Dan’s Pick January: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

By urbanhoustonian at January 5, 2012 | 1:55 PM | Print

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Dan’s Pick is in for January, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy starring Gary Oldman.

Opening January 6, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is the kind of classic spy thriller that doesn’t get made too often. Directed by Tomas Alfredson (responsible for the gorgeous and haunting Swedish film Let the Right One In), Tinker Tailor places a premium on shadowy agents and complex politics as its story slowly unfolds. Gary Oldman stars as a retired British intelligence agent heading up a mole hunt at the height of the Cold War, and he’s supported by a deep roster of gifted actors who all work together to bring John LeCarre’s novel to new life. It’s rated R.

Also out now: The Artist, a black and white love letter to early Hollywood that’s shot like a silent film: richly scored, grandly acted, and almost totally devoid of dialogue. For all its conceptual gimmickry, it’s one of the most honest and engaging love stories in quite a while. It’s inexplicably rated PG-13 for what the MPAA calls “a disturbing image and a crude gesture,” but don’t let that deter you. (Hell, they gave The Dark Knight a PG-13, too.) This is a great romantic drama that’s definitely worth your time.

Dan’s Picks are made my Daniel Carlson. Daniel Carlson is the managing editor of Pajiba, a TV blogger for the Houston Press, and a member of the Houston Film Critics Society and the Online Film Critics Society.

Dan's Picks Posts cinema, film, Gary Oldman, Houston, movies, River Oaks Shopping Center, River Oaks Theatre, The Artist, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy