Director: Susanna White
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Stellan Skarsgård, Damian Lewis, Naomie Harris, Mark Gatiss, Mark Stanley, Alicia von Rittberg, Jeremy Northam
Rating: 15
Running Time: 107 mins
Release Date: 13.5.16
Steven Spielberg was asked by George Lucas in late May 1977 when he joined him on a Hawaii beach to get away from the opening of STAR WARS what he would like to direct most. The response? James Bond. Legend has it that Spielberg was approached around 1975, but the Bond producers were waiting ‘to see how the shark movie performed’
In 2015, Spielberg achieved his dream to direct such a film when he helmed BRIDGE OF SPIES, which he described as returning to the style of THE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD, the acclaimed 1965 adaptation of John Le Carre’s novel which starred Richard Burton and Claire Bloom. The film won Mark Rylance an Oscar this year for Best Supporting Actor.
50 years after that movie, Le Carre is on board as Executive Producer for the latest film adaptation of one of his espionage novels, OUR KIND OF TRAITOR.
As Bond evolves in the 21st Century to move with the times, the films in the Daniel Craig era have become more profound in their desire to make Bond a more human character, something that Sean Connery felt the series had lost after THUNDERBALL (1965), which led to his desire to quit the franchise after YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE.
However, audiences still expect certain things from the series, a trend that began with what many regard as the greatest Bond, GOLDFINGER (1964), which is regarded as the late Guy Hamilton’s best work out of the four films he directed, until THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN (1974)
Away from the Bond releases, there have been some notable contenders in the spy frame from the likes of Len Deighton with the Harry Palmer films like THE IPCRESS FILE and FUNERAL IN BERLIN with Michael Caine, who also turned up in the 1987 adaptation of Frederick Forsyth’s THE FOURTH PROTOCOL, co-starring the then-frontrunner for Roger Moore’s successor, Pierce Brosnan (who acquited himself admirably as the Russian agent out to cause WWIII on UK soil).
Le Carre’s work became more broader when Alec Guinness played George Smiley in the BBC adaptations TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY and SMILEY’S PEOPLE (the latter which was co-produced with Paramount Pictures). The Le Carre stories are more suited to TV at times for their epic quality and perfect for Sunday evening viewing. However, Gary Oldman secured an Oscar nomination recently for his portrayal of Smiley in the recent big-screen version of TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY.
In OUR KIND OF TRAITOR, Ewan McGregor and Naomie Harris play Perry and Gail, a couple-in-crisis, (respectively a professor and barrister), who go on holiday to Morocco to try and patch up growing problems in their relationship.
Whilst in a local restaurant, Perry meets the charismatic Russian Dima (Stellan Skarsgard) who challenges Perry to a game of guessing the number on his credit card. When he guesses correctly, Dima talks Perry into coming to a Russian party and is invited the day after to play tennis. Just before Perry and Gail leave to go back to London, Dima invites them to his daughter’s birthday, where he gives Perry a USB stick to give to MI6 and is desperate to escape the clutches of a figure known as ‘The Prince’ who controls financial transactions with the goal of securing vital banking connections in London…..
Much of the enjoyment of this type of film comes from the expectation and appreciation of the genre itself. The fact that Le Carre is on board as an Executive Producer lends weight to the overall value of the film and considerable credibility. Frederick Forsyth did a similar thing on the film version of THE FOURTH PROTOCOL with Michael Caine on board as a producer.
The results here are worthy, notably with Cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle, who continues to stake his claim as the UK’s best alongside Roger Deakins (who shot SKYFALL and SPECTRE, as well as SICARIO) His work is a rich palate of colour and texture and is worth seeing OUR KIND OF TRAITOR for that reason alone.
Director Susanna White must also be commended for her work here and could have made a valid case as a future director in the Bond franchise, as she has a good eye for location and suspense, as well as maintaining a good balance of sensitivity and courage in keeping true to the source material.
Performance-wise, Damian Lewis is the stand-out as the MI6 representative balancing duty with morality against the wishes of his superiors. McGregor, Harris and Skarsgard are amicable in their respective roles.
OUR KIND OF TRAITOR assures that the Le Carre legacy remains as solid as ever.
Verdict
