Tip jar

If you like CaB and wish to support it, you can use PayPal or KoFi. Thank you, and I hope you continue to enjoy the site - Neil.

Buy Me a Coffee at ko-fi.com

Support CaB

Recent

Welcome to Cook'd and Bomb'd. Please login or sign up.

March 29, 2024, 10:16:54 AM

Login with username, password and session length

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

Started by CaledonianGonzo, September 18, 2011, 07:49:38 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

Sal Vicuso

Loved it, but Guillam was miscast and although I thought Stephen Graham was fine as Jerry/Sam, I don't think he has the chops or the reputation to carry a major sequel, which means my dream they might one day film Schoolboy disappointingly unlikely

Angst in my Pants

The film featured a song which I now know to be called "Spinning Wheel" - who was singing it? From the iTunes previews it doesn't sound like the Blood, Sweat & Tears version nor the James Brown version. Maybe iTunes are previewing a slower, less funky part of the song. Any ideas? #shouldhavestayedforthecredits

phantom_power

Quote from: Sal Vicuso on September 22, 2011, 12:17:19 AM
Loved it, but Guillam was miscast and although I thought Stephen Graham was fine as Jerry/Sam, I don't think he has the chops or the reputation to carry a major sequel, which means my dream they might one day film Schoolboy disappointingly unlikely

Graham is mesmeric in This is England so I don't think you need to worry about him carrying a film

Shoulders?-Stomach!

Going to see it today, and just thought that it's a proper 15. Quite an unusual certification these days, with so many movies (especially action/fantasy) that used to be 15s bumped down to 12A to get a wider audience.

I've almost amused myself that I hate the '12A' rating so much that this is even notable to me.


Tiny Poster

Quote from: Sal Vicuso on September 22, 2011, 12:17:19 AM
Loved it, but Guillam was miscast and although I thought Stephen Graham was fine as Jerry/Sam, I don't think he has the chops or the reputation to carry a major sequel, which means my dream they might one day film Schoolboy disappointingly unlikely

He's got rising cachet in America, thanks to being taken under Scorsese's wing, and he can carry a film... but unless Colin Firth can return somehow, I wouldn't be surprised if there's no sequel.

Shoulders?-Stomach!


Aploplectic

I saw this last night and really enjoyed it.  Not being familiar with the story, I did find it a little bit confusing (it took me half the film to work out who/what
Spoiler alert
Karla
[close]
was!) but almost everything became clear by the end.  Of course, the plot is supposed to be a bit confusing or there wouldn't be any mystery, and obviously I'd rather have things revealed slowly than have the characters going "so what you're saying is..." every five minutes.

I thought the film looked great – the period details really worked and the gloomy/muted look added a lot to the atmosphere.  I also thought all the acting was top notch (including Esterhase), although unfortunately I was in a cinema where people kept going "oooh...it's Sherlock" or laughing, actually properly laughing, when they saw Roger Lloyd Pack - which was strange and annoying.  To me the only mistake was Kathy Burke, who seemed terribly miscast.  Maybe it's my problem, but she does have an extremely recognisable voice and I just don't see the point of casting her in a role where people are bound to notice that she's putting on an accent.  It took me out of the film a bit, which was a shame because I thought it was very absorbing otherwise.

Zetetic

There was a good few minutes of "Trigger, yes, it's Trigger" at the appropriate point in the showing I went to. And yet not a single "Tinker falls through the Circus" tag.

Icehaven

Quote from: MissInformed on September 21, 2011, 02:06:27 AM
that one with the very sexy mouth.

That would be Edward Thomas ''Tom'' Hardy.

MissInformed

To me he will always be that one with the very sexy mouth...

Icehaven

Quote from: MissInformed on September 28, 2011, 09:37:08 PM
To me he will always be that one with the very sexy mouth...

And eyes, eyebrows, shoulders, general demeanour, I could go on but I probably shouldn't. But yes the mouth, or more specifically the lips, are most definitely a noted high point. I think my other profile pic might need a resurrection.

