Movie Reviews for Smiley's People

Smiley's People

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Movie Reviews of Smiley's People

Movie Review: Alls fair in love and war -- isn't it?
Summary: 4 Stars

I really liked this miniseries but I have to agree with the other reviewers. The sound quality is poor so much of the dialog is garbled -- even with the volume cranked up. The pace is slow but that does add a feeling of time and reality that is missing from many films today. Unlike most recent spy films this one is much more realistic. There are no babes, bombs, and car crashes. Alec Guiness is no Matt Damon or Tom Cruise and thus much more believable as a spy. I felt that the subplots were left unresolved but then that may have been intentional in case there was to be a further installment but it does not detract from the overall story. The supporting cast was excellent and again very believable unlike most films that cast some beautiful but very unlikely people as agents. However, the other reviewers have covered most of this ground so there is little I can add other than to comment on the ending, which I thought was outstanding and very thought provoking. When you compete with another -- especially over a long period -- winning becomes very important -- as it was with Smiley. In the end he did his duty as a soldier but his victory was hollow and left ashes in his mouth. This attitude was brilliantly portrayed by Guiness through his body language and almost no dialog. Smiley is cheered and congratulated by all but he knows -- in his heart -- that his victory was not clean and not honorable. He used a father's love as a weapon and that fulfilled his duty but at the cost of his personal honor. Guiness is a brilliant actor, Le Carre` has written a brilliant screen play, and the performance was truly outstanding. I only gave it 4 stars because of the poor sound but it deserves 5 or even 6 stars. A very worthwhile film to have in your collection.

Movie Review: Great Series But......
Summary: 4 Stars

Have studied this video rather thoroughly and the truth of the matter is while I can recommend this DVD, I cannot recommend the Acorn version available in the U.S. (Region 1). If you want this DVD and you also want to see it without nearly 23 minutes removed then what you need to do is simple. Go ahead and purchase a multiple region DVD player (there are many on Amazon and they do not cost a fortune) and then buy the Region 2 (UK) version. The UK version is in PAL format so you'll need to get a player that can handle that; again many are available. This is what I decided to do after having watched the Acorn version and being dismayed at the poor quality of the video, the sound and the cost of an inferior version. The US version has scenes where the intended music is missing, special effect sounds that have been lost and absent are several critical scenes that make a somewhat complicated story even more difficult for the first time viewer to struggle through. If you really like Le Carre and you want to enjoy Alec Guinness's superb portrayal of Smiley then you need to avoid the US version and for just a small amount of money more get a new DVD player and the UK DVD; it is a much better deal in the long run. All the things that are wrong with the Acorn version are wonderfully done in the UK version and I believe it is easily the best adaptation of the book.

Movie Review: Very Good LeCarre Adaptation
Summary: 4 Stars

This movie is the second in the George Smiley John LeCarre BBC miniseries. It is not up to par with 'Tinker Tailer...' but it is a very good and interesting companion piece to 'Tinker Tailer...' and 'Tinker Tailer...' is a tall order to be compared to because as I stated in my review of it, I consider it to be the greatest spy movie ever made.