The Pigeon Tunnel
Apple TV+ | Release Date (Streaming): October 20, 2023 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
79
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews
Positive:
18
Mixed:
2
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
The PlaylistJason BaileySep 11, 2023
What is truly, and thrillingly, new here is Morris’s thematic interest. The deeper he goes into the rabbit hole with Cornwall, the more his true subject becomes apparent, as the picture becomes a penetrating investigation of the idea that great artists freely use fiction to work through the very real pain of their own lives—even in work that’s not explicitly or even transparently autobiographical. Read full review
90
Wall Street JournalJohn AndersonOct 19, 2023
Based on the Le Carré memoir, The Pigeon Tunnel allows Mr. Morris to exercise his extraordinary gift for making the interview format irresistibly cinematic, and feels like a collaboration of kindred spirits. Read full review
90
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisOct 19, 2023
Intellectually rich and cinematically disciplined (brief movie clips, another perfectly aligned Philip Glass score), The Pigeon Tunnel is a cautious, playful portrait of an expert manipulator. Read full review
89
Paste MagazineAparita Bhandari Oct 17, 2023
The Pigeon Tunnel, then, is a chance to see an expert raconteur, who seems to know every trick of the trade—answering a master documentarian’s questions when he wants, and deflecting with panache when he doesn’t, regaling you with such wonder that you can’t help but be enthralled. Read full review
88
The Associated PressLindsey BahrOct 19, 2023
It’s an Errol Morris film, right down to the Philip Glass score. And while the Interrotron and the reenactments might not be the revolutionary storytelling devices they once were, they’re almost comforting at this point and no less effective at creating a mood and an emotional experience around a sharp conversation. Read full review
88
The Daily BeastNick SchagerOct 6, 2023
He’s a grand chronicler of his own biography, and expertly goaded on by Morris, whose queries challenge present and past statements and compel further elaboration and contemplation. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleOct 25, 2023
In truth (there’s that word again), Morris’ movie isn’t so much a debriefing as a very entertaining recruitment tool for the pleasures of Cornwell’s storytelling. Read full review
80
Time OutPhil de SemlyenOct 20, 2023
The death of le Carré feels like the end of an era. The Pigeon Tunnel is its enthralling epitaph. Read full review
80
The Irish TimesTara BradyOct 19, 2023
Morris plays along, but his visuals – shadowy rooms, obfuscated photographs, carefully filleted scenes from adaptations of the novelist’s work – hint that this isn’t the whole story. Read full review
80
EmpireBarry LevittOct 17, 2023
An interrogation of art and artist, The Pigeon Tunnel is an enthralling documentary both for fans of le Carré and those who’ve never read a page of his work. Read full review
80
The TelegraphJake KerridgeOct 13, 2023
Le Carré’s relationship with his father is the focus of the film. This is well-worn territory, and yet it proves impossible to tire of le Carré talking about the old devil. Read full review
80
The GuardianPeter BradshawSep 11, 2023
Perhaps there is nothing very new in this film, but it’s a very civilised experience. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleOct 27, 2023
For le Carré fans, The Pigeon Tunnel is a must-see, but the film will also be useful to people wanting an introduction to his work. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyOct 26, 2023
The Pigeon Tunnel is mannered, but one could argue that’s fitting. It’s hard to get more mannered than the le Carré prose style and plotting. Yet no character inhabiting the novels, not even George Smiley, is as riveting and memorable as David Cornwell. Anything that gets between him and the viewer is not a good thing. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comBrian TallericoSep 18, 2023
It’s almost more like a companion to some of the most popular books of all time—not an explainer or even piece of historical trivia about their execution. Instead, this documentary reveals how even the most complex spy fiction can have a foundation in the relationship between a son and his father. Read full review
75
TheWrapSteve PondSep 11, 2023
The result is a wide-ranging dialogue that manages to be both philosophical and playful, a personal portrait that goes exactly as deep as Cornwell wants it to go but never feels as if the author is getting away with obfuscation. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterDaniel FienbergSep 11, 2023
Cornwell died in 2020 and it’s a treasure to have this last opportunity to glimpse into the mind of a master raconteur, to hear his erudite explanations for his thematic fascinations and to watch him tiptoe around which personal tales he’s comfortable rehashing and which are better left in forms previously written. Read full review
63
Washington PostMark JenkinsOct 16, 2023
The lack of tension between Morris and his subject diminishes the film’s energy. Read full review
60
The New YorkerRichard BrodyOct 24, 2023
Despite Cornwell’s striving for reflexivity, for getting behind the onscreen talk to explore his relationship to Morris, nothing so dramatic takes place; the high-stakes mind games that he likes to think he’s playing never really occur. The Pigeon Tunnel is nonetheless an absorbing, colorful self-portrait. Read full review
50
The Film StageLena WilsonOct 3, 2023
As a film, The Pigeon Tunnel is competent. It looks nice, its reenactments are polished, and Cornwell’s wit aptly distracts from the movie’s pitfalls. But if you’re looking for an incisive, thorough documentary that probes and provokes, prepare to lower your expectations. Read full review
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