MissInformed

Girls night out to see Warrior, Icehaven??

Icehaven

Quote from: MissInformed on September 28, 2011, 09:57:32 PM
Girls night out to see Warrior, Icehaven??

Saw it last night! It's exposition city but if you're basically watching it for some Hardy, then you won't be disappointed, he's terrific in it (and, needless to say, fit as hell, when he doesn't have blood pouring out of his face, which is quite a lot.)

Sal Vicuso

Quote from: Tiny Poster on September 24, 2011, 10:41:51 AM
He's got rising cachet in America, thanks to being taken under Scorsese's wing, and he can carry a film... but unless Colin Firth can return somehow, I wouldn't be surprised if there's no sequel.

Haydon doesn't feature heavily in Schoolboy though does he, bar a few flashbacks? It would be nice to see it filmed, I was always disappointed the BBC didn't do it with Guinness, I suppose because it would have had to be quite a big-budget affair compared to TTSS and Smiley's People.

Graham was really no more than second string to Thomas Turgoose in This is England, although he was fantastic in it. How has he been taken under Scorcese's wing, bar a small role in Boardwalk Empire? I would like to see him properly break out because I do find him very engaging on the screen but having thought about it more I think he suits Sam Collins far more than he does Westerby

Shoulders?-Stomach!

Burke is probably the only woman who could've delivered the line
Spoiler alert
'I don't know about you, but I am extremely unfucked'
[close]
as well as that, so I'm going to let her off.

I felt that the cast of the circus was a bit too deliberately red herringy. All the ones except the actual mole just look like dodgy fuckers. And are deliberately cut to in Smiley's flashbacks over and over and over, whereas the mole wasn't. So it really wasn't too difficult to decipher. Especially when you factor in the 'Tinker', 'Tailor' chess pieces.

Braintree

I never come into this forum but I saw this a couple of weeks ago before it went on general release with a Oldman, Hurt, Tomas Alfredson and quite fit writer man Peter Straughan Q&A and it was interesting that Oldman claims he was channeling Le Carre and not Guinness in his portrayl. Oldman also said he put on a lot of weight for it, I know the man can become very slim but he hardly seems that fat as Smiley.

The bestest bit of the Q&A was Straughan revealling that the
Spoiler alert
"Seriously underfucked" line came from WH Auden who used those terms to try and sex up Le Carre
[close]

I really enjoyed it, great casting and actually the pace worked surprisingly well, though I may have to watch the actual series for Hywel Bennett's version of Ricki Tarr.  I think Oldman will grab a major acting nomination at least because everyone seems thrown that he lead such a cast in such a quiet role.

Shoulders?-Stomach!

My Dad mentioned something about the story that I failed to pick up on but in retrospect seems quite obvious, that being that
Spoiler alert
the mole and the man sent on the doomed mission in Budapest were lovers
[close]
. Looking back, the sexual undertones, particularly at the finale were really strong.

Shoulders?-Stomach!

Quote from: MissInformedBut...beautiful cinematography? Really? I found it grey, dull and dank.

Which are three adjectives that could describe the inner workings of the British Secret Service quite well, given what I've read. Given that, the film could hardly have been made using the pallette of a sweet shop. What made the cinematography beautiful was the smokiness, the eye for detail, the endless bookshelves heaving with simultaneously useful/useless pieces of information. The sense that the operation was overwhelmingly bigger than any one person.

The direction had elements of flair that were enjoyable but overall fairly workmanlike- deliberately unflashy, deliberately unsentimental with streaks of 70s flamboyance bleeding through the veneer. Generic hollywood direction with generic THUNDERCLAP booms to indicate something dramatic was happening would have detracted from it.

The film required slow careful absorption of detail, so on a whole different planet to the majority of films that are out there at the cinema. It's a good thing in a way that a good cast can snare people like you who don't go for that sort of thing very often, or wouldn't if they knew what was coming, because even if you didn't like it, it helps break apart the possibilities and expectations people have of a film- that are currently very narrow.

