Review of A Most Wanted Man (2014) by Eero V — 09 Mar 2015

I have tried to read two of John le Carré's novels, both of which I left unfinished because they were so dull, and whose film adaptations weren't impressive either. Fernando Meirelles' adaptation of The Constant Gardener, which explored the immorality and corruption behind the pharmaceutical industry, was a poorly paced, bloated and ultimately unrewarding thriller, and Tomas Alfredson's "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy", an adaptation of Carré's classic spy thriller about the paranoia in the British Intelligence during the Cold War, was elaborately executed and acted, but featured an overly confusing plot (just like its source material).

I haven't read Carré's 2008 novel which Anton Corbijn's new film is based on, and judging by the film I won't even have to. A Most Wanted Man is a shockingly uninvolving espionage thriller that fails to engage on both an emotional and intellectual level.

The questions it poses about the morality of intelligence agencies, does the end justify the means and how far can the U.S. government's influence extend in the chaotic post-9/11 world are all too familiar and have been disclosed in far more interesting and thoughful ways before, even in the Jason Bourne films.

The film's credibility is also greatly decreased by the fact that all the major German characters are played by American actors (Philip Seymour Hoffman, Rachel McAdams, Willem Dafoe), who all struggle with their accents irritatingly.

The late Hoffman's understated performance as the world-weary, whiskey-consuming and constantly smoking German spy is still a worthy swansong for his towering career, and Robin Wright brings to her minor role the icy, erratic quality which she has recently displayed in Netflix's "House of Cards".

But a couple of impressive performances can't save an otherwise bland and unexciting thriller. I'm pretty sure the problem with the film adaptations of Carré's novels aren't in the direction or in any other cinematic aspects, but rather the source material itself.