katikat | Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

I don't think I appreciated the movie enough the first time I saw it. The second time around, now that I knew what it was like, it was much, much better. I think that people who expected an action packed thriller were disappointed. I would call it a character study more than anything else. Because nothing really ground-breaking happens in the film. It's all about the characters, their interactions, their lives, their thoughts... It's a slow movie, very... gloomy and sad. Yes, they are searching for a mole but it's done by going through papers and files, connecting the dots, not by shooting or blowing up the enemy.

This is the second movie that Tom Hardy filmed with Benedict Cumberbatch, the first being Stuart: A Life Backwards. And also his first with Gary Oldman, followed by Lawless, The Dark Knight Rises and Child 44 which they are filming now. I'm very happy for Tom because Gary Oldman is his hero :)

You know, the most interesting relationships in this movie were the gay ones. I thought Smiley's obsession with his slutty wife was pathetic and the only thing that really bothered me about the movie. But Peter and his lover, the teacher? Bill and his twink? Bill and Jim? I mean, Bill sold out the whole Hungarian spy ring to save Jim! Tragic stuff all around but quite fascinating!