Skyfall
3.5/4
Starring: Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Albert Finney
Rated PG-13 for Intense Violent Sequences Throughout, Some Sexuality, Language and Smoking
When "Die Another Day" was poorly received ten years ago, cinema's longest running franchise was sent into turnaround once again (it should be noted, however, that the film did boast a handsome profit of $431.9 million against a $142 million budget). James Bond was rebooted dramatically with "Casino Royale" (a serious version of the 1967 spoof starring Peter Sellers and David Niven, who were the stars of the "Pink Panther" movies). The change was dramatic. Gone were the days of over-the-top action, sexy ladies and cool gadgets. "Casino Royale," which was directed by Martin Campbell (who directed my favorite Bond adventure, "GoldenEye,"), followed the trend established by Christopher Nolan's "Batman Begins." The new Bond movie was gritty and ultra-realistic (something that didn't particularly endear me to the film like it did for many others, apparently). His next adventure, "Quantum of Solace," was ruined by Marc Foster imitating Paul Greengrass, who frenetically shook the camera and cut the film frenetically every time a gun fired. Due partly to legal issues with MGM going bankrupt, it has been four years since "Quantum of Solace." Thankfully, it's worth the wait.
James Bond (Craig) is after a man named Patrice (Ola Rapace, ex-husband of Swiss star Noomi Rapace). Patrice is carrying with him a hard drive that contains a list of all the secret agents in the field. He's working for a man named Silva (Bardem), and he has a very personal beef with M (Dench). And he'll stop at nothing to get his revenge.
The cast is effective, as is usually the case. Even after four years, Daniel Craig slides easily back into the role of James Bond. Craig is a good actor, and his performance is effortless. Judi Dench, the reliable actress that she is, makes M into a more melancholy and regretful woman. Naomie Harris is solid, if unspectacular, as Eve, Bond's sort-of partner for the proceedings. The weak link is Javier Bardem, surprisingly. Bardem does what he can, but unfortunately Silva is pretty generic.
That's actually the problem with the film. The story, including the villain's motivations, has been done so many times before (bad guys get a list of secret agents...it's the fall back for every spy thriller devoid of ideas), and writers Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and John Logan are too afraid to take any chances. Sure, they sometimes manage to do things differently, but in the end it turns out to be a retread.
What saves the film is the direction by Sam Mendes. Mendes burst on to the Hollywood scene with his first film, "American Beauty," for which he won a Best Director Oscar. Apart from his next film, "Road to Perdition" (also starring Daniel Craig), he hasn't done an action film until now, which makes the selection of him as a Bond director curious. The results speak for themselves. The action sequences are fantastic, the opening one particularly so. They're stylishly filmed and provide huge jolts of adrenaline. Mendes doesn't resort the new standbys of shaking the camera and frantically cutting the film. They're relatively clean and therefore more exciting. The cinematography by Roger Deakins and score by Thomas Newman are also top-notch. Mendes does what he can to liven up the proceedings by skillful filmmaking and storytelling, and it's surprisingly a lot. But despite his best attempts, the middle portion of the film sags because of the derivative script.
In the end, "Skyfall" works because it goes back to the fundamentals of the Bond genre. It's not as over-the-top as Brosnan's films, but it's not hopelessly muted or grim, and contains all the elements that we expect from a Bond movie. Finally, after 15 years, James Bond makes a big comeback on his 50th anniversary.
Yes, dear readers, James Bond has returned.
Starring: Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Albert Finney
Rated PG-13 for Intense Violent Sequences Throughout, Some Sexuality, Language and Smoking
When "Die Another Day" was poorly received ten years ago, cinema's longest running franchise was sent into turnaround once again (it should be noted, however, that the film did boast a handsome profit of $431.9 million against a $142 million budget). James Bond was rebooted dramatically with "Casino Royale" (a serious version of the 1967 spoof starring Peter Sellers and David Niven, who were the stars of the "Pink Panther" movies). The change was dramatic. Gone were the days of over-the-top action, sexy ladies and cool gadgets. "Casino Royale," which was directed by Martin Campbell (who directed my favorite Bond adventure, "GoldenEye,"), followed the trend established by Christopher Nolan's "Batman Begins." The new Bond movie was gritty and ultra-realistic (something that didn't particularly endear me to the film like it did for many others, apparently). His next adventure, "Quantum of Solace," was ruined by Marc Foster imitating Paul Greengrass, who frenetically shook the camera and cut the film frenetically every time a gun fired. Due partly to legal issues with MGM going bankrupt, it has been four years since "Quantum of Solace." Thankfully, it's worth the wait.
James Bond (Craig) is after a man named Patrice (Ola Rapace, ex-husband of Swiss star Noomi Rapace). Patrice is carrying with him a hard drive that contains a list of all the secret agents in the field. He's working for a man named Silva (Bardem), and he has a very personal beef with M (Dench). And he'll stop at nothing to get his revenge.
The cast is effective, as is usually the case. Even after four years, Daniel Craig slides easily back into the role of James Bond. Craig is a good actor, and his performance is effortless. Judi Dench, the reliable actress that she is, makes M into a more melancholy and regretful woman. Naomie Harris is solid, if unspectacular, as Eve, Bond's sort-of partner for the proceedings. The weak link is Javier Bardem, surprisingly. Bardem does what he can, but unfortunately Silva is pretty generic.
That's actually the problem with the film. The story, including the villain's motivations, has been done so many times before (bad guys get a list of secret agents...it's the fall back for every spy thriller devoid of ideas), and writers Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and John Logan are too afraid to take any chances. Sure, they sometimes manage to do things differently, but in the end it turns out to be a retread.
What saves the film is the direction by Sam Mendes. Mendes burst on to the Hollywood scene with