The Tailor of Panama

The Tailor of Panama

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The Tailor of Panama

Brendan Gleeson, Catherine McCormack, Catherine McCormick, Daniel Radcliffe, David Hayman

Tailors are the secret-keepers of the power elite; customize fine apparel for the rich and powerful, and you'll hear things only whispered in the halls of government. Such is the sly conceit of The Ta...( read more  read more... )ilor of Panama, coadapted by John le Carré from his own novel, and directed by John Boorman with a delicious spin on the traditions of the spy genre. As British MI-6 agent Andy Osnard, Pierce Brosnan qualifies as James Bond's black-sheep sibling, viewing women only in terms of sexual conquest and conducting spy business by his own flexible set of rules. Banished to Panama to pay for recent indiscretions, Andy connects with Harry Pendel (Geoffrey Rush), a British ex-convict who's built a lucrative cover as tailor to Panama's highest officials. With the coveted Panama canal now under local control, Andy's arrived to see what Harry knows about the canal's pending multinational sale.

As Andy observes, Panama is "Casablanca without heroes," and that's precisely how Boorman depicts it: a melting pot of greed, ambition, and backroom maneuvering, where Andy can bed an embassy official (Catherine McCormack) while squeezing information from Harry, who concocts a phony "silent opposition" that puts British and American forces on full alert. Harry's wife (Jamie Lee Curtis) is pulled into the scenario by Andy's ruthless scheming, and The Tailor of Panama reveals how a simple fabrication can provoke trigger-happy forces around the globe. Part comedy and part political horror thriller--with a tragic supporting role for Brendan Gleason, from Boorman's The General--this is old-fashioned spy stuff made new by le Carré's inventive plotting and keen ear for the dialogue of rogues. --Jeff Shannon

Id: 10898016

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Recent Reviews


  • September 8, 2009
    A run of the mill espionage thriller, comedy? I was hoping for a bit more. Good cast but I just didn't find the story that interesting.
  • April 17, 2009
    The film is good enough, I guess, but it just wasn't as interesting as I thought it would be. Geoffrey Rush is always good and this is no exception here, but Brosnan seems too at-ease as a British agent (what a stretch there, huh?). Jamie Lee Curtis and Brendan Gleeson put in ste...( read more)llar performances.
  • September 18, 2008
    Amazing soundtrack
  • June 17, 2007
    Honestly, the movie's pretty ordinary. Some people drive the point that it's a satire or dark humorist's take on the spy film, but it accomplishes nothing so clever. The only thing that deviates from the typical spy mold is the main character, played by Pierce Brosnan, in a fairl...( read more)y atypical way. The performances given are strong, and many of the characters have texture, but they feel squandered amidst a plot that is very unimportant.

    The dialogue and writing have a lot of charm, but they do little to construct a plot or a sense of tension, which is what The Tailor of Panama is sorely missing. This low-budget spy flick is a noble experiment with admirable ambitions, but it missed the mark.
  • November 23, 2006
    Not great, but Brosnan was okay--even thought all he was doing was playing a sleazier James Bond.
  • December 12, 2009
    great music, but it was hard to stay interested through the film. it was a little strange.
  • August 29, 2009
    This was a movie I have had for a long time and fo.got all about! Its a great movie and I suggest you all should see this one~
  • June 13, 2009
    Am in love with this film
  • June 5, 2009
    Aww, it has a cute little Harry Potter in it. It was a good movie too though.
  • April 9, 2009
    No thanks - Not interested.

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