When a two-hour film is based on a book that's part of a series, how do you bring the audience up to speed? You don't. You can't. You choose a group of brilliant actors, and trust them to let the audience sense what's going on. If viewers haven't read John le Carré's book of the same name, they'll have to watch the film twice.

The opening scene sets the tone. Control (John Hurt), the head of The Circus – codenames are the only concession this story makes to the espionage genre – sends Jim Prideaux (Mark Strong) on a confidential mission to Budapest, where a Hungarian General is willing to sell "treasure": the name of a mole planted by Russians, right at the top of British Intelligence.

The debacle that follows disgraces Control and forces his right-hand man George Smiley (Gary Oldman) into premature retirement. Smiley is secretly brought back by Oliver Lacon (Simon McBurney) to ferret out the mole.

Wheels spin within wheels as his only ally Peter Guillam (Benedict Cumberbatch) is confronted by The Circus, now headed by Percy Alleline (Toby Jones). The whole of its top echelon — Alleline, Bill Haydon (Colin Firth), Roy Bland (Ciarán Hinds), Toby Esterhase (David Dencik) — is suspect, and the shades of grey in the narrative compound those of the cinematography.

The suspense is maintained till the end, though you may feel you got it right in retrospect. One of the actors may be rather too good, dropping hints with his shifty body language. But then, the story's swimming with red herrings.

With languorous flashbacks, chronology is one of the many things you're kept guessing at. There are symbols — a bee in the bonnet of a car, a game of chess — and poignant images: an infant trying to suckle at a woman with a bullet through her head. Mostly, there are tired, wary, disillusioned men reflecting in quiet rooms, alternately drained and invigorated by mentoring their protégés.

This is what intelligence gathering is really about, not being able to trust your spouse, not being able to trust your best friend, one thinks. Having served in the MI5 and MI6, where he was betrayed by a mole, John le Carré knows how it works. And he leaves his stamp on the film, which he co-produced. As you reflect on the movie, it may surprise you to think of how little violence you actually saw, and how much of it was in your mind.

Verdict: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy demands some work, and more than one watch; but it's worth it.

Now, animation for adults

A part of you will die when Arthur Christmas opens to an idyllic town, where a pink-cheeked, wide-eyed girl stands on tip-toe to post a letter to Santa – well, that's if you, like me, would rather kiss a rodent than a kid. But then, Gwen (Ramona Marquez) begins to read out:

If you live at the North Pole, how come I can't see your house when I look in Google Earth? Are you St. Nicholas? – Because then you'd be incredibly old! How many cookies and mince pies have you eaten in all of history? Does your sack have to get bigger every year because of exponential population growth?

All right, a movie with Hugh Laurie and Bill Nighy in the cast can't be a saccharine mess of candy floss and Christmas cheer, right?

As Arthur 'Softie' Christmas (James McAvoy) writes a maternal reply, 'Santa-in-waiting' Steve (Hugh Laurie) barks out orders to remote-control their father's journey in the chic S1. Yes, Santa's sleigh has been upgraded to something that Captain Kirk would covet; Steve likes his toys, and owns gadgets ranging from iPads to customised spy cams.

No wonder the bumbling Arthur is the Other Son. Hell, he 'hoi's his 'hi's and doesn't tap his 't's, so we know he hasn't had Steve's exclusive education, although Santa's NGO seems to be minting money. Throw a 136-year-old grandfather with a point to prove (Bill Nighy), and a septuagenarian Santa who's loath to retire (Jim Broadbent) into the mix – may the power politics play out.

We're assured the writers aren't targeting people whose age or IQ is in single digits when a man who wears Versace is given monogrammed boxers by a gay elf. There are several references to popular culture – the iconic sailor-nurse kiss that found a nod in The Watchmen is re-enacted, and an elf announces, "Santa has left the building". The intriguing Mrs. Santa (Imelda Staunton) wants to hear Silent Night sung backwards. As if devil worship were not enough, there's a crack about slave labour too.

The actors' perfect timing and delivery make literal interpretations of idioms hilarious, and the unexpected twists take you by surprise. Political incorrectness finds expression through a buxom American President who trains her guns on UFOs, an Indian elf who's migrated to the North Pole, a Scottish one that's anal about wrapping presents, and asides about national protocol.

Hugh Laurie – oh, it's nice to hear him sounding more like George from Blackadder than House from House! – is at his sneering best, and Bill Nighy, his grouchy worst. You know a Christmas film has worked when your eyes get a teensy bit moist despite all that sarcasm. The only downside to Arthur Christmas is that some of the action is so quick, and some of the wordplay so clever, that you may miss out on your first watch.