A MOST WANTED MAN is Anton Corbijn’s (CONTROL) filmic adaptation of John Le Carré spy thriller. The film is set in post 9/11 Hamburg. Essentially its about Russian, Chechen and Arabic extremists, about good Muslims and bad Muslims and their secret funds – and yet it still feels like a Cold War thriller set among quarrelling spies, each one knowing more than he lets on and each hoping to learn more than his opponent. Hamburg sparkles in cold stylish glamour. And all the Germans, even the fast food joint owner, can speak English. Philip Seymour Hoffman is outstanding in his last role. He plays Günter Bachmann, a disheveled German spymaster running a covert espionage unit. Bachmann is tired, very tired, and extremely skeptical. His last operation wore him down and now he trusts no one, not even his own people. When a mysterious half-Russian, half-Chechen turns up in Hamburg’s Muslim community, Bachmann wakes up. But he’s not the only one who is interested in Issa Karpov. The CIA is also after him and Bachmann’s superiors want to grab Karpov immediately. But is Issa an innocent immigrant like the young human rights lawyer Annabel Richter believes? Or is he a highly dangerous jihadist? Bachmann’s team includes German stars Nina Hoss and Daniel Brühl. We recommend – for once – the German version.

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