El hombre más buscado

Günther Bachmann (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is a hard drinking German security agent spying on Hamburg's Muslim community and philanthropist Abdullah. Issa Karpov is an illegal that The Americans Martha Sullivan (Robin Wright) claims to be a Chechen terrorists. Bachmann wants to use him to make contact with an unknown banker. Refugee lawyer Annabel Richter (Rachel McAdams) takes on Karpov's case. He tells her to contact banker Tommy Brue (Willem Dafoe) about a mysterious account of over 10 Million Euros left by his Russian military commander father.

It's an interesting murky spy thriller from John le Carré. However it lacks any intensity. Hoffman delivers yet another solid performance. The plot demands intense energy but the movie doesn't allow it. I don't like the fake accented English from North American actors either. It makes the movie feel artificial. All the performances are solid but heavy. Everybody is prodding. There is simply no energy, no tension and no drive.

You are missed sir Philipp Seymour Hoffman. Brilliance in full display in this highly compelling espionage film, A Most Wanted Man. PSF simply dominates his scenes with subtlety, without the need to turn in a stagey, overcompensating effort. In the few scenes that warrants his aggression, you are absorbed by his thoughts, by his reason. He is a TRUE ARTIST. As for the film, suspense and intrigue does not let up as good vs bad takes an unclear shape, form and allegiance. Sreenplay deserves commendation as we are graciously subjected to seemingly REAL events, what actually happens behind closed doors in the world of intelligence. And that ending... 7.5/10 (probably deserves more).

This film is all about how bureaucracy works. How the spy agencies tackle and deal with problems that arise. Different agencies have different and sometimes contrasting ways to deal with the same problem and this leads to a dilemma which I think is the main theme of the film. The movie addresses the question of whether it is better to come up with the quick solution by nabbing the ordinary low-lives who become terrorists by getting influenced by others or is it worth the patience to let them do what they are supposed to in order to get to the real bosses and masterminds and get to a solution that is more significant and I think it addresses it brilliantly. The director develops a very tensed atmosphere throughout the entire film and never succumbs to the pressure of coming up with flashy over the top action sequences and the screenplay is very realistic. Now let's come to the acting. There are many supporting actors like Rachel Mcadams, Willem Dafoe,etc who are good. But this film is Philip Seymour Hoffman's vehicle. He is stupendously brilliant as he always was throughout his career. This film allows him to go out with a bang and show the world why he was one of the greatest. He plays a character who is a chain smoker and who uses this addiction to hide from the failures and struggles of his past career. Hoffman never puts a foot wrong. While the film was more or less brilliant, there were one or two minor scenes which seemed slightly unrealistic and Rachel Mcadams' German accent was sort of on again off again. But apart from these I can't find any flaws. Some people who want every spy thriller to be like James Bond have called this boring, but for people who like gritty,realistic stories about spies and national security, this will be a rewarding experience.

The plot hardly matters here; it's only a vehicle for exploring the dirty side of intelligence work and is complicated as a Swiss watch. Maybe the NSA revelations have you thinking twice about spywork? The fact that we caught spying on our own allies, the Germans, adds a special relevance to this tale. But the real appeal here is a)LeCarre's dark, dark, dark worldview and b) Hoffman's superb acting. He just tosses this role off, and is utterly convincing. After you see this you should see the film that perfectly bookends it: LeCarre's early '60s The Spy Who Came in From the Cold. Just as gritty and dirty and with Richard Burton as Alec Leamus. Like Gunther Bachmann,Leamus was a worn-out, beat-up, used-up operative, and audiences of the time, entranced by the frivolities of James Bond, were rather shocked by the dose of reality he represented.

A Most Wanted Man (2014) was directed by Anton Corbijn. It's based on a novel by John le Carré. The film stars Philip Seymour Hoffman. Basically, that's all you need to know about this movie.

Philip Seymour Hoffman is Günther Bachmann, a self-described spy. (Actually a counter-intelligence agent.) He's involved with a Chechen immigrant who has been tortured. There's money going from Hamburg to terrorists, but no one knows how this money gets there. Somehow the Chechen is involved. On and on it goes, with the German police opposing Günther, the CIA opposing Günther, and everyone betraying everyone else.

Günther is burned out and, essentially, has no life other than being a spy. As far as we can see, he never takes time off, he is interested in nothing other than work, and he has no friends and no colleagues he can trust. Hoffman portrays this part perfectly. No one could have done it as well.

A Most Wanted Man is pure Carré, and pure Hoffman, and that's why you should see it. If you're not impressed with Carré, or not impressed with Hoffman, there's no point going to the film.

We saw the movie on the large screen at the wonderful Dryden Theatre in Rochester, NY. However, it will work just as well on the small screen. No scuba shots, no mountain skiing shots--this isn't James Bond. If you know what to expect--gritty shots of Hamburg, Germany--you won't be disappointed, and the movie will work for you.