Latest news with #TinkerTailorSoldierSpy
Daily Record
23-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
BBC drama hailed as 'greatest spy thriller of the century'
The Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy film, starring Gary Oldman, Benedict Cumberbatch and Colin Firth, is referred to as the "greatest spy thriller of the century" by film fans "Excellent casting, acting and directing" was the verdict of one viewer who watched the blockbuster thriller featuring Gary Oldman, Colin Firth and Benedict Cumberbatch. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, a 2011 spy film set amidst the Cold War, held the top spot at the British box office for three consecutive weeks. Even years later, cinema enthusiasts continue to sing praises of its plot, with one critic hailing it as one of the "greatest spy thrillers of the century". A review on Rotten Tomatoes reads: "A calm, deep, complex yet intense spy movie that I still enjoy watching today. The scene setup and details are amazing, drastically different from those with aggressive and dramatic fight/CGI movies, which usually have very little plot over storyline and character details." The thriller, based on the 1974 novel, transports you back to 1970s London during the search for a Soviet double agent operating at the highest level of the British secret service. The head of MI6 covertly sends an agent to liaise with a Hungarian general who knows the identity of the clandestine Soviet spy but unfortunately dies before he can spill the beans. Following his forced retirement, ex-spy George Smiley, portrayed by Gary Oldman, is recruited by a high-ranking government official to probe into the mole. During his meticulous investigation, he soon discovers that the said Soviet source has firmly entrenched themselves within the service in a bid to access U.S. intelligence information, reports the Express. One film enthusiast shared their thoughts on Rotten Tomatoes, praising the movie as a "masterfully crafted spy games movie that may be too slow for some. Paranoia, anxiety and betrayal everywhere. I loved it." Another reviewer said: "Slow, serious, at times bleak. With an ever-present tension. Spectacular acting and visually beautiful. It takes a bit of patience to fully enjoy this one, but it definitely pays off." Given its impressive ensemble, including Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Kathy Burke, it is no surprise that Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy went on to receive a BAFTA for Outstanding British Film, as well as three major Oscar nominations. One viewer said the film featured the "best acting ever", going on to comment: "With the best casting ever done in a movie! And the best movie screenplay ever adapted!". On the other hand, not everyone felt the film deserved its high praise. A less-than-impressed viewer wrote: "A sincere attempt but falls short of the 1979 miniseries. The movie relies on visuals and contains minimal exposition; it works when you know the story." A significant number of viewers have praised the film's slow-burning narrative style, which favours build-up over fast-paced action sequences. A review states: "It doesn't surprise me that people who are spoon-fed CGI and explosions and shootouts every three minutes won't enjoy it, but for me, I'd like to see more films like this being made."
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
My spat with John le Carré over spy novels got ‘physical', says ex-MI6 chief
A former MI6 chief has told how he 'physically' argued with John le Carré for making 'betrayal the currency of espionage' in his spy novels. Sir Richard Dearlove says he thinks 'trust and integrity' is actually 'the stronger currency'. Le Carré, the pen name of David Cornwell, was best known for his Cold War thrillers featuring the spy boss George Smiley, including The Spy Who Came in from the Cold and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. His novels regularly featured double agents and 'moles', and he took a dim view of the activities of the British intelligence agencies after his own cover was blown six years into his MI5 and MI6 service. Sir Richard – who was the head of MI6 between 1999 and 2004 – was asked on his One Decision podcast whether it was true that spying was 'sinister' and 'shady'. The 89-year-old replied: 'I think in reality it isn't a reflection of character, it's a reflection maybe of circumstance and that there are occasions that are unavoidable in this profession where the circumstances become sinister and individuals are forced to act in a way which is disconcerting. 