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If not because of its twisty, turny plot chock full of delicious intrigue and deception, then Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy cements itself as a rock in the pantheon of great spy thrillers because of its strong performances - especially from Gary Oldman, who commands every frame of the film and will most certainly be remembered come awards season.
A brilliant adaptation of John Le Carré’s complex Cold War era spy novel of the same name (a cornerstone in British literature in its own right), the film perfectly captures the novel’s stifling air of suspense that was also prevalent in the 1973 TV mini-series that featured Alec Guinness in the lead role. But it’s important to know that in condensing Le Carré’s intricate story to fit within a traditional two-hour runtime, many shortcuts were taken that demand a callisthenics routine by the viewer to keep up with the goings-on. It’s likely one of the most challenging films you’ll ever watch, but one that yields heaping rewards as a payoff.
Oldman is the central character to the complex plot as George Smiley, a middle-aged spy in the British MI6 secret intelligence service and right-hand man to Control (John Hurt), the head of the agency its employees call The Circus. After a mission goes disastrously awry in Hungary, Control and Smiley are summarily dismissed, but are later called upon to sniff out a mole that is suspected of having penetrated the upper echelons of the agency. Even though Control is close to Smiley, he still counts his friend among the suspected secret double agents. But in line with the rhyme, the lineup of suspects begins with “tinker” or Percy Alleline the group’s reformer (Toby Jones). Next in the line is “tailor,” the well-dressed Bill Hayden (Colin Firth) who wields formidable power in dealing with foreign operations. The workmanlike Roy Bland (Ciarán Hinds), also known as “soldier” is tagged as another potential suspect who sees Control’s ouster as an opportunity for a power shift. All, one, or none may be passing secrets on to a shadowy figure at the top of the Soviet Union’s KGB known only as Karla.
Accompanied by the young go-getter Peter Guillam (Benedict Cumberbatch), Smiley sifts through clues, leads, and red herrings to hunt down his man. A sudden opportunity provided by the arrival of hit man Ricki Tarr (Tom Hardy) might just be the break that is needed to uncover the mole.
Much of the credit for Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy‘s success must go to Swedish director Tomas Alfredson who also scored a brilliant achievement with his Let the Right One In. Here he skillfully strings us along through the labyrinthine plot allowing us just enough rope of uncertainty to never feel comfortable in what we think we know. He incorporates Le Carré’s themes of class, corruption, and moral uncertainty while also mixing in a healthy dose of “what the hell is going on here.” Just as it most assuredly is in the real-life game of spies and secret double agents, never knowing who to trust and always believing no one leads to white-knuckle moments of suspense and intrigue. Albeit moments of intrigue that may look like nothing more than the raising of an eyebrow, but impact with the pound of a sledgehammer.
The pacing by screenwriters Bridget O'Connor and Peter Straughan is deliberately slow and calculating which may be misperceived by action/adventure junkies as slow and boring. But succumbing to Alfredson’s deadly serious approach to the subject matter will ultimately lead to an immersion in the time period and all its deadly mistrust. Mistrust that sometimes comes from something as simple as a brief upward glance by a chap reading a newspaper. Only the great filmmakers can make us feel the tightening of the noose and pounding of our pulse with a film that roars while rarely speaking above a whisper.
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