Cast of the decade?

One of the most absorbing films of modern cinema was released this summer, filled with more British talent than the 1966 World Cup winning team and a screenplay that does the original proud. I am of course talking about Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

Set in the 1970s the film focusses on the British Secret Service and their search within themselves for a mole. In order to smoke him out, the top dog brings in retired agent George Smiley, played by Gary Oldman.

Smiley knows the mole is one of four men: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, or Spy; his mission is to find out just who it is.

The best part about this film is that you genuinely don’t know who it is. You find yourself thinking that it can’t be any of them. There are characters you like so therefore rule them out, yet the characters you dislike don’t really have the compelling evidence against them.

And that’s the thing, there are just so many great characters in this feature, from Tom Hardy’s Ricki to Mark Strong’s portrayal of the tragic Jim. All of the acting is first rate stuff, absolutely top-draw, you won’t find a better cast this year, maybe even this decade. I thought The King’s Speech had a great cast; this blows it out of the water!

Seriously I’ll list some of them: Gary Oldman, John Hurt, Mark Strong, Colin Firth, Toby Jones, Tom Hardy, Benedict Cumberbatch, Kathy Burke, even the old cockney monkey Stephen Graham is in there! Find a cast better than that!

It isn’t just the characters though, the setting is also great. I’m always partial to anything that’s set in the past, and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is no exception. The setting and surroundings all look fantastic; a dark and dingy throwback to the 1970s. Simply brilliant.

There’s so much suspense crammed in you feel like you can’t take your eyes off it in case you miss something of extreme importance. It doesn’t have many action scenes, and it has quite a lot of dialogue, but the tension and suspense is something else.

The only downfall I can think of is that it had to end. I wanted to know even more about the characters, but time on this occasion just could not allow it, else we’d be looking at a four hour long flick.

This movie won’t really be for everyone. It’s pretty sophisticated compared to the drivel that came out over the summer months. Those who enjoyed The Inbetweeners Movie for example, probably won’t enjoy this one. In fact on the way out of the cinema I overheard some blokes complaining because Gary Oldman wasn’t anything like Commissioner Gordon. Yeah, it’s not for everyone.

I however found it to be one of the best films of the year and almost made the summer disappointment worth enduing.

It has everything you could ask for in a film. High drama, a great cast, a gripping storyline and Gary Oldman! What more could you ever want? Dinosaurs?

Final Verdict: 5 Stars. Film of the year candidate.