The Tailor Of Panama

Interesting character-based spy story. In his portrayal of MI6 agent Andy Osnard, Pierce Brosnan takes his James Bond character, stuffs him full of self-assured arrogance and strips him bare of sympathy. This reckless, slimy egoist is exiled to Panama for past indiscretions. There, he twists the arm of tailor Harry Pendel (Geoffrey Rush), a man with a tenuous link to Panama’s top politicians, a secret in his past, and mounting debts. Pendel is also an accomplished liar and fantasist, and just as Osnard perverts Pendel’s tales for his own ends, so does Pendel try to play Osnard for all he can get. It’s a game of intelligence chicken that goes wrong. Eventually the deceptions spiral out of control, and the stakes escalate beyond either of their control. This may sound a bit grim, but it’s a surprisingly humorous and at times very touching film.