Tinker Tailor Soldier Spyearns a perfect realism grade for its portrayal of spycraftk according to a real-life double agent. Released in 2011, the film is directed by Tomas Alfredson and is based on author John le Carré’s acclaimed novel of the same name.Starring Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, and John Hurt,Tinker Tailor Soldier Spytells the story of Oldman’s George Smiley as he attempts to uncover a Soviet mole within MI6 during the height of the Cold War. The film was a critical hit and it earned Oldman a Best Actor nomination at the Oscars.
In a recent video forInsider, former double agent Naveed Jamali breaks down a sequence fromTinker Tailor Soldier Spyin which Strong’s character, Jim Prideaux, is involved in a shootout that ends with an innocent woman dead.Jamali praises the movie’s general premise and the real-life dangers of a mole in an intelligence service, citing some key historical examples, including Aldrich Ames, who was outed as a Soviet spy during the Cold War.
In terms of the shooting depicted on screen, Jamali reveals that thesesudden bursts of violence do have the potential to happen in such operations, and the film does an effective job of portraying the moment as it would likely play out. Ultimately, Jamali awards the film a perfect realism grade of 10 out of 10. Check out Jamali’s analysis or watch the clip below (relevant section begins at 20:30):
“So, I think Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy really nails one of the biggest threats to an intelligence service. The fundamental, main plot of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is that British intelligence believes there’s a mole.
“So, this idea that you don’t know if your service has been penetrated. You know, counterintelligence, which is the focus on that defensive move, is a very, very real thing. And, in terms of the U.S., there’s plenty of historical examples, whether it’s Aldrich Ames or Robert Hanssen, all these senior people that had huge impacts in the national security of this country, in our ability to collect intelligence, because they essentially turned over spies.
“How the operations, very quickly from the Soviet side, go south, where they try to shoot him and end up killing a woman, actually, it is, I think, very, very believable that, look, there is always a chance for violence. And if it does occur, it’s not sort of this flashy way that you might see in other movies. It is this unintended consequence. And it is something that is a clear sign of failing an operation.
“It’s hard to give this anything less than a 10. The movie is as good as a movie as it was a book. And again, it’s written by someone who actually walked the walk and can talk the talk. I mean, Carré, the author of the book, was in British intelligence. He understands intimately how these relationships and how these operations work.”
What Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’s Realism Means For The Movie’s Reputation
How The Film Fared Critically & Commercially
There are no shortage of spy movies out there, particularly when it comes to the Cold War. There aren’t very many spy movies, however, that could be considered highly realistic, aschanges are often made in the name of adding entertainment value.Tinkor Tailor Soldier Spydoesn’t feature an abundance of flashy action sequences, and instead focuses on the minutiae of spycraft and the real-life decisions that spies working during the Cold War had to make.
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Tinker Tailor Soldier Spycurrently enjoys a strong 84% onRotten Tomatoesfrom critics, with praise aimed at the strong performances from the cast and the complex, labyrinthian plotting. The audience score is somewhat lower at only 65%, but this isn’t entirely surprising given the film’s slower story and lack of bombastic action scenes. Made on an estimated budget of $21 million,the film grossed $81.2 million worldwide, making it a commercial success in addition to a critical one.
The film’s success led to the development ofTinker Tailor Soldier Spy 2, which was to be based on one ofCarré’s other Smiley novels, but the film ultimately didn’t move forward.
Our Take On Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’s Realism
The Gary Oldman Movie Continues To Stand Out
The main goal for any film is generally to entertain, andTinker Tailor Soldier Spymanages to do this while also offering incredible insight into the world of espionage during the Cold War.Carré’s own background in intelligence is a major reason why his novels are considered some of the best in the spy genre, and Alfredson’s film manages to recapture what makes his writing so special.
Oldman, in particular, is clearly right at home in the spy genre, and his. role asJackson Lamb inSlow Horseson Apple TV+ has been similarly entertaining, though in a different way. In the changed entertainment landscape of today, it’s hard to imagineTinker Tailor Soldier Spygetting made, at least as a theatrical film, but thankfully, the movie now stands one of the most notable entries in the genre over the last few decades.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Cast
Based on the novel of the same name by John le Carré, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy tells the story of a search for Russian spy deep within the British intelligence service, at the height of the Cold War in the 1970s.
