camp fire glory

The old, British television version of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is a laconic delight from first to last. It is constantly exciting by doing what's supposedly dull. Exposition isn't merely that when the storytelling is so eager, the tales so bold. And the fine actors rise to the challenge of these long passages, relishing the room to unfurl their talent and beckon us in. And in the midst, a glory. Beryl Reid's Connie Sachs. The weeping, comic savant, the alcoholic, lonely lover of "her lovely boys."  Even opposite Alec Guiness's best, she glints with asymmetric tears that shine like the facets of the kind of diamond that we name and think cursed.