Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1009 in DVD
• Released on: 2004-06-28
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Number of discs: 2
• Formats: Colour, PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 349 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The second of the BBC's well-regarded serialisations of John Le Carré's espionage bestsellers, Smiley's People is slightly less compulsively watchable than Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy if only because Tinker, Tailor had a much stronger plot premise (who is the mole in British Intelligence?) than Smiley's People, which takes a very long time to come into focus. Retired spymaster George Smiley (Alec Guinness) wanders around Europe and visits a succession of desperate or eccentric characters as he plays a game which finally leads to another confrontation with and a possible victory over his Moriarty-like Soviet arch-nemesis Karla (an expressive but silent Patrick Stewart).

Directed by Simon Langton and coscripted by John Hopkins and Le Carré this is a leisurely mystery. It offers a cannily generous central performance from Guinness, who never takes off his scarf and does his best to fade into the background while a succession of striking character players hold centre screen; but slowly and by sheer presence he begins to dominate the panoramic view of European treachery, deception, and disappointment. Among the terrific supporting cast are Michel Lonsdale, Mario Adorf, Vladek Sheybal, Michael Gough, Alan Rickman (a tiny, early role as a hotel clerk), Beryl Reid, Ingrid Pitt, Bernard Hepton, Michael Elphick, Rosalie Crutchley, Michael Byrne, Bill Paterson, and Maureen Lipman. Smiley's People is more interested in character than thrills, with each cameo contributing another view of the human cost of the cold war: most of the old friends Smiley seeks out react to his reappearance by saying they never wanted to see him again, and victory is only possible because Smiley discovers that his opposite number has a weakness that makes him almost sympathetic. It was originally broadcast in six hour-long episodes, and its intelligent approach works better if you watch episode-length chunks, letting one sink in before going on. --Kim Newman

DVD Description
George Smiley is once again called out of innocent retirement to trace an enemy infiltrator in the department where he was once the prize employee, the shy and retiring master of espionage moves forwards to investigate and finds himself going back over some very old ground…

Special Features

• Scene Selection
  
• Photo Gallery
  
• Producer and Director Commentary

Customer Reviews

Drama as it should be
Flawless. And I don't say that about many things. This is what the BBC used to do so well, and quality never dates. Smiley's People, and it's illustrious predecessor remain two of the all-time great dramas. They take an exclusive place amongst the best performed pieces I have ever seen. No, I won't review the story: I don't think that's possible in a few words. Suffice to say former head of the Circus (MI6) is brought out of retirement to clean up the mess caused by the murder of a former associate, and in so doing, is pitted once again against his opposite number in (we assume) the KGB.

The acting is a masterclass. Perfection. Not one jarring note, not one slightly questionable piece, even in the most minor roles. The late Sir Alec Guiness naturally ocupies the most attention, as is right and proper, but the supporting cast were outstanding as well. I hear complaints in some quarters that the role of George Smiley was 'too easy' for Sir Alec. If this is too easy, I'd love to know what difficult is supposed to be. The role is superb, but it required an unique talent to be convincing, and it is a tribute to Guiness's mesmerising ability that he made it seem so natural. Small wonder people thought he made it look easy: he did. That doesn't mean it was though.

The direction is also a statement work. Pacing is slow, as it should be to do this complex and convoluted story justice. If you're expecting something simple, with lots of fights, guns, chases and such like, or have a 2 minute attention-span, look somewhere else. You have to be patient. If you are, you will be slowing drawn in, and it will not let go. It is beautifully shot, beautifully lit, and the audio levels (always very tricky to get right) are spot on and unobtrusive: you just take them for granted.

The DVD presentation is excellent, though I wish the disks were easier to extract from the long central clip in the box -they bend worryingly, which I'm always uncomfortable with. Still, a little care should prevent problems, but I call upon manufacturers to please mend their ways in this respect. There are few extras -an interview with le Carre is about your lot. That doesn't bother me though -it's the program I wanted, not the extras.

The print transfer is excellent, with little grain, and few digital nasties. The audio has been equally well cleaned up, and is crystal clear.

If you like the sound of the above, or simply like good drama, or the best performances you are ever likely to see, buy without hesitation. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

I've Run out of Superlatives
This has to be one of the most masterful pieces of TV drama ever created. Superbly shot, outstandingly scripted (no surprise as Le Carre himself worked on it), brilliantly paced but most of all oh-how-amazingly acted. Even the most minute, fleeting role is played with extraordinary panache - actors like Maureen Lipman, Patrick Stewart, Alan Rickman, Beryl Reid, Sian Phillips make brief but utterly luminous appearances. When this much care is taken over the small roles it is no wonder that the big parts, and the biggest part of all, Smiley himself are such towering performances. This has to be Alec Guiness's greatest performance and it says a lot about the dwindling power of TV as a medium that we have seldom seen is like since. This is a major cultural milestone and should not be missed by anyone.

This will never be equalled.
The Cold War is over, and for those of us that lived through it, this story carries with it a sort of perverse nostalgia. Did the sun ever shine in those days? Even the Western cities of Paris, Bern/Thun and Hamburg seem to be imbued with that grey half light that we (Westerners) always imagined to form the backdrop for all those cities trapped behind the Iron Curtain. The creatures who inhabit this world are scarred with human frailty. Even Smiley has an "off button" for his human emotions when he smells his prey near at hand. It can never be equalled because the memories of those days are fading fast. Anyone who ever visited the divided Europe will testify that the continent is a differnt place now and it is Le Carre's understanding of what this unnatural atmosphere did to the human condition that provides the genius behind his work. I could not recommend it highly enough. It is a first rate history lesson on the effects of a largely forgotten war.
P.S.
It would be an idea to read or watch "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" first. Although I feel "Smileys People" has more depth and is therefore more challenging and rewarding.