I don't think this film is a perfect example of anything, by far, but it had the unmistakable touch of quality running all the way through it.

Bingo Fury

That (two posts up) is certainly the impression the BBC version conveyed, Shoulders. I haven't seen the "Tinker, Tailor" movie yet, but I was inspired by its release to go back and re-watch both that and "Smiley's People". Took a perverse pleasure in their glacial leisureliness ... the more slowly they moved, the more I found myself enjoying myself. Consequently, not sure how much I'll like the film.

Zetetic

Quote from: Shoulders?-Stomach! on October 05, 2011, 02:55:14 PM
My Dad mentioned something about the story that I failed to pick up on but in retrospect seems quite obvious, that being that
Spoiler alert
the mole and the man sent on the doomed mission in Budapest were lovers
[close]
. Looking back, the sexual undertones, particularly at the finale were really strong.

I wasn't sure if they were
Spoiler alert
lovers
[close]
from the film, but there's an unmistakable adoration from the
Spoiler alert
Budapest man
[close]
to the
Spoiler alert
mole
[close]
. I thought all that tied in the boy. (What was he presenting him with? It seemed to be a random collection of wood pieces fixed together.)

Shoulders?-Stomach!

Springs to mind the comment he made about
Spoiler alert
how he's never met a bad person called Bill. (Bill being the name of the mole, and the schoolboy he befriends- whether out of kindness for his being bullied or out of transference of affection, maybe both, I don't know)
[close]

^Total plot giving away spoiler above, so be careful

Monty

Film Spoiler
Spoiler alert
That look between Haydon and Prideux at the Christmas Party pretty much confirmed to me that they were lovers.
[close]

TV Series Spoilers
Spoiler alert
As for the television series well you have Lacon euphemistically remarking to Smiley that he didn't realise how "close" the two were and also the rather excellent recommendation letter Haydon wrote for Prideux at Uni:

"He has that heavy quiet that commands. He's my other half. Between us we'd make one marvelous man. He asks nothing better than to be in my company or that of my wicked, divine friends, and I'm vastly tickled by the compliment. He's virgin, about eight foot tall, and built by the same firm that did Stonehenge."
[close]


Harpo Speaks

In the film
Spoiler alert
when Smiley meets Haydon at the end, doesn't he ask him if he can do anything and Haydon says something along the lines of 'there's some money for a girl, and some for a boy'? I can't pull the quote or be sure I'm not misremembering, but that to me hinted at his bisexuality.
[close]

Also there's
Spoiler alert
an interview where Firth says:
[close]
Quote
Spoiler alert
Haydon has a  lighter approach than the others; he's a joker and  somewhat predatory and he's known to be a bit of a boy when it comes to the girls – and indeed the boys.
[close]

Quote
Spoiler alert
Britain, like every nation, chooses for her spies people who are brilliant at complicity, people who have grown up and been groomed into a double life.

The first play I ever did, Another Country, tried to come up with a theory as to how that particular generation of spies became spies. And it was a) the fact that they were concealing being gay, and b) they had an axe to grind with the Establishment
[close]
.

Zetetic

So, no-one knows what that bloody thing that the boy had made was?

Zetetic

I've found out what the boy makes him!

Spoiler alert
Course I bloody haven't, but it's driving me insane, so I'm going to keep bumping this thread until Neil bans me from it.
[close]

pk1yen

Seriously though -
Spoiler alert
what the hell WAS that thing the boy made?
[close]

Spoiler alert
Something to prop up the front of his caravan, was the best I can come up with? But there's no way a thin piece of wood like that could have supported the weight of a caravan, surely?
[close]

Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth

It's the thing that Bill Murray told Scarlett Johansson was in Marcellus Wallace's briefcase.

Phil_A

I thought it was a particularly shoddy pipe rack.

Shoulders?-Stomach!

I just remembered the bit where
Spoiler alert
the owl flew down that chimney into the classroom
[close]
. That was weird.

Zetetic

I suppose it might've been a make-shift
Spoiler alert
owl-beater
[close]
then.