Yes, a very good film. John's camera is always moving. Well, not always, but it gives the film a wonderful momentum - such as when the four of them are sat around the table in the club, making up their fake man's life, and the camera is circling them
Just the complication of the man who suddenly appears in Kelly Macdonald's apartment and the anti-Nazi Nazi thing seemed over-complicated and superfluous and could have simply been edited out?
Loved the way Fleming throughout is writing 'spy stories' and is surrounded by useful Bond material - 'M', 'Q branch', watches that are a saw etc. And is that him narrating? (Johnny Flynn.) If so, that gives the whole thing another resonance. Ben Macintryre, who co-wrote this, had written a non-fiction account of the operation and a biography of Fleming. Michelle Ashford is the other writer.
That evocative piano music about an hour in isn't the multi-talented Tom Newman but a piece called 'Fallen Soldier' by James Morgan.
Loved the way when they're constructing the dead man's history, and particularly his love life, it's like Firth and Macdonald are talking about each other (thereby falling in love).
As to Ms. Boydell, the way she cuts this is so great. She has this way of cross-cutting which is so brilliant - it's sort of like scenes are folded into one another. And going 'back forward back forward', like when the Spanish find the body and it jumps around in time like that, so that at one point we see the all important briefcase floating in the sea, and you think 'Hang on', but the next shot is it on the cart with the dead man. She's very good, but naturally didn't win any awards whatsoever.
Unlike last time I didn't think Firth and Macfadyen were on low wattage, I thought they were great, particularly Matthew.
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