Rent Smiley's People
(1982)
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The bespectacled spymaster is once more called from retirement to come to the aid of the 'Circus' - and he returns with a vengeance. The murder of an emigre Soviet General, who was also a British agent, sends him digging into the past on a twisted trail across Europe that moves, inexorably, towards a final showdown with his old adversary, Karla of Moscow Centre.
Recent Reviews of Smiley's People by our members
Smiley's People review by RP
Alec Guinness makes an unlikely tale convincing
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Having watched the 2011 film 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' – and despite an excellent performance by Gary Oldman - been disappointed, I re-watched the BBC TV series with Alec Guinness in the lead role. Superb stuff. And being a glutton for punishment, I have now re-watched 'Smiley's People'. [Aside: Why a glutton? Well, the film was over 2 hours, the first TV series was over 5 hours, and this one was just under 6 hours. That's a heck of a lot of George Smiley!]
Again, it's a complex tale which goes something like this... Smiley is called out of retirement yet again, this time because of his background knowledge of Soviet emigré activity. An elderly emigré ex-General has been murdered on Hampstead Heath, leading Smiley to discover that an Soviet emigré woman resident in Paris has been used by the Russians to set up a fake identity for a young woman being treated in a Swiss private psychiatric clinic. And it just happens that this is the daughter of Smiley's old adversary, Karla, who has misused his authority to first smuggle her out of the country and then fund her treatment in the West. And Smiley uses this to blackmail Karla to defect. I've given you this limited detail (no, it's not a spoiler) so you can see how complex the story is and why it takes nearly 6 hours to tell and why a much shorter film (I understand that one is planned) will have to skip much of the backstory and detail. And the resulting film may again be another good yet ultimately unsatisfying re-make :(
Because of the increased complexity of the story, 'Smiley's People' is not as straightforward as 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' and requires even more concentration to follow the twists and turns of multiple characters, some of whom only appear in short scenes. But Alec Guinness as Smiley anchors the story together and makes an unlikely tale convincing. Without him it would be worth 3 stars, with him it's worth 4/5 stars. Recommended.
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Rated: 4.1 stars out of 5 from 17 ratings
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BFI Classification:
Suitable only for persons of 15 years and over
| Release Date: | 01/01/2003 |
| Production Year: | 1982 |
| Run Time: | 349 minutes |
| Aspect Ratio: | Full Screen 1.33:1 / 4:3 |
| Format: | Pal |
| Colour: | Colour |
Special Features:
- Special interview footage with John Le Carre and John Irvin
