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IMDbPro

A Most Wanted Man

  • 20142014
  • RR
  • 2h 2m
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
76K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
5,050
436
Willem Dafoe, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Robin Wright, and Rachel McAdams in A Most Wanted Man (2014)
When a half-Chechen, half-Russian, brutally tortured immigrant turns up in Hamburg's Islamic community, laying claim to his father's ill gotten fortune, both German and US security agencies take a close interest: as the clock ticks down and the stakes rise, the race is on to establish this most wanted man's true identity - oppressed victim or destruction - bent extremist?
Play trailer1:56
8 Videos
66 Photos
CrimeDramaThriller
A Chechen Muslim illegally immigrates to Hamburg, where he gets caught in the international war on terror.A Chechen Muslim illegally immigrates to Hamburg, where he gets caught in the international war on terror.A Chechen Muslim illegally immigrates to Hamburg, where he gets caught in the international war on terror.
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
76K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
5,050
436
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Anton Corbijn
    • Writers
      • Andrew Bovell(screenplay)
      • John le Carré(novel)
      • Stephen Cornwell(additional writing)
    • Stars
      • Philip Seymour Hoffman
      • Rachel McAdams
      • Daniel Brühl
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Anton Corbijn
    • Writers
      • Andrew Bovell(screenplay)
      • John le Carré(novel)
      • Stephen Cornwell(additional writing)
    • Stars
      • Philip Seymour Hoffman
      • Rachel McAdams
      • Daniel Brühl
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 206User reviews
    • 302Critic reviews
    • 73Metascore
    • Awards
      • 3 wins & 6 nominations

    Videos8

    International Trailer
    Trailer 1:56
    International Trailer
    Trailer #1
    Trailer 2:25
    Trailer #1
    U.S. Theatrical Trailer
    Trailer 2:24
    U.S. Theatrical Trailer
    Clip
    Clip 0:46
    Clip
    Clip
    Clip 1:13
    Clip
    Clip
    Clip 0:49
    Clip
    Exclusive Clip
    Clip 0:47
    Exclusive Clip
    "The Clock Is Ticking"
    Clip 0:56
    "The Clock Is Ticking"

    Photos66

    Willem Dafoe, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Robin Wright, and Rachel McAdams in A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Philip Seymour Hoffman in A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Philip Seymour Hoffman in A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Philip Seymour Hoffman and Robin Wright in A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Willem Dafoe and Philip Seymour Hoffman in A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Rachel McAdams and Grigoriy Dobrygin in A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Anton Corbijn at an event for A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Rachel McAdams at an event for A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Philip Seymour Hoffman at an event for A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Willem Dafoe at an event for A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Willem Dafoe, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Anton Corbijn, Rachel McAdams, John Cooper, and Grigoriy Dobrygin at an event for A Most Wanted Man (2014)
    Anton Corbijn and Rachel McAdams at an event for A Most Wanted Man (2014)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Philip Seymour Hoffman
    Philip Seymour Hoffman
    • Günther Bachmann
    Rachel McAdams
    Rachel McAdams
    • Annabel Richter
    Daniel Brühl
    Daniel Brühl
    • Maximilian
    Robin Wright
    Robin Wright
    • Martha Sullivan
    Grigoriy Dobrygin
    Grigoriy Dobrygin
    • Issa Karpov
    • (as Grigory Dobrygin)
    Homayoun Ershadi
    Homayoun Ershadi
    • Abdullah
    Mehdi Dehbi
    Mehdi Dehbi
    • Jamal
    Neil Malik Abdullah
    Neil Malik Abdullah
    • Abdullah's Bodyguard
    • (as Neil Melik Abdullah)
    Nina Hoss
    Nina Hoss
    • Irna Frey
    Vicky Krieps
    Vicky Krieps
    • Niki
    Kostja Ullmann
    Kostja Ullmann
    • Rasheed
    Franz Hartwig
    Franz Hartwig
    • Karl
    Martin Wuttke
    Martin Wuttke
    • The Admiral
    Vedat Erincin
    Vedat Erincin
    • Storekeeper
    Rainer Bock
    Rainer Bock
    • Dieter Mohr
    Derya Alabora
    • Leyla Oktay
    Tamer Yigit
    • Melik Oktay
    René Lay
    René Lay
    • Sparring Partner
    • Director
      • Anton Corbijn
    • Writers
      • Andrew Bovell(screenplay)
      • John le Carré(novel)
      • Stephen Cornwell(additional writing)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      This film's story is set in Hamburg. Source novel author John le Carré worked for British intelligence's MI5 and MI6 during the 1950s and 1960s and worked in both Berlin and Hamburg. Le Carré was in Berlin when the Berlin Wall was being constructed and has worked as both a consul and an agent in Hamburg.
    • Goofs
      At the beginning of the film, the subtitle reads: "In 2001 Mohammad Atta conceived and planned the 9/11 attacks from the port city of Hamburg, Germany..." Mohamed [the correct spelling of his name] Atta went to the United States in June 2000, and never returned to Hamburg.
    • Quotes

      Günther Bachmann: [Puts a pen in Brue's pocket] It's just an ordinary pen. Looks like a pen, writes like a pen, and listens like a pen.

