The presence of Guinness makes this worth watching all on its own. That said, this is a capable spy thriller that does a nice job underlining the isolation of the spy's life in every possible way. Guinness' Smiley is exquisitely good at what he does, crafting each move for maximum impact. However, any beauty one might find there is contrasted strongly by the drab settings of the English winter.

I wonder what I would have thought about this if I hadn't read the book. As it stands now, it's all quite dry and slow. Sure, the source material's like that too, but the drab visuals and straightforward cinematography didn't really get the ol' ticker pumping any faster. Still, Guinness is great as the ice cold Smiley, the rest of the cast is up to the task and the entire thing is pretty nicely put together. Recommended if you like your spy stories to be painfully realistic.

I could watch Alec Guinness talk about watching paint dry.

Alec Guinness is great as Smiley in this stellar spy mini-series adaptation of Carré's novel.

Very fine BBC spy thriller. Not so much explosions and slutty women ala James Bond as a lot of bureaucratic intrigue and infighting. Anchored by Guinness' wonderful performance as Smiley; a man so given over to the ruthless nature of his work, that he has lost all touch with the joy and spontaneity of life. He is all control and unruffled surface. His world is a place where emotions are used as weapons to wound and defeat the enemy.

Wonderful and ahead of its time. The film version streamlines and highlights other aspects to great success with a bigger budget. The longer treatment, far more authentic '70s/British feel, and acting at least on par with, if not stronger than, the more recent version, presented here are equally worth your time. Guinness VS Oldman is a tough call; Guinness has depth, Oldman tries on the vacuum for size. All the other roles are equally fascinating in their different variations.

I should watch the movie, because this feels a tad bloated, but it is a pretty great spy story with strong performances and a lot of good moments.

You really have to have your wits about you to follow this. Of course, that's a good thing, and it's what you would expect from an adaptation of Le Carré's work, but in this, you're so busy trying to keep track of who's who that t's hard to keep track of what's what. Plus, you've got what I call 'spy speak' - the spy slang to contend with too, Trying to keep all the various balls in the air, so as to get what's going on, can be knackering. I suggest multiple viewings of this, but it's not bad.

Good show.

Absolutely great. Thrilling and subtle. great camera work and unexpected ending