The Tailor Of Panama
In a place this treacherous, what a good spy needs is a spy of his own.
In this seductive spy thriller based on the best-selling novel by John Le Carre, Academy Award®-winner Geoffrey Rush (Shine) delivers a dazzling performance as Harry Pendel, an ex-con turned tailor to the rich and infamous and married to smart and sexy Louisa (Jamie Lee Curtis - True Lies), Directed by Academy Award®-nominee John Boorman (Hope and Glory, Deliverance) and set in steamy Panama, where nothing is what it seems, Andy Osnard (Pierce Brosnan - The Thomas Crown Affair), a suave and ruthless British spy, entices Harry into eavesdropping on the powerful politicians he clothes. But Harry's talent for storytelling compels him to weave an elaborate tale that's not only taken as truth, but sets off a chain of events that threatens to destroy everything he treasures most in life.
Member Reviews
Good movie but not a James Bond - Seagull
This is not a high action movie. If you are expecting a fast passed James Bond type movie, you will not get it here. This is a little more down to earth, realist type scenario where most of the characters are not as noble as Mr. Bond. The show gets interesting when the tailor begins to realize the gravity of the information he has been passing on.Almost But Not Quite Good Enough - CharleyJames
Pierce Brosnan is a snidely charming con man of a British spy who smiles coolly as he lies, bluffs and blackmails his way through his assignments. Shuttled off to Panama - a diplomatic Siberia - after squeaking out of a scandal, he falls right back to his old tricks.
"It's a game. Let's have some fun, eh?" he prods Harry Pendel, a sad-sack tailor to Panama's rich and powerful who becomes his reluctant partner in crime.
Pendel is haggard, a doting father, caring husband and steadfastly loyal friend who hides his failures and his seedy past in tall tales and harmless lies, propping up his brittle ego with storytelling flights of fancy.
Brosnan is beautifully cast as the ruthless Osnard, an irredeemable cad brimming with confidence, greed and his own tawdry schemes who intimidates the garrulous tailor into becoming his informant.
Pendel is soon off and running at the mouth, sparkling with a sense of self-importance as he spins tales of a brewing revolution and a plot to sell the canal. Osnard ladles it on thick to his superiors as Pendel realizes he's caught in the crossfire of mercenary ambition and military diplomacy.
Perhaps John Boorman's greatest achievement in his script for The Tailor of Panama is suggesting the complex world of le Carre's novel that he's unable to translate to the screen. Anything less than a miniseries is obviously going to leave something out and the script stretches credibility as the plot escalates.
Yet it's a rich, dense, work, a tricky mix of the sarcastic and the serious rooted in genuine affection for the weathered Pendel. The film’s saving grace are its sardonic counterpoints, humorous asides and running conversations with the ghosts of memory.~ DECENT THINKING PERSON'S SPY-THRILLER ~ SOLID 3 3/4 Stars ~ - SqueakyChair
SNAPSHOT: Subtle. Teasing. Sharp in it's nuances. If you can handle the pace and the satirical elements you will have a decent ride with this film. You might even find it a delicious little meal to digest.
MORE THOUGHTS: This movie is not for everyone. If you are used to slick Hollywood performance productions then rent something else but you'll miss a decent movie.
Might i suggest from ZIP.ca
"A Nick In Time "
~~> http://www.zip.ca/Browse/Search.aspx?f=wc(a+nick+in+time)~t(-1)
FINAL WORD: ~ WELL WORTH A LOOK-SEE ~ or SoSaysSqueakyChair
Member Reviews
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Good movie but not a James Bond - Seagull
This is not a high action movie. If you are expecting a fast passed James Bond type movie, you will not get it here. This is a little more down to earth, realist type scenario where most of the characters are not as noble as Mr. Bond. The show gets interesting ...Almost But Not Quite Good Enough - CharleyJames
Pierce Brosnan is a snidely charming con man of a British spy who smiles coolly as he lies, bluffs and blackmails his way through his assignments. Shuttled off to Panama - a diplomatic Siberia - after squeaking out of a scandal, he falls right back to his ...~ DECENT THINKING PERSON'S SPY-THRILLER ~ SOLID 3 3/4 Stars ~ - SqueakyChair
SNAPSHOT: Subtle. Teasing. Sharp in it's nuances. If you can handle the pace and the satirical elements you will have a decent ride with this film. You might even find it a delicious little meal to digest.
MORE THOUGHTS: This movie is not for everyone. ...