    • Connections
      Featured in SPYMASTER: John le Carré in Hamburg (2014)
    • Soundtracks
      To Hell With Poverty
      Written by Dave Allen, Hugo Burnham (as Hugo H. Burnham, Andy Gill (as Andrew Gill) and Jon King

      Produced and Mixed by Andy Gill

      Performed by Gang of Four

      © Bug Music Ltd (GB) / WB Music Corp. (ASCAP) / Hugo Burnham Pub. Des. (ASCAP) / Elastic Purejoy Music (ASCAP)

      All Rights on Behalf of Elastic Purejoy Music (ASCAP) & Hugo Burnham Pub. Des. (ASCAP) Administered by Neue Welt Musikverlag GmbH & Co. KG

      With Kind Permission of BMG Rights Management_GmbH (Germany) and Neue Welt Musikverlag GmbH & Co. KG

      (P) With Kind Permission of Gang of Four

    User reviews206

    Review
    Top review
    5/10
    Realism versus Story-Telling
    As much as I respect and at times love director Anton Corbijn's and author John Le Carré's emphasis on realism, this movie is bogged down by a lack of focus on one story-defining goal, which is rather realistic but makes for a difficult watch.

    Before anyone gets mad: I am well aware that this is Philip-Seymour Hoffman's last completed film - which was actually the reason for me to go see it. And he is good. PSH-good. Meaning, by the standards of most other actors he is GREAT, but by PSH-standards its a pretty run-of-the- mill role that does not call for a great performance and Hoffman plays it like that: A neat little movie experience in Germany that came along and that he probably did not take too seriously, obviously not suspecting that it would be his final starring role. And he does well when you compare it to Willem Dafoe's performance, which he apparently took very seriously. At times Dafoe seems to hinge on the verge of overacting, at least when compared to the other actors and his surroundings.

    But the real trouble, as I said, is the story. It starts out as an espionage thriller focusing on the question whether Issa, a Chechen Muslim having entered Germany illegally, has come as a terrorist and is planning on meeting fundamentalists or other radical elements and maybe blow something up. Slowly the focus then shifts without ever clarifying that Bachmann (Hoffman) and his team no longer suspect Issa to be dangerous, but somehow they start acting like they have come to that conclusion. The focus keeps shifting and in the end you realize the movie was about something totally different all along which it didn't stress. Because it is something that Bachmann would have had to stress and he is not the kind of character who goes on tantrums over things, so it is realistic but makes the storyline seem a little crooked.

    Add to that that around the middle the team decides for a course of action that seems drastic at first but then ends up slowing the entire movie down a bit. For about ten to twenty minutes the whole premise just seems to float and not go anywhere. I felt bored for a while before the pace picked up again.

    As a last concern: Rachel McAdams just doesn't belong here. This is not really a critique of her or her acting talents which are fine. But while everybody else looks like the characters they play, she just looks like a Hollywood starlet who came to spice up an independent movie with some glamor. Which is completely out of place. It doesn't help that we all but never see her character, who is supposed to be a lawyer, do anything lawyerly other than speak to Dafoe's rich banker on her client's behalf. She is just an alien in this world of low-life agents and bureaucrats.

    What we end up with is a pretty okay movie with some great photography and interesting themes that are, however, not told all that stringently. But if you came to enjoy Hoffman's last performance, you will get your opportunity to enjoy, even if it isn't his most outstanding work. It still shows that the man was a genius on screen.

    By the way: If you see this with someone from Germany, prepare that they start giggling when they see "Michael", a government employee aiding Bachmann: The actor is Herbert Grönemeyer, a well-known and often ridiculed pop-singer in Germany who very rarely acts in movies. Germans are primed to laugh at him trying to act (as few remember his pretty well-done starring role in classic "Das Boot").
    helpful•85
    44
    • KWiNK
    • Oct 5, 2014

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 1, 2014 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United Kingdom
      • United States
      • Germany
    • Official sites
      • Official Facebook
      • Official site
    • Languages
      • English
      • Turkish
      • Arabic
    • Also known as
      • John le Carré's A Most Wanted Man
    • Filming locations
      • Hamburg, Germany
    • Production companies
      • Lionsgate
      • Film4
      • Demarest Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $15,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $17,237,855
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $2,687,227
      • Jul 27, 2014
    • Gross worldwide
      • $36,233,517
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 2 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby
      • Datasat
      • Dolby Atmos
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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