Hanks storms back to the top!

Rating: 9/10 (4 December 2015)

Tom Hanks has found it difficult to replicate the kind of performance he produced for Forrest Gump, here he effortlessly matches it with his subtle portrayal of a lawyer who is cast adrift with a case that makes a pariah of him, but sends him on a relentless journey for the truth.
Hanks, the perennial good guy epitomises all that is good in America at a time when it poisoned itself with Cold War fears. He defends a spy who is, well, a spy and finds he is defending a man who is as honourable as he is inscrutable. Because he is a man who is determined to make an honest job of a thankless situation, he finds himself drawn to his client and defends him to the bitter end.
The plot is clearly drawn by wonderful writing from the Coen brothers, and the subplot of American spying closely following the case until the inevitable climax involving an exchange of spies is realistically told with spellbinding cinematography.
Mark Rylance comes of age as a regular on the big screen and makes a convincing foil for the more eloquent Hanks.
If this film does not become a serious Oscar contender I will eat my hat, and I am sure Spielberg will do the same.
A must see.