The Pigeon Tunnel – Film Review

Director – Errol Morris
Writers – Errol Morris, John le Carré
Stars – Jake Dove, Charlotte Hamblin, Garry Cooper

This documentary covers the life and work of John le Carré, or David Cornwell as he is more commonly known to his friends and family! David was born in 1931 in Dorset, England. He had an unusual childhood. His father, Ronald (Ronnie) Cornwell was a con man, living off others and often defrauding them of money. He was jailed for insurance fraud and was a known associate of the Kray twins. His mother left her husband and children when David was only 5 years old. He only reconnected with her again when he was an adult. Despite this upbringing, David was given the best possible education, including attending St Andrew’s Preparatory School and later Oxford. After working at Eton College for two years, he was recruited to MI5 in 1958, where he learned much about the most unusual profession of being a spy.

The film takes the form of a long interview between director Errol Morris with David Cornwell. We hear David talk about his childhood and how it affected his later life. He discusses his time spent in MI5 but talks little about his later life or marriage. Instead, the work focuses on his career as a writer and gives us little insight into his personal life.

The documentary uses the various films that were made out of his novels for the visuals, which excerpts from movies such as Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Russia House and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold all featuring. There is also some additional footage created directly for the film, mostly used to explain where the unusual name for the film came from. It is in reference to his father who used to shoot pigeons for sport. The birds were bred in captivity to make it possible. The Pigeon Tunnel was what they travelled through before they would emerge into the light, where they were shot!

The film will be of interest to those who love le Carré’s work, either the novels or the films adapted from them. It does leave certain holes in his personal life, and you gain little real knowledge of what he is like as a man. Cornwell is well used to public speaking about his work and he feels like a politician, adept at moving the conversation into areas where he feels comfortable speaking. It does delve into his childhood, which is quite fascinating and his father is a complex individual, well loved by those around him for his charisma, despite often relieving them of their money. What is undeniable is the level of access Morris was granted to Cornwell and how honest and open he is about his work. David Cornwell died on the 12th of December 2020, aged 89, so this documentary will be one of the main insights into a man who transformed the spy genre into what it is today.