'I'm always trying to defend its integrity. For example, the big argument I had with Le Carré, and I did actually physically have it with him, was that he had made betrayal the currency of espionage. 'Of course it is sometimes but the stronger currency of espionage is trust and integrity, because if you're making a betrayal, particularly of an evil empire, the people helping you to make that have got to behave with absolute integrity and trust.' The pair had a public argument in 2019, with Sir Richard hitting out at Le Carré at a literary festival. He called the author a 'counter-intelligence nihilist' and claimed most MI6 officers were 'pretty angry' with him. Le Carré responded by suggesting the spymaster was still angry about the author's opposition to the Iraq war. He said his 'cynicism', as Sir Richard called it, came from the betrayals of double agents George Blake and Kim Philby who between them had caused the deaths, imprisonments or disappearances of thousands of agents. Following Le Carré's death from pneumonia aged 89 in December 2020, Sir Richard once again criticised the writer. He called his novels a 'stain' on the intelligence service and said he had 'tarred the moral reputation of his colleagues'. This was in contrast to high-profile tributes from other intelligence officers, including Richard Moore, the current head of MI6, who called Le Carré a 'giant of literature'. Sir Richard rose through the ranks of MI6 to become the head of the intelligence service, known as C, between 1999 and 2004. His time in charge was marred by controversy over unreliable intelligence about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Le Carré became an MI5 officer in 1958, running agents and tapping telephone lines, before moving to MI6 in 1960. His intelligence career came to an end in 1964 when it was discovered that his identity had been exposed by Philby, a member of the Cambridge Five. The ring of spies passed information from the UK to the Soviet Union during the Second World War and the Cold War after being recruited while at the University of Cambridge. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
BBC News
14-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Matthew Macfadyen: Succession star 'to play spy George Smiley in TV drama'
Succession star Matthew Macfadyen is set to play writer John le Carré's fictional spy George Smiley in a new TV series, Variety has of Spies is "currently in the works", according to the outlet, adding that Macfadyen would be the latest actor to play the writer's arguably most famous spy "should the series move forward".Smiley has previously been portrayed on the big and small screens by actors including Gary Oldman, Alec Guinness, Denholm Elliott and Rupert won two Emmys and two Baftas for playing Tom Wambsgans in Succession, starred in 2005's Pride and Prejudice film as Mr Darcy, and was recently in Deadpool & Wolverine. George Smiley is a British secret service agent who appears in many of le Carré's described as being "a deceptively bland middle-aged man... trusted and respected by his subordinates and colleagues... who occasionally clashes with the intelligence bureaucracy and sometimes feels that professional duty compromises his personal honour".The TV series would be "an amalgamation of a number of le Carré's novels, including The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, and The Honorable Schoolboy", plus some unpublished work and other novels, Variety famously played Smiley in BBC TV adaptations of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy in 1979 and Smiley's People in 1982. Oldman was nominated for an Oscar for starring in the 2011 film Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. The new TV series would be produced by The Ink Factory, founded by Le Carré's sons Stephen and Simon have previously produced adaptations of their father's work, including Emmy and Golden Globe-winning BBC series The Night Manager, which starred Tom Carré, who died in 2020, was the pseudonym of the author David Cornwell, judged by many to be the master of the spy teaching at Eton for two years, he joined the Foreign Office and also worked at MI5 and MI6. During his time at the Foreign Office, he worked in the intelligence records department and began scribbling down ideas for spy stories on his trips between work and home.
