The Painted Veil - 2006

 WIP, Stratus Film Co.,  Bob Yari Productions

Directed by John Curran

Cast:

Walter Fane – Edward Norton

Kitty Fane – Naomi Watts

Charlie Townsend – Liev Schreiber

Waddington – Toby Jones

Mother Superior – Diana Rigg

Story: Set in the 1920's, W. Somerset Maugham's novel comes to life in an exquisite and exceptional creation for the cinema. Walter Fane is your stereotypical proper Englishman, a well-mannered, decent sort working for the British government. He is a laboratory scientist assigned to study diseases in China, where he works in Chaing Hai alongside Chinese scientists. Kitty, his young and pretty wife, becomes enamored and falls in love with Charlie Townsend, who is attached to the British Embassy. When Walter discovers she is having an affair, he volunteers to travel inland to an area where a cholera epidemic has broken out. Kitty accompanies him, and on the way they begin to discuss what will be done about the affair. Kitty is lonely and alone most days, and they sleep in separate rooms, but as they begin to fall into the routine, they start to discuss things in a more civilized manner.

Review: Classic films should be remade now and then, if for no other reason than to remind us of what true literature is all about. The Painted Veil is one of those incredibly compelling films which deals directly with the human condition, specifically under conditions which warrant reaction. Edward Norton, Naomi Watts, and Liev Schreiber create an ensemble fitting of a Maugham novel, and their performances are flawless.

Flawless as well is the cinematography and photography in this wonderful adaptation of the novel. Filmed entirely in China, the scenery is breathtaking and lends to the authenticity of the film. This also enhances the “illusion of the first time” which is so critical in any film, since the novel is set in China. A huge cast of extras is included.

The Painted Veil is a film which may not be suitable for the entire family (Rated PG-13 for some scenes of sexuality, partial nudity, disturbing images and brief drug content), but I don't believe it will offend older children, and I know it will entertain anyone who likes a well-acted film.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy - 2011

Studio Canal, Karla Films, Paradis Films

Directed by Tomas Alfredson

Cast:

• Control – John Hurt
• Jim Prideaux – Mark Strong
• George Smiley – Gary Oldman
• Percy Alleline – Toby Jones
• Toby Esterhase – David Dencik
• Roy Bland – Ciaran Hinds
• Bill Hayden – Colin Firth
• Jerry Westerby – Stephen Graham

Story: In the early 1970s during the Cold War, the head of British Intelligence, Control, resigns after an operation in Budapest, Hungary goes badly wrong. It transpires that Control believed one of four senior figures in the service was in fact a Russian agent - a mole - and the Hungary operation was an attempt to identify which of them it was. Smiley had been forced into retirement by the departure of Control, but is asked by a senior government figure to investigate a story told to him by a rogue agent, Ricky Tarr, that there was a mole. Smiley considers that the failure of the Hungary operation and the continuing success of Operation Witchcraft (an apparent source of significant Soviet intelligence) confirms this, and takes up the task of finding him. Through the efforts of Peter Guillam, Smiley obtains information that eventually leads him to Jim Prideaux, the agent at the heart of the Hungary fiasco...David Brain

Review: If you're looking for Bond or Bourne style action, this is not your film. This is a film about the reality of intelligence and espionage, not a flamboyant skit of shooting after shooting. However, if you liked The Good Shepherd or J. Edgar, you will find this film as intriguing as I did. This is an intricately laced film about the number one rule of spying: Trust No One. Gary Oldman is superb in this low-key thriller as George Smiley, the intelligence operator destined to become Control. Violence is at a minimum, but the fascinating web of deceit and revelations is worth a couple of hours of your time. Rated R for language and some violence, and subject matter, not necessarily a collectible.