Page Eight

UK Release Date. 28 August 2011
Certification. R
Running Time. 1 hour 39 mins
Director. David Hare
Cast. Ewen Bremner, Judy Davis, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Felicity Jones, Alice Krige, Bill Nighy, Saskia Reeves, Rachel Weisz.
Rating. 41%

Review.

Considering the veritable array of acting talent assembled - Ewen Bremner, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Felicity Jones, Bill Nighy, Saskia Reeves and Rachel Weisz - Page Eight is a rather disappointing political thriller from writer and director, David Hare.

Bill Nighy plays a sardonic MI5 analyst, Johnny Worricker. World-weary and rapidly becoming disillusioned with modern espionage.

The storyline is lethargic and the script is uneven. The highlight is the exchanges  between Johnny Worricker and his superior, Benedict Baron (Michael Gambon). The dialogue is witty and sophisticated, and there is an effortless chemistry between these two skilled actors. Less so between Bill Nighy and Rachel Weisz, a severely underwritten Nancy. Weisz's character is afforded minimal backstory and the ambiguous relationship with Worricker is hampered by the age difference of 20 years.

Primarily produced for the television market rather than a widespread cinema release [both BBC and NBC were involved as production companies]. Page Eight nonetheless resulted in two further made-for-TV productions in 2014 - Turks & Caicos and Salting The Battlefield. Again, both films attracted an impressive array of acting talent - joining Bill Nighy, Ralph Fiennes, Ewen Bremner and Felicity Jones were Helena Bonham Carter, Winona Ryder and Christopher Walken.

Whilst stylish, Page Eight is ultimately a tepid, pedestrian political thriller with an underwhelming conclusion.