It’s very slow (or deliberate I guess?), the story and relationships are convoluted, we get characters introduced and terms thrown around and as a viewer one might feel lost for a bit, it takes subtlety to a new level where even an extramarital affair is politely hinted at, it uses a lot of flashbacks for multiple characters…sometimes for the same event…sometimes not. These can be all considered negatives for this awesome piece of work and I have heard them all leveled against it. Unless you like that sort of thing. Unless you really like fantastic performances by a great cast of British actors. Unless you really enjoy little touches that hint and point to huge plot points. TTSS has all that and really takes us into the twisty world of Le Carre’s cold war era spy novel with wonderful set pieces and wonderful camera work. It centers around pinpointing a mole in the Circus (oh? you are not familiar with that term? Oh well..) and the plot goes about unraveling the web using George Smiley, played brilliantly as always by Gary Oldman, as our protagonist. The film assumes you are smart enough to catch on and that is one of its strengths. There are no wasted dialogue and no exposition. It gently moves to its conclusion and keeps our attention the whole way.