I do love a good procedural thriller, especially if it involves spy work, rain, accents, and deliberate – I won’t say “slow” – pacing. Any movie based on a novel by John le Carre usually delivers on all of these fronts, and putting the story in the hands of director Anton Corbijn only further ensures that the attention to detail will be impeccable and the plot will take it’s time getting to it’s final destination. A Most Wanted Man fulfills all of these requirements, filling a remarkably tense two hours with little more than hushed conversations between spies in board rooms and surveillance vans. Philip Seymour Hoffman, in his final starring role, delivers a predictably dazzling performance, even if he does look absolutely terrible. I know it might be cruel to say, but it’s very clear that Hoffman was struggling with some sort of something (obviously, drug addiction) while he was shooting this. He looks wan and pale, even dumpier than he typically does, and while his performance is across the board spectacular, it’s sad to see him this way. Every scene, with his sweaty huffing and puffing, serves as a painful reminder that he is no longer here. The rest of the cast is filled out by mostly very solid actors. Robin Wright in particular is great, even if she is just playing a variation on her House of Cards character. Willem Dafoe and Daniel Bruhl also turn in textured performances. The only weak link is Rachel McAdams, who is still quite good but suffers from being too recognizable and out of place in a movie like this. Her German accent is less than convincing, and it comes and goes improbably.
The plot is too convoluted to even delve into. It’s best to just see it for yourself, though the catch 22 here is that I don’t think this is a movie many people will enjoy. It takes its sweet time getting to the conclusion, and once the ending arrives it doesn’t do anything remotely satisfying. In fact, the ending comes dangerously close to undoing the entire movie. I have a lot of patience with movies, especially thrillers like this. I love a nice, slow journey to a great ending. But if the ending isn’t so great – hell, if the ending is barely an ending at all, but really just the beginning to a third act – then why invest two hours in the material in the first place? Corbijn previously directed two great movies: Control, a docu-drama about the late lead singer of Joy Division, and The American, a terrific slow burn assassin drama that ends with a wallop. The American suffered at the box office because it was marketed as an action movie starring George Clooney while in reality it was a very measured thriller with some startling moments of violence tucked in there, and a great motorcycle chase. A Most Wanted Man has the utter gall to end just as it’s gaining steam, and while the ending has a certain gut-punch to it, that’s a fleeting feeling. Mainly, I felt cheated.
None of this is to say the movie isn’t worth seeing. It’s very worth seeing, in fact. The acting is top notch and the twisty story is impressively weaved. I was engrossed for the entire running time, a small miracle considering that nearly all the dialogue is whispered, it didn’t start until nearly midnight, and I had just seen Guardians of the Galaxy. (If you want to see two entirely opposite movies, those would be the two to see.) The only problem is that ending.
* * *
A Most Wanted Man
Directed by Anton Corbijn.
Written by Andrew Bovell.
Cast: Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Rachel McAdams, Willem Dafoe, Robin Wright, Grigoriy Dobrygin, Daniel Bruhl, Nina Hoss, and Herbert Gronemeyer.
Rated R for language.
122 minutes.
Unsolicited Criticism 