The boring side of espionage
Watched from a recommendation by TV Guide and sorry to say it was a waste of time. Long, boring, with stilted acting by Bill Nighy. Not the usual suspense that is typical of a good spy story.
shareI liked it.
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MovieChat Forums > Masterpiece Contemporary (2009) Discussion > The boring side of espionage
I fell asleep.
shareI liked it except for the ending. The cast were all good.
I don't know everything. Neither does anyone else
I liked it for the dialogue. Snappy but without that phony banter that passes for wit. Also liked it for Nighy and Walken, and my gosh, the setting. Especially liked the detective.
I liked it too. Most espionage I bet is very low key. I found Bill Nighy very convincing, and Winona Ryder too. But Christopher Walken I found unconvincing as a CIA guy. I kept seeing him as a New Jersey mob boss, like in the movie Jersey Boys. The important thing to think about relates to the War on Terror. If there are people out there who are rich b/c they built detention facilities for $50 million but charged the US and British governments $500 million, how patriotic is that?! I can see what Johnny Warricker sees in Helena Bonham Carter, but what does her character see in him?
shareI like it. Very noir in its elements as well as its vibe.
The weak thing for me was the CIA story arc. They had no idea of the Prime Minister's involvement in the detention centers so exactly what was their beef and their leverage? What I mean is what did the CIA think the end game was? Get money back for groups extorting the U.S. for building secret detainment centers? How? Exposing the crooks means exposing their own government. So they had no play and thus should have never been involved making it a big plot hole.
I thought the dialogue was good. I also liked the nice touches of Warricker making friends with locals that came back to help him along with him just walking to destinations. I also thought the backstory on both Carter and Ryder's characters were interesting.
I surprised anyone would describe Bill's acting as...stilted. He is just terrific in everything as he is here. Subtle - tilt of the head, his eyes shift and you just know he's outsmarted everyone again. I love him as this character.
shareI AM surprised - forgot that little bit. Perhaps we all need to broaden our horizons to appreciate something less obvious?
shareI do agree with talkwan regarding the less obvious. However, was it necessary to even hint at a romantic relationship with Rachel Weiscz in "Page Eight"? The age difference was annoying given his stature and laid back qualities along with his realization of missed handled relationships. It felt forced when an obvious friendship was budding.
shareI agree completely! Subtle gets me every time, such as Kenneth Branagh's "Wallander". or Michael Kitchen in "Foyle's War". I'm SO tired of these slam-bang spy movies and shows in which you have an explosion or car chase every five minutes, with the heroes/heroines emerging, a bit dusty and handsomely bruised, to deliver their sardonic quip. Ugh!
I can't wait to see the next episode of this, "Salting the Battlefield"!
Re: the person above who said that most spy work probably IS fairly low-key, that's most likely true. There was a show about MI6 on PBS recently, with former operatives describing their work. One guy said, remarking about how exciting James Bond's spy work was, for example and added, "I've had lots of exciting moments, but none of them were like James Bond."
Don't get me wrong...
It might be unbelievable,
But let's not say so long
I'm SO tired of these slam-bang spy movies and shows in which you have an explosion or car chase every five minutes, with the heroes/heroines emerging, a bit dusty and handsomely bruised, to deliver their sardonic quip. Ugh!
Well said. I agree.
I am a star!
the next one sounds fun!
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It really IS....and so much that I want MORE! So much so that I think a SPOILER must be declared:
This ep was absolutely riveting! I was, literally, on the edge my seat during almost all of it. And then suddenly...Worricker actually Gets what he WANTS (I think, and it is a HUGE mixed-blessing, not just for him but because I wanted to see him REALLY doing battle. I Mean, Snowden-Assange-Valerie Plame-up-against THE MAN battle! And it just kind of...fizzles. I was also looking for Rupert Graves' character to go down fighting, as well as Ralph Fiennes--I mean, these are TOUGH guys, right? And...nothing!
Don't get me wrong...
It might be unbelievable,
But let's not say so long
thx for the quick response. haven't checked your spoilers until i see it. looking fwd to it! ξ
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Did you see it yet? I recorded it and have watched it a few times. I feel pretty much the same about it. I forgot to mention what a great performance Judy Davis gives. She even had me fooled (about her motives) until the third watching.
The girl who plays Worricker's daughter is annoying (I feel), but she's now in "The Theory of Everything" as Hawking's wife. Wonder how THAT will work out? She seems very young!
Don't get me wrong...
It might be unbelievable,
But let's not say so long
not yet. my pbs is kinda kooky that way.
looking fwd to it, tho!
πSeason's Greetings!ππ
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Does anyone think they'll continue the series?
shareI'd love to see that. It's quite possible, since originally, I think they meant to stop with just Page Eight (I think). The problem with continuing it as written might be the changes made by the PM, especially his institution of a sort of copy of Homeland Security in the UK. They would have to either gut that or deal with it, but if they did the latter, then it would drift into a kind of dystopian novel, like 1984. It'd be interesting, though!
Don't get me wrong...
It might be unbelievable,
But let's not say so long
Huge fan of these kinds of programs. ("Foyle's War", "Midsomer Murders", "MI-5", "Bletchley Circle","Endeavoure", " Inspector Morris", "Wallander", " Scott & Bailey", etc.)
I can understand why it might put people off though. It's slow. I'm 30. I don't think it would be popular with the " young kids". Last two movies that were similar to this was "A walk among the Tombstones" and "A most wanted man". Main gripes on the boards was not enough action. I really liked them.
~I love the rhythm it is my methoood!~
I quite liked it, Turks & Caicos, except for the really sappy ending.
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