Following the success of the television series Spooks – which starred the likes of Richard Armitage and David Oyelowo amongst others, occasional writers of the series Jonathan Brackley and Sam Vincent have teamed up with director Bharat Nalluri – who had helmed six episodes himself – to bring the popular show to the big screen. Though introducing a predominantly new cast, and creating a film that is certainly a standalone production, prior knowledge is helpful – but certainly not essential. Knowing this show will help inform your experience, but will not define it. In that regard it’s a job well done for the filmmakers, offering enough for newcomers to enjoy, and satisfy the needs of those returning. However to call this project a job well done seems somewhat flattering for a film that, on the whole, sadly misfires.
During what should be a routine handover, the world’s most feared terrorist Qasim (Elyes Gabel) manages to escape, bringing shame on the MI5, and resulting in the departure of Intelligence Chief Harry Pearce (Peter Firth). Faking his own death, Pearce remains compelled to track down Qasim unofficially, and restore some pride in the disgraced organisation he feels so entwined with, while saving the lives of potentially millions in the process. But he can’t do it alone, and so requires the assistance of rogue, former agent Will Holloway (Kit Harington) as the pair attempt to resolve this matter before it’s too late.
There is an overriding, generic nature to this title, as a film that has not enlarged in scope or immensity quite enough to warrant this cinematic endeavour. What transpires is a very televisual experience, and though from a narrative perspective the stakes have been upped, this isn’t just a matter of stumbling across the show from your sofa on a Tuesday night, you need to get your money’s worth, and that’s simply not the case. Part of the frustration derives from the consistent double crossing between characters, and while that’s essential, it’s implemented so often that it becomes disorientating and you lose interest. There is an indelible atmosphere that exists however, as both London and Berlin are painted in a grey, unforgiving light – where it’s always raining, creating a certain mood that lends itself well to the narrative at hand.
In spite of the generic approach taken, there’s an enjoyable subversion in regards to the antagonist, as Qasim is an articulate, intelligent, seemingly composed individual, and while that works in his favour in many regards, conversely he never quite seems infallible nor formidable enough, and you never doubt he can be overcome. The nature of the villain taps in to a pertinent fear amongst the public too, taking a terrorist from a real life war, who is threatening to blow up populated areas of London, a scary thought that has crossed many a mind in the last 15 years. However this is fiction, and the chance to try and deviate away from real life and bring about a sense of escapism – not to mention the fact that making the antagonist of Middle Eastern, Muslim descent feels somewhat irresponsible. There’s already a lot of unwelcome Islamophobia in this country – and it doesn’t seem very helpful to perpetuate a stereotype in fictional cinema.
There did seem like the chance here for a new franchise to be unearthed in British cinema, but sadly it feels like a chance wasted. There is a lot of scope in rebranding the MI5 on film, away from the traditionalist tropes of 007, and vie for a more naturalistic take – but sadly Spooks: The Greater Good fails to deliver. It’s neither great, nor very good, unfortunately.
“There’s already a lot of unwelcome Islamophobia in this country – and it doesn’t seem very helpful to perpetuate a stereotype in fictional cinema.”
Hmmmm. Arrrhhhh yes that classic trope of liberal leftards – Islamophobia. But herein lies the problem, A phobia is defined by an irrational fear of something. It is not irrational to be fearful of back water practices which shouldn’t have any place within a modern society, and individuals with a propensity to react in a brutal fashion if free speech is exercised.
Also, we are talking about a film which aims to portray a realistic modern-day story about the security services. In this context it is entirely justifiable to reflect the no1 threat they and this country faces.
Maybe you’re one of the types who thinks we should start to censors works of art because it might cause offense to the followers of the ‘religion of peace’.
OK. So Stefan gave it two stars but below I think I can give you three from a potential multitude of reasons why it should have had two more.
1) It’s an action film. There’s LOTS of action and the people I was with at the preview loved it as it was brutal, unrelenting, sometimes totally unexpected but was always pushing the plot forward in some way. I’d be bold enough to suggest that if you don’t like action, you probably won’t like this film.
2) The review didn’t cover one of the ethical challenges that the film touched on which was “Do you want to do good or do well?”. in any institutionalised job the pressure to follow orders and not rock the boat can come at the expense of doing the right thing and I think that the film delivered it nicely without making it a ‘message movie’ in any sense.
3) I watched this the day after I saw Avengers and in both a key character explains why they do what they do with “It’s my job” and in my opinion Spooks delivered that line better and more credibly in the circumstances. I believe that deep inside I’d like to think that there are people like Harry Pearce protecting our nation’s security, albeit more methodical and restrained versions.
Yes, yes, it’s a totally unrealistic portrayal of working in the security services but so are the James Bond films and millions of people adore them so if you’re after an action movie with a plot that twists and turns more than Strictly Come Dancing then you’ve come to the right place.
4 stars from me!