John le Carré’s cold war classic comes to life on the big screen as a chilling and wickedly clever game of chess played out between an extraordinary cast.
The time is 1973 and the long running Cold War continues to damage international relations. Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service (a.k.a. MI6 or ‘the Circus’) is striving to keep pace with other countries’ espionage efforts and to keep the U.K. secure. But there’s a gnawing fear that the Circus has long been compromised by a double agent, or mole, working for the Soviets and jeopardizing England. Uncertainty as to who exactly the mole may be itself compromises any effort to identify the mole, until a recently retired career spy with razor-sharp senses, George Smiley (Oldman), is secretly enlisted by the Minister. But with the Soviets intent on protecting their asset, and suspicion even stretching to Smiley himself, the task could hardly be more difficult. And before the startling truth is revealed, the emotional and physical tolls on the players enmeshed in the deadly international spy game will escalate.
A top shelf spy thriller, so intricately conceived that is has no need for special gadgets.
What a treat this film is, and what an unexpected thrill. GUARDIAN (UK)
