Scanialara You won't be disappointed!

Pluskylang Great Film overall

Sameer Callahan It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Griff Lees Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

elvircorhodzic THE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD is a spy thriller drama film, which in a realistic and convincing way, shows us an intriguing struggle between international secret agents and communist secret police during the Cold War. Any action has its consequences. It is based on the 1963 John le Carré novel of the same name.Alec Leamas is a dispirited British secret agent. He is recalled to London shortly after the death of one of his operatives. Leamas is seemingly drummed out of the agency. He goes on an alcoholic toot and is imprisoned and publicly humiliated. However, he is quickly spotted by the East German Intelligence Service as a potential defector. He reveals that he was a pawn in a big operation. There is also Nan, an unassuming and idealistic communist, who is in love with Leamas. They have become a key of an espionage conspiracy...This is a melodramatic view of a complicated and dangerous job of a secret agent who does not have the right to his own life. His expulsion from the service is a kind of exit from illusion. However, once a spy, always a pawn. The espionage apparatus is so complex in this movie, so that the main protagonist falls into his own trap. The plots, which are based on sharp dialogues, are very complex and without usual firefights or chases. Love, suspicion and intrigue are the parts of moral themes of this film. In the end, we can feel the extent of a fraud, cynicism, corruption and resentment in a cold spy game.The photography is excellent and corresponds with an uncertain and depressing atmosphere in this film.Richard Burton as Alec Leamas is an unreliable agent who came in from the cold. He is aware of the fact that it is lagging behind, but he is trying to be one step ahead. There is no place for calculations or nobleness. Mr. Burton has offered a good performance. Claire Bloom as Nan Perry is a bit naive character, which is involved in the spy game. Well, she only sees a fallen man of flesh and blood, with whom she falls in love.Their support are Oskar Werner (Fiedler) as a frustrated and energetic East German Jewish agent, Sam Wanamaker (Peters) as a shifty operative, Rupert Davies (George Smiley) as a "friend" out of the shadows, George Voskovec as a capable East German Defense Attorney and Peter van Eyck (Hans-Dieter Mundt) as a cold and ruthless double agent.

alexanderdavies-99382 Richard Burton made his best films between the late 1950s to the very early 1970s, with an occasional good one afterwards. "The Spy Who Came In From the Cold" is one of Burton's greatest as the slightly weary secret operative, Alec Lemas. After his section of agents in Germany have been caught or killed by German Intelligence, Lemas is sent back to Headquarters in London. His masters offer him the chance of redeeming himself by accepting an assignment where Lemas has to find the very German agent who has been responsible for the slaying of British operatives - Mundt. The assignment is the biggest test of Lemas in more ways than one. Richard Burton, Claire Bloom and Oskar Werner share the acting honours. The story is a fairly gripping yarn with an excellent script. It is a fine adaptation of John Le Carre's best selling novel. I particularly enjoyed the scene where Richard Burton goes out of his way to dis-spell once and for all, Claire Bloom's impressions of the type of job Government agents have to do. His acting brims with fiery Welsh passion. "The Spy Who Came In From the Cold" is deliberately photographed in a harsh way as it compliments the plot and rather grim narrative. For sheer realism, this film is about as far removed from the world of James Bond as could be. Unforgettable and with a shattering climax.

Leofwine_draca This spy film is an adaptation of the novel by John Le Carre and blows the recent TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY adaptation clean out of the water. It's a dark and dingy movie about Cold War relations and the lengths that either side will go to in order to protect their own operatives and destroy those opposing them.The stark black and white photography is exemplary and gives the viewer the message that this will be a grimly realistic movie about the ruthless nature of Cold War spies. Richard Burton is perfectly cast as the jaded and burnt out agent who tries to live a normal life but is sent to Europe for one last job. The plot twists and turns so much that it's impossible to predict what's going to happen, and although it's very complex it also remains easy to follow from beginning to end.There are some great twists here, and a masterful ending which really says everything that needs to be said about the situation. The all-star supporting cast is also very good, particularly a twitchy Oskar Werner and a fragile Claire Bloom. Best of all is a haunted Burton, playing perhaps the role of a lifetime.

JasparLamarCrabb Martin Ritt's film of the John le Carré novel features a brilliant performance by Richard Burton. As a burned out spy given one last shot at bringing in a notorious Russian enemy, Burton is astounding. His physical & emotional exhaustion show in his face, his body language and every step he takes. It's a performance that reminds one of how great an actor Burton could be. He's ably assisted by the likes of Oskar Werner, Claire Bloom, Michael Hordern and Peter van Eyck. Ritt's tight direction and the stark B&W cinematography by the great Oswald Morris help to make this film one of the masterpieces of the 1960s. The music score (very sparse!) is by Sol Kaplan. The cast also includes Cyril Cusak, Sam Wanamaker and, in an early incarnation of le Carré's George Smiley, Rupert Davies.