Followers of 20th century spy fiction ought to be delighted by the news of a miniseries adaptation of a John le Carré novel. Originally aired in February on BBC in England, “The Night Manager,” one such adaptation, premiered on AMC in America this week.
British espionage tales are often dominated by Ian Fleming and his iconic character James Bond, but “The Night Manager” presents a spy story more rooted in reality than that of its big-screen blockbuster brother.
While films in the Bond franchise might include references to current events every so often, these function simply as tools to make the audience rationalize the preposterous plots set up by larger than life villains. However, in “The Night Manager” and other recent le Carré adaptations such as “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” and “A Most Wanted Man” historical and current events compose the backbone of the narrative, which provides a refreshing change.
The miniseries introduces British veteran Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston) working his titular role in a Cairo hotel in the midst of the Arab Spring. Pine is entrusted with documents linking powerful philanthropist and CEO of Iron Last Richard Roper (Hugh Laurie) to international arms dealing. Four years later Roper and Pine meet at a hotel in Switzerland, and Pine sees an opportunity to expose Roper’s hypocritical business deals.
Directed by Susanne Bier, “The Night Manager” excels at moving the story visually rather than with dialogue. Subtleties in characters’ expressions are as integral to the plot as locations and character names, while the dialogue often focuses on the implicit rather than the explicit. Scenes shared by Pine and Roper are riddled with suspense as the two men engage in pointed yet veiled conversation, all trying to answer the same question: “Does he know my secret?”
With a variety of intriguing characters confined to isolated places, as with a ski resort nestled in the Swiss Alps, the coming episodes are sure to be rich with plenty of hidden messages, gentlemanly battles of wit and hopefully exciting action sequences on the slopes of the Matterhorn.
Whether the audience feels the interactions between characters may be the decisive indicator in whether this miniseries will be a hit or become white noise in the increasingly competitive field of television thrillers.
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