I am amazed that so many reviewers panned this film when TLGW came out.
While this film is very bleak, so was The Spy Who Came In From The Cold. TSWCIFTC had none of the whimsical touches that distinguish TLGW, and lacked the gritty underbelly that makes TLGW so much more believable, if even less romantic and reassuring.
While TSWCIFTC is more of an intellectual overview of The Game (until its dismal conclusion), TLGW spares no one.
Christopher Jones is excellent as the charming but unbalanced ne'er-do-well, who is exactly what British Intelligence needs.
Anthony Hopkins is so good, you'll forget Hannibal Lecter.
The entire ensemble cast is superb, with supporting players able to convey fully realized characters with only a few lines in most cases. The few characters who are not fleshed out seem to come from out of nowhere, as does Jones' character, echoing the mood of a man lost in a country he does not know - first England, then East Germany.
I particularly liked the fact that the film made England the dark, enclosed, maze of liars and opportunists, while E. Germany was shown alternately as open, pristine land and the property of deceptive invaders (the mirrors of the British). In addition, the film bluntly and confidently attempts to dissect patriots and their imitators: a rarity in 1970.
This film is not strictly an entertainment, but there are some fine, light moments between the characters played by Jones, Hopkins, Pickles and Richardson.
The Looking Glass War is a fascinating film, a tribute to an era and an author.
