A Most Wanted Man
A Most Wanted Man
A Most Wanted Man
Directed by:
Anton CorbijnScreenplay:
Andrew BovellCinematography:
Benoît DelhommeComposer:
Herbert GrönemeyerCast:
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Rachel McAdams, Willem Dafoe, Григорий Добрыгин, Homayoun Ershadi, Nina Hoss, Daniel Brühl, Herbert Grönemeyer, Mehdi Dehbi (more)VOD (2)
Plots(1)
When a half-Chechen, half-Russian, brutally tortured immigrant turns up in Hamburg's Islamic community, laying claim to his father's ill-gotten fortune, both German and US security agencies take a close interest: as the clock ticks down and the stakes rise, the race is on to establish this most wanted man's true identity - oppressed victim or destruction-bent extremist? (Lionsgate US)
(more)Reviews (9)
Besides being way too political for me, A Most Wanted Man deals with a topic that I don’t find interesting and is not engaging enough. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, which was also based on a book by John le Carré, was more interesting even in its filmmaking aspects. Seymour Hoffman’s minimalistic performance is excellent, however.
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A Most Wanted Man is a slow, atmospheric and high-quality blend of spy thriller and arthouse film reminiscent of works from the early 1970s (few redundant storylines, fewer obvious storylines and unfilled gaps in the narrative). Information is not repeated multiple times for greater clarity; sometimes tens of minutes pass between the first mention and the second (confirming its importance) and an equally long amount of time elapses until it is put into a broader context (e.g. family relationships – Jamal). What’s essential is often only alluded to or clues are placed somewhere in the background of one of the long, precisely composed shots with a shallow depth of field (for example, a hint as to how the whole film will end is given several minutes in advance). Due to the frequent placement of significant objects outside the centre of the frame, every instance of reframing and positioning all of the characters in the mise-en-scene matters. Compared to the book, the screenwriter made the distribution of information easier to follow and clearly placed one character at the centre of the action (though based on the book, I expected Brue to be the protagonist). The elevated importance of Bachmann, a man who should have things under his control but doesn’t quite, plays into the central theme of powerlessness (in relation to the labyrinthine post-9/11 network of national security organisations). Paradoxically, we are told the least about the personal life of Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s character directly, which reinforces the misleading impression that even though he can authoritatively monitor and listen to anyone, he himself is difficult to monitor (and manipulate). We have to assemble a picture of his nature and current state of mind from numerous hints given to us in the dialogue and especially in the mise-en-scene (the glass of alcohol and a cigarette are defining features). These hints are even less clear than in the book (the relationship with Frau Frey). The characters even carry on dialogue about the settings in which they feel good and that characterise them (for Annabel, that isn’t a pleasant high-end restaurant; Bachman is a regular at a rundown port-side pub). Corbijn makes good use of the noirish setting of the concrete metropolis with a river from whose dark depths more than one unpleasant surprise threatens to rise to the surface (Issa also seems to emerge from the water in the opening shot). To our surprise, the impression of Hamburg as a city where night and rain never end is turned upside down in the devastating final scene, which takes place on a clear, sunny day. The dominant colours of the exteriors, interiors and the characters’ clothes (yellow with blue or green) are as harsh and reserved as the purely professional relationships between the characters, most of whom live without families and without a future (which Bachmann discusses with Jamal) and if they have any romantic ideals, they lose them over the course of the film. Thanks to Hoffman’s excellent performance, crowned by one of the most impressive exits from the scene ever, Bachmann comes across both as an authentic personality and as an embodiment of the universal feeling of the loss of control, trust and freedom. The final twist doesn’t come out of nowhere, but is inconspicuously built up to throughout the film, whose narrative is in fact less communicative and less clear than it appears to be, as it only incidentally brings up one of the storylines as if it isn’t supposed to play a more significant role, though it turns out to be crucial in the end. The climax demolishes our idea of who sets the tone and who is manipulating whom and in what way. In terms of the craftsmanship and consistency with which it maintains (and ultimately justifies) its opaque and uncommunicative narrative, there is nothing for which to criticise A Most Wanted Man. It offers a comparably challenging yet rewarding viewing experience as Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. 90%
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I loved this film’s stubborn attempt at distracting the viewer from the important things, hiding the motivations of the main characters and breaking with the genre expectations derived from the “thriller” label, even if I admit that others may find it frustrating for the very same reasons. The ending is infuriating, and that’s the best thing about it. A point less for the behaviour of some of the characters (Dafoe’s in particular), I find it irritating, especially with the all cards on the table.
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When it was released, The American was the film of the year for me, so I was really looking forward to another film by the director Corbijn. I thought that it might be another slow-paced film, captivating the audience with acting performances and a completely realistic story. And since the main role was played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, I had hard time to keep my emotions in check, because he couldn’t deliver a better acting performance at the end of his career. As for the film itself, I understand some users at this site who were less than enthusiastic. Get ready for well-delivered realism with everything it entails, rough characters in the foreground of the whole story and a spy plot that not everyone will enjoy. But the tension is absolutely brilliant and the ending is the icing on the cake. I would say that the quality of this movie matches The American. Only we get to see a different story with different actors who are just as perfect as the American himself. For me, this is one of the best movies released this year. And not only thanks to Hoffman’s performance, even though that was a big part of it.
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The things we do for a “better world”... Old-school to the core and typically "le Carréan"; i.e. not viewer-friendly, distant, real, minimally presented in mere hints and never literal. And yet, chillingly relevant.
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Flawless. More later... Honest filmmaking and great actors in a story that has a lot to say. Le Carré now tastes even better. A stylish farewell from Hoffman. To make the world safer place.
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A film that makes sense and knows what it wants to say, in what form it wants to say it, with an unbelievably sharp and uncompromising atmosphere. The plot begins as if from the middle, and the viewer must build a relationship with the characters and unravel the plotlines and connections between them themselves from the first few minutes. There are shortcuts, supporting clues or placebo scenes. Proper filmmaking that, however, is overly austere and measured, allowing for an interestingly naturalistic view of terrorism, but at the same time unnecessarily slow, with plenty of dull scenes. Philip Seymour Hoffman was a great actor, and this old-school affair is not bad, just extremely viewer-unfriendly.
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John le Carré could boast to his fellow writers that few have been as lucky with adaptations as he has. Once again, A Most Wanted Man is a book-to-movie conversion with all the trimmings - above all, it manages to maintain the cool and quiet atmosphere of a modern/non-modern spy story that dispenses with action, or at least a bit of fast-paced scenes, but somehow, mysteriously, has sensational momentum. The excellent characters are fantastically accurately cast and the whole thing looks beautiful. Anton Corbijn impressed me with The American a few years ago, and now I see that it was no coincidence.
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It's true that I watched the film in a pretty bad mood. I was looking forward to it mainly because of Hoffman, and in the end, that's what impressed me. The way he spoke in front of the main characters was absolutely brilliant. His acting was simply great, and it's such a shame that his life was cut short too soon. However, the film itself couldn't engage me with its stylization and cold approach.
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