On the whole, I found the film of SP to correlate very closely with the mental impression I had while reading the book - with one exception. I thought that Alexandra was in her late teens or early twenties. In the film, I think she looks considerably older. Did I take the wrong impression from my reading, or am I just a bad judge of a woman's age?
The actress who portrays her, Tusse Silberg, doesn't have a birthdate listed on IMDB...
I haven't seen this film but in the book I think Alexandra was in her early 20s --- 22, if I remember correctly. If I find my copy of the book in my messy apartment I will check and post here again.
shareMaybe they wanted to show how her life had prematurely aged her. I wonder if people reading a book remember to envision the aging that intense abuse will lead to. Fact is that not all 22 year olds look the same age.
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Is it enterprise or entropy? Ask me again when I wake up.
I have read the passage in question to refresh my memory which is largely influenced by the dramatisation of "Smiley's People." The character of Alexandra, alias Tatiana shows considerable maturity, more consistent with someone in their early twenties, rather than a teenager. Bearing in mind that she is in a Swiss clinic specialising in the treatment of schizophrenia, the clothes she wears are of an institutional character, rather than fashionable. This tends to make her appear older along with the absence of much make-up. The dual personality is emphasised by the use of the alternative name and personality of Tatiana. Startling emphasis is brought to the scene when she asks the question of Smiley, "Are you God?" Taken aback by such an idea, Smiley hesitates before responding, "No, I am just an ordinary person." This provides a highlight to a delicate and poignant interview with the unhappy Alexandra.
Why did Smiley rescue the mother? Where did she go? How did he know already that she would never be able to see her daughter again?
Any spoilers you can give on the two characters would be helpful.
"Tell your hoodlum friend outside.
You ain't got time to take a ride."
If by the mother you mean Madame Ostrakova, she had information that helped Smiley significantly.
As for George knowing she would never be able to see her daughter again, the Russians would have no further use for either the mother or the daughter. They even tried, but failed, to kill the mother.
As for the daughter, we don't even know if she is still alive at the time the story takes place. The best we could hope for is that she would remain unaware of the consiiracy and uninvolved with any of the events.
Thanks for answering. I'm going to watch it again very soon and maybe I'll be able to find my answers. I thought that Karla's daughter in the clinic was also Madame Ostrakova's daughter, although I do remember another character with a baby that I thought was her daughter at first.
Was Madame Ostrakova one of Smiley's People, which I take to mean a group of people that he was able to turn?
"Tell your hoodlum friend outside.
You ain't got time to take a ride."
Smiley didn't need to turn anyone. His people were the ones he could get information and cooperation from. With those he could figure out how to neutralize one of the Iron Curtain's worst spymasters.
Many were people he had long association with. Others were people he had never met before. He used no coercion or violence. Just patience and persistence.
In the novel, at least, it is said that Karla I creating a legend for a woman of about 27 of age, and Kirov is the amateur who must try to find a family to ask for her emigration from the USSR.
I don’t remember how detailed it is explained in the film.
I wondered if Madame Okstrova and Alexandra would ever be reunited. Apparently not. Sad.
shareSmiley (and LeCarre) could not have foreseen the collapse of the Soviet State only seven years after the events of the series, and the freedom of the three Baltic State - Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, the latter being the homeland of Ostrakova, the General, Otto and Kirov.
As long as Alexandra could be traced, there is every possibility that mother and daughter could have been reunited within a decade.