Hurmaava petturi

This is a good looking film, but one where nothing works the way it should. The opening piano and drawn-out shots give the feeling that a serious note will be played and serious matters will be dealt with, but then things become very absurd. The stellar cast is just for show, because they don’t have much to play with, the tales of money laundering and evil Russians aren't much either, we've seen that elsewhere and much better. Moreover, the whole thing is woefully lacking in suspense and painfully predictable, including the ending, or the final twist. But the worst part is the fact that it lacks logic and common sense. The story unfolds in a way that is hard to believe the protagonists would go that far. And even if one tries to turn a blind eye, after all it is a film, here it was so blatant. Rarely does such a well-cast and good-looking film with an interesting and engaging premise turn out so miserably. (28.09.2016)

John le Carré is quite popular right now, so the creators have decided to adapt another one of his books into a film. They maintain a similar visual style to the film Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, reduce the number of well-known names, and maintain a slower pace. Stellan and Ewan are good, but even they can't elevate the plot to anything more than just an average film. (01.09.2016)

The writing was incredibly far-fetched, the plot was way too predictable in places, but I still had quite a good time. Ewan McGregor gave a great performance, he was totally convincing as Perry, and I always enjoy Stellan Skarsgard’s performance, especially when it’s as good as in this film. It's a shame that the acting performances were not supported by a better written story. This way, it's only slightly above average. (31.12.2018)