BlazeLime Strong and Moving!

Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

Brainsbell The story-telling is good with flashbacks.The film is both funny and heartbreaking. You smile in a scene and get a soulcrushing revelation in the next.

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Meme This series has to be one of the most well written TV series in my opinion, the dialogue is so well placed. I never felt a single character say something just for the sake of it or as a filler, everything to the looks that Smiley would give or smirks the actors would occasionally give each other is a part of the character role. It is a slow build up but you never feel it drag. This show is about character development done to its best, and the actors especially the sublime yet superb Alec Guinness and Beryl Reid give a beautiful and profound performance.The story line is well done too, you feel a part of the Cold War era and the spy machinations and the intrigue grip you. This is story writing and telling at its finest. I wish more shows could be made that placed emphasis on good story telling and actors who would invest in bringing characters to life.

punishmentpark A second viewing of 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy', and it was so easy to watch all episodes in a row in one night once again. I'm not sure who else could play Smiley so perfectly as Alec Guiness did, as I am also not sure if I really want to try the remake with Gary Oldman, even if he is a great actor, too...The story, the acting and the settings in 'Tinker...' are often very much understated and subtle (although there are plenty of emotional eruptions as there are picturesque sceneries), as is Smiley's investigation, which is the wrapped around the many stories that are at play here. Smiley is the ultimate analyst of this complicated world of cloaks and daggers, who brings as much heart as intelligence into the process. After the death of 'Control' (what an appropriate name), he is the one who should put things right, having quite a few bones to pick, but on the other hand, not so much else do either, really. And his wife...? Their conversation at the end, their only one throughout the whole series, tells so much.A very big 9 out of 10 for now.

Bob Taylor I've read the book three times, so when I found the DVD pack at the public library, I just had to try it. I wasn't disappointed, although I wished for a little more inspiration, a bit more risk-taking on the part of the writers and director. The dialogue you read in the book finds its way almost invariably into the film, so there is a certain feeling of deja-vu.Alec Guinness fits the part of Smiley very well, but he makes hardly any impression on me. His performance may be called clinical. Michael Jayston as Guillam is nervy and sometimes angry; he convinces me he is a dedicated agent. Bernard Hepton as the foppish Esterhase has some wonderful scenes. Alexander Knox gives a moving portrayal of Control, a man who has kept on doing his job long after he should have been pensioned off. The best work is done by Michael Aldridge; his Alleline is so pompous and tiresome you wonder why nobody has beaten his head in with a poker.

pegd-1 I revisit John Le Carre's books every few years, and just finished the Smiley trilogy...Had seen the movie version of Tinker, Tailer when it came out, and I must say, it left me very confused....Hungary, Smiley swimming, Prideaux in a shopping mall, and on and on....Hadn't seen the TV series version in quite some time, so I decided to watch it again....It felt like returning to the heart of a great spy story....Brilliant.... Of all the fine acting performances I greatly appreciated Joss Ackland in a cameo role as Westerby and Anthony Bate as Lacon....But what makes this version work is the honesty of the script, the fine directorial balancing...Well done...