Netflix pick for 7/6/15 – ‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’

2015 may be the year of the spy movie, but 2011 had a fantastic spy movie of its own, one with fantastic performances and tense, sure handed direction. “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” is all twists and turns and accusations and covert missions, with a healthy dose of infidelity, regret and personal as well as professional betrayal. There is a lot going on in this movie, so pay attention because it all adds up to something beautiful and melancholy and wonderful.

Back in 2011 this movie made my top ten list of the year. This is what I wrote at that time:

The anti-James Bond movie, this is a cold war era British spy film featuring great work from great actors and solid, assured direction from the director of Let The Right One In. There is very little actual action in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but the suspense just gets more intense as the story goes on, as retired super spy George Smiley (a most excellent Gary Oldman) goes on a hunt for a mole in the highest ranks of the British secret service. There is a definite 70’s vibe to this movie, with more than enough smoky backrooms and paranoia to satisfy Sydney Pollack, and the story is dense enough that multiple viewings would be rewarding. A lot of layers on this onion, that’s for sure, and well worth peeling back.

Want to see why I liked this movie so much? Check it out right here on the ole Netflix Instant.