I hear that this is displeasing as an adaptation. But I haven’t read the novel, so that doesn’t cloud my judgement.

Judi Dench is brilliant as ever in a rare villainous role (the Oscar would’ve been hers were it not for Helen Mirren’s equally brilliant but more obvious turn in The Queen), Cate Blanchett gets to spar with her as the flawed ‘hero’, and the rest of the principal cast are very good also.

It lacks something towards the end, perhaps because it functions better as a character piece than as a thriller, but is still worth a watch.