Spies are back in fashion. Once the Cold War ended, spies in movies and fiction fell out of favor. But now with global terrorism and financial conspiracies, spies are again a hot commodity. Tonight on PBS (check your listings for the time in your area) David Hare’s Page Eight, starring the underrated Bill Nighy, Rachel Weisz, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Ewan Bremner and Judy Davis, explores the intersection of politics and spies. Supposedly, this is the first installment of a trilogy of spy thrillers from this ensemble. Check out the trailer below.
The NY Times took David Hare to task for his anti-American, anti-Israeli, pro-Palestinian slant that they say warped the film. I guess we’ll have to see for ourselves. With that cast it is definitely worth watching.
PAGE EIGHT looks like a sophisticated thriller, Jeff. The BBC knows how to do this kind of spy drama. I have the classic TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY and SMILEY’S PEOPLE on order!
Already set on my DVR
It’s odd that the Blu-ray version of PAGE EIGHT comes out on Tuesday, November 8, Scott. Strange marketing.
George, I think you’re better off READING the LeCarre books, instead of watching them, in spite of the excellent acting and production in the film versions. The books just have so much more room for depth and density.
I’ve read most of Le Carre’s books, Rick. But Alec Guinness does a marvelous job playing George Smiley in those two BBC productions. I can’t wait to watch them again!
There is a new TINKER TAILOR film coming out this year starring Gary Oldman (as George Smiley, odd casting perhaps) and Colin Firth.
The original mini-series was a classic.
I don’t know how they’re going to cram all the twists and turns into a mere 2-hour movie, Jeff. But I’m a Gary Oldman fan so I’ll be going to see the new TINKER TAILOR next month.
Saw PAGE EIGHT, partly as a fan of Bill Nighy, who can do no wrong. Found it very much up to Brit TV standards. Kept forgetting it was a Hare script. What I like about films like this is that character is far more interesting than plot. The plot, in a way, is a McGuffin, an excuse to portray certain deeply complex human dilemmas.
I agree with you, Ron. I enjoyed PAGE EIGHT, too. Nighy, in a FRESH AIR interview, said that two more movies are planned, code-named PAGE NINE and PAGE TEN.