In the bleak days of the Cold War, espionage veteran George Smiley is forced from semi-retirement to uncover a Soviet Agent within MI6.

Director:

Tomas Alfredson

Writers:

John le Carré (novel), Bridget O'Connor (screenplay by) | 1 more credit »
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Popularity
1,626 ( 524)
Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 35 wins & 97 nominations. See more awards »

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mark Strong ... Jim Prideaux
John Hurt ... Control
Zoltán Mucsi Zoltán Mucsi ... Magyar
Péter Kálloy Molnár ... Hungarian Waiter
Ilona Kassai Ilona Kassai ... Woman in Window
Imre Csuja Imre Csuja ... KGB Agent
Gary Oldman ... George Smiley
Toby Jones ... Percy Alleline
David Dencik ... Toby Esterhase
Ciarán Hinds ... Roy Bland
Colin Firth ... Bill Haydon
Kathy Burke ... Connie Sachs
Benedict Cumberbatch ... Peter Guillam
Stephen Graham ... Jerry Westerby
Arthur Nightingale Arthur Nightingale ... Bryant

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Storyline

In the early 1970s during the Cold War, the head of British Intelligence, Control (Sir John Hurt), 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. George Smiley (Gary Oldman) 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 rogue Agent Ricky Tarr (Tom Hardy), 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. Written by David Brain

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

Trust no one. Suspect everyone. See more »


Certificate:

15 | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Included amongst the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider. See more »

Goofs

One shot where the car drives under the railway bridge clearly shows modern street lights which were put in during the 1990s. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Control: [opening door] You weren't followed?
Jim Prideaux: No.
Control: Better come in.
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Crazy Credits

At the end of the closing credits, there is a mention of Karla Films. This is a homage to George Smiley's nemesis. See more »


Soundtracks

La Mer
Music by Charles Trenet
Lyrics by Charles Trenet
Performed by Julio Iglesias
Courtesy of Sony Music Entertainment Inc
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User Reviews

Chronological editing too confusing
19 September 2011 | by rorywalesSee all my reviews

Great cast of actors. Great visuals. But... the chronological editing of events is just too confusing. It goes back and forth through time and you've no idea of when a transition occurs, that is, if the next scene is a continuation of the last one or gone back in time or back to the present. I couldn't tell if there were 10 or 50 time changes. I could tell from the silence in the auditorium last night that no one else understood it either, perhaps this is why the critics have given it such high ratings. I think this gratuitous confusion added to the film really takes away from it. I won't bother trying to watch and understand it again.


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Details

Official Sites:

Focus Features | Official site | See more »

Country:

UK | France | Germany

Language:

English | Russian | Hungarian | French | Turkish

Release Date:

9 February 2012 (South Korea) See more »

Also Known As:

Tingkeo teilleo soljeo seupai See more »

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Box Office

Budget:

GBP20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$310,562, 11 December 2011

Gross USA:

$24,149,393

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$81,244,605
See more on IMDbPro »

Company Credits

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Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Datasat | Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1
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