Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.... actually... you just don't care

Rating: 5/10 (2 January 2012)

I went to see this, encouraged by numerous positive reviews of my friends and critics. I'm hugely disappointed. And I think I know why.
First thing: this movie is advertised as a THRILLER, but in fact it's a MELODRAMA. Thriller should thrill, should make You bite your lips in excitement. And I'm not talking here about slow pacing, that this movie has - there are many slowly paced thrillers which manage to develop intense pulsating nerve (No Country for Old Man for example). I'm talking about the way of presenting the story. About intention behind it.
TTSS has I think no intention to thrill, to lead viewer trough meanders of some MYSTERY characters are unveiling. It's major intention is rather to expose the emptiness of espionage mythology and to reveal the real-people-at-the-unreal-desks reality of this kind of work. In other words - "see this? This is a REAL spy-life. Full of everyday routine, full of 'I-hate-my-boss' moments, full of hidden romances, etc., etc. It's a bit like your life. The only difference is the 'undercover' factor." The same intention I think lies in the background of "The Lord Of The Flies" - everything is OK, those are 'just boys' playing war on an island.
BUT Lord of the Flies (both movies, and a book of course) makes You care about the characters. They are human containers for stories. Here in TTSS those containers could be filled with absolutely anything and it would make to you - the viewer - no difference.
And this is the second flaw of this movie - even being a melodrama, it's still not so good, because You just don't care about any of the characters involved in the plot. You just don't identify with those personas. I don't know why!! Everything looks fine - master-class acting, costumes, long shots to be filled with meaning. And all of the sudden you see yourself don't giving a sh*t about who is the mole and why Gary Oldman is so sad.
So this movie is a weird one for me - every aspect of it is brilliant, but the sum of all those diamonds gives me... nothing. Excellent cinematography - dark, majestic, sad shots. Beautifully arranged sets filled with deep meaning (chandeliers standing on the floor in close-to-final scene, or the hidden cafeteria - in the shadow of dense, jungle-like garden in one scene, and overwhelmed by huge buildings in another). Very elegant way of editing - sharp or calm, when needed. And finally - quite distinct directing, setting this whole story in bizarre, sadly dark world of nuances. It should be a brilliant movie, right? ...But it's just boring.
So beware - it's not a thriller. And beware again - it's not so good melodrama either. But beware last time - You SHOULD see this movie, 'cause there's definitely SOMETHING in it.