yet he managed to wind me up like a string. If, in the case of the recent spy retro The Debt, I highlighted the precisely composed "kidnapping over the line" as the climactic scene, I have to highlight the whole in this piece - because timing, correct vibration and the purest conservatism intertwine with small drawings of the characters and extremely fun updating of the period backdrops. It should not be overlooked that Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is, with regard to its stylization, sometimes absurdly consistent and looks (intentionally) like a backdrop spectacle. The backdrop is, paradoxically, what we traditionally consider the core of the narrative (a thrilling story, an ideological context) - the seductiveness of Alfredson's film is precisely in the details that would be only for the "real effect" elsewhere. A delicacy that I want to see again... (01/02/2012)

The direction is precise, with attention to details, even the unimportant ones when Alfredson is just playing around (a wasp in a car, a killed owl in a classroom), but otherwise the narrative is too distant and not very immersive. Gary Oldman displays an excruciating ease with silent glances and considered speeches, and is the brightest point of the entire film. Of course, there have been better spy plots. (27/01/2012)

James Bond took a real beating because this is what I imagine a proper spy film to be like. You won’t find many action sequences here, but instead, a well-thought-out plot with a dense atmosphere that will have you glued to your seat the entire time, along with a star-studded cast where everyone competes to outdo each other (with Gary Oldman and Mark Strong being the best). Tomas Alfredson appeared on my radar out of nowhere, and suddenly, he’s shining like a beacon, as if to say I should start paying attention to him. As I’ve already emphasized, this is mostly about believable and slow storytelling where you really need to stay sharp because you can’t miss even the smallest detail (you’ll hear so many different names and see so many actors that it’ll make your head spin). I’m not saying I understood everything 100%, but I’m not criticizing the film for that in any way, because it tries to lay everything out clearly and thoroughly for the viewer. The 70s vibe emanates from every shot, and it’s clear that an experienced pro was behind the camera. On top of that, otherworldly music plays throughout. A few times, I got chills down my spine, and overall, the film convinced me that being an agent like this takes courage we can’t even imagine. The mole’s elimination at the end with a small-caliber gun, accompanied by that otherworldly music, tied everything together. A spy thriller you can’t afford to let slip through your fingers. I give it 91%. (19/07/2017)

Fantastic direction, production design, and a 70s vibe reminiscent of films like The French Connection and other similar classics. Unfortunately, the plot is quite viewer unfriendly with lots of names, dozens of flashbacks, plenty and of twists and evasive maneuvers. On top of that, there are static shots, glances, a British touch, and I had a hard time finishing this film. Someone might argue that it is for connoisseurs. Maybe, but I was damn bored, and that's not good no matter what the film is like. And I sincerely hope that I'm not inexperienced and unaware enough as a film viewer to not understand all of this. (08/04/2012)

I felt like a redneck in a posh restaurant who orders some incredibly expensive chef’s special and a thousand Euro bottle of wine and then, when they bring it, I lovingly reminisce of a pork schnitzel with a beer at the local pub. An incredibly well made spy drama whose potential to become an immediate modern genre classic is similar to, for instance, last year’s western True Grit, or Tomas Alfredson’s previous film, Let the Right One in. For me, however, it was too slow, with too much dialogue, too one dimensional and too long, which, together with the fact that spy dramas are not my favourite genre, resulted in my being unable to properly appreciate it. I’m sorry, but that’s the fact. (13/01/2012)