Friday, March 29, 2024

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Review // A Most Wanted Man

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I’ll admit that I’m no expert on Anton Corbijn. In fact I’ve seen neither of the Dutch director’s biggest films, 2007’s Control and 2010’s The American. I’m also no John le Carré expert. The English author and former British Intelligence agent has written over twenty spy thrillers, of which I’ve read none. I watched and enjoyed Tomas Alfredson’s 2011 adaptation of le Carré’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but am a little ashamed to admit I found it hard to follow. Needless to say, I am not the perfect man for this review…but here goes.

A Most Wanted Man is Corbijn’s newest and is based on the 2008 novel of the same name by John le Carré. First off, for some reason I assumed John le Carré was no longer writing books. Dude covered the Cold War in full, yet he’s still churning books out at 82. Go John! Anyway, the film follows Philip Seymour Hoffman’s Günther Bachmann, a German intelligence agent working outside the government, and tasked with developing sources of information about terrorists in Hamburg. It might sound prestigious, but Bachmann is only on this domestic detail because of a major mistake in Beirut which saw his sources exposed. Needless to say, he’s kind of grumpy about things, but he’s a hard working guy and is getting on with his job. The job of the moment is a rich fella named Abdullah who is a major philanthropist, but who may also be funnelling some funds through a pro Al Qaeda charity.

Hoffman is great as the grizzled, chain-smoking spy, and has the “you can’t break me” attitude of someone who is used to being lumped in with the bad guys as he works for the common good. He also has a pretty enjoyable German accent. Günther’s gruff attitude is made all the more palatable by his association with Irna (Nina Hoss). Günther’s right-hand-woman, Irna is a little softer, and a little more approachable, but no less deft when it comes to the business of being a bad-ass German spy.

Anyway, Günther, Irna and the rest of their team (Daniel Brühl among them, playing Maximillian) are deep into Abdullah, but lack a way of following his money. Enter Issa Karpov, a half-Chechen, half-Russian immigrant with a murky past who emerges from the harbour waters and on to the streets of Hamburg. Seriously, he just climbs up a ladder on to the dock. Recently tortured and near collapse, Karpov finds shelter with a Muslim family and asks them to reach out to a banker by the name of Tommy Brue (Willem Dafoe). Günther catches wind of this through his informant Jamal (Mehdi Dehbi), but is beaten to the punch by the young human rights lawyer Annabel (played by Rachel McAdams). Annabel offers to help Karpov deliver a letter from his late father to Brue’s, claiming an inheritance of bloody money.

It all sounds pretty complicated but I actually found the film quite easy to follow. Günther is a great character, and the scenes where he clashes with the American intelligence agencies are extremely enjoyable. Outside of the final Hunger Games films, this is really our last chance to see Philip Seymour Hoffman on the big screen, and he really shows why he was such a beloved and respected actor.

Whereas Tinker Tailer Soldier Spy was set in the depths of the Cold War, this film is very much about the iron-fisted approach of American Intelligence after the September 11th attacks. It points out via opening title card that it was in Hamburg that the World Trade Centre attacks were planned. Robin Wright represents the American interest in Germany, specifically the smooth talking agent holding the leash on a company of scowling suits ready to leap on the tiniest suspicion. She shows an interest in working with Günther, and clearly respects his ability as a spy (at least enough to use him for information on Abdullah), but she lacks his ability to see the bigger picture. That’s what’s great about Günther, he wants to get to the bottom of things, using – as he says – “a minnow to catch a barracuda, a barracuda to catch a shark.” By minnow he means Issa (and his bloody money), by barracuda he means Abdullah, and by shark he means…some scary Al Qaeda guy we assume.

It always goes deeper if you – as The Wire taught us – follow the money. And that’s not a ridiculous comparison. The film does a great job creating what feels like a very large world, far wider and more complicated than just what’s shown on the screen. This helps draw you in and keeps you interested despite a complete lack of gunfights, car chases or sex scenes. It also makes you think that this could be the pilot of some new HBO series. Maybe our minds are just wired that way now that TV has gotten so good: “Oh, that was an intriguing universe…13 episodes please”. Whatever the cause, the film makes us want to dig deeper into this world with Günther. It’s the mark of a good character when you think they’d be a cool boss. I found myself thinking “if Günther trusted me with that assignment, I’d get it done!”

Too bad, we only get two hours. But the actors make it worth your while. In addition to Hoffman I actually thought that Rachel McAdams did a really good job in the film. Her character has to go from crusader, to victim, to convert within the film’s 121 minute run time, and I found her journey very believable. She’s also a necessary touchstone as the one character very much outside the intelligence community with whom we can sympathize.

Technically the film is very sound. It’s shot in a similar way to Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, vacillating between warm and cool tones. It makes Germany feel very modern, yet industrial. Especially Günther’s team. They have an older, almost Stasi feel to them, working out of tiled bathrooms and warehouses, listening to wire taps. But they’re made to look like the good guys compared to the sterile Americans in their fancy suits and glass offices. Those darn bull-headed Americans!

A Most Wanted Man is definitely an entertaining watch. It’s not a groundbreaker, and I could see someone who enjoys a bit more fast paced fare finding it a little dull. But if you like watching some strong actors really digging their teeth into characters, and a story that keeps you guessing until the end, you’ll enjoy it. It’s definitely made me want to improve my John le Carré education, and maybe, just maybe, take up spying. Too bad spying these days probably just involves sitting in front of a computer. Hey…I just might have a chance.

Reviewed by Evan Arppe.

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