A major disappointment

Rating: Null/10 (6 February 2012)

There is no two ways about it, this version was a disappointment. The production values were top notch but somehow it seemed to skip over the story with no real substance.
What I found particularly frustrating was the total lack of character introduction and development in most cases. This was particularly noticeable with the four main suspects, a couple of which hardly have speaking parts at all. Half way through the film, I was still trying to figure out who was who in some cases. It would have been nice with a simple shot of each person, with someone addressing them by name, or something equally simple.
And why have some of the book's locations been switched, apparently for no good reason. Thus Prague has become Budapest, and Lisbon has become Istanbul. Perhaps it is just a case of filming convenience.
The film is shot for cinema (obviously) and this means it doesn't always work that well on CD. It can get murky and rather distant. And don't get me started on the miniature subtitles.
Sorry, but even allowing for the constraints of a film rather than a miniseries, I think this was only a so-so-effort.