The Tailor of Panama

Corrupt MI6 agent Andrew Osnard (Pierce Brosnan) is transferred to Panama, where he finds an ideal contact in exiled London tailor Harry Pendel (Geoffrey Rush): Pendel has connections to politics and the underworld - and a criminal past, which Osnard uses to blackmail him. Pendel soon tailors sensational information that Osnard can use to show off in London. John le Carré was inspired by Graham Greene's Our Man in Havana for his novel of the same name, and John Boorman's film adaptation takes the satire to an even higher level, with the then 007 actor Brosnan serving as the amused target of numerous Bond sideswipes: Because of its comedic tone, it is often overlooked that this is arguably le Carré's best cinematic adaptation, managing a fusion of incisive character study and wicked political farce, in which the (self-)deception of a pathetic loser seamlessly transitions into US foreign policy strategy. (C.H.)

Photo: Austrian Film Museum