The Guardian
14-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Matthew Macfadyen to play George Smiley in new John le Carré TV show
Matthew Macfadyen has been cast as George Smiley in a new TV series based on the novels of John le Carré that will be produced by the late author's sons. Various trade publications including Variety and Deadline reported on Thursday that the 50-year-old Succession star will play le Carré's most famous spook in a TV show called Legacy of Spies, which will draw on storylines from several novels, including The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and The Honourable Schoolboy. Le Carré's bestselling novels were inspired by the author's own experience of working for British intelligence in the 1950s and 60s. Some unpublished work by le Carré – the pen name of David Cornwell, who died aged 89 in 2020 – will also be used in the show, Variety reported. Legacy of Spies – drawing on the title of the final Smiley novel, A Legacy of Spies – will be produced by The Ink Factory, a production company founded by two of le Carré's four sons, Stephen and Simon Cornwell. The Cornwells also produced the award-winning adaptation of his novel The Night Manager, and are currently working on two sequel series to the hit show. If Legacy of Spies goes ahead, Macfadyen – known for his performances as Tom Wambsgans in Succession and Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice – will join hallowed ranks: Gary Oldman, Rupert Davies, Alec Guinness and Denholm Elliott have all portrayed Smiley on screen. A middle-aged, podgy, balding man described by his own wife as 'breathtakingly ordinary', Smiley is also a ruthlessly clever spymaster working in the British secret service during the cold war. 'Short, fat, and of a quiet disposition, he appeared to spend a lot of money on really bad clothes, which hung about his squat frame like skin on a shrunken toad,' le Carré wrote in the first Smiley novel, Call for the Dead. Playing short might be a challenge for Macfadyen, who is 1.91 metres tall. Le Carré was very fond of Guinness's portrayal of Smiley in 1979's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and 1982's Smiley's People, once saying that he 'so beautifully represented Smiley and left the character intact'. He also reportedly enjoyed Oldman's 'beautiful performance' in the 2011 Tinker Tailor. But a sequel starring Oldman was reportedly blocked by le Carré's sons, with Oldman's manager Douglas Urbanski telling the Radio Times in September: 'We've reached out … to le Carré's sons and – the damnedest thing – they have no interest in Gary playing Smiley again. I don't know why.' The explanation may well be the new show, which Variety reports has already been shopped around to various interested buyers in the US and UK.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Disco Elysium Studio Finally Gives Us A Tease Of Its Long-Awaited Next Game
ZA/UM Studio, the entity which at one point released Disco Elysium, a critically acclaimed detective RPG about navigating the ruins of capitalism and solving a murder, has finally revealed its next game nearly six years later. Instead of Disco Elysium 2, it's a spy RPG still mostly shrouded in secrecy called Project[C4], and one big question facing it is whether it will bear any resemblance to the studio's previous work after years of internal upheaval and tumult. In [C4] you play an Operant working for a corrupt global power in a world where the mind is a battlefield for geopolitical struggle and espionage. 'More vulnerable and more powerful than the physical world, it can be erased, changed, reordered, and of course significantly altered through regular use of psychoactive substances amongst other means,' reads the press release from ZA/UM Studio. 'Players must steel themselves with whatever comfort they can in order to survive the violent canvas of the real.' Here's the quick teaser released today which has some cool art and intriguing vibes but is light on substance. The material was first presented to press in a scripted 10-minute presentation by C4 writers Jim Ashilevi (voice over direction on Disco Elysium) and Siim Sinamäe (additional writing on Disco Elysium). They confirmed that the studio has been working on the new project for about three years now and said one of the main things that will differentiate it from other RPGs is making failure 'a joy in itself' rather than something players want to save-scum their way out of. The duo also cited John le Carré and his thriller Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy as one of the inspirations for the game, but didn't share many specifics on what the game's actually about or how it will play. Most notably, the pair did not take questions and only vaguely referenced the ongoing issues facing ZA/UM, which is a very different studio than it was five years ago after layoffs, firings, and departures of some of the core team that made Disco Elysium, including creator Robert Kurvitz, art director Aleksander Rostov, and writer Helen Hindpere. Amid dueling allegations of theft, fraud, and abuse by the founders and current studio leadership, several new indie teams popped up last year, each claiming the mantle to creating the true Disco Elysium successor. 'As with any artistic practice, attempts and failures have been a natural part of this process. Failing forward seems to be one of those things we here at ZA/UM excel at,' Ashilevi said during the [C4] presentation. The game, whatever it turns out to be, seems to thematically echo many of the studio's troubles. 'Betrayal is only possible in the presence of love,' Sinamäe said of the project's spycraft storytelling. The team is planning to present more information about the upcoming game at GDC later this week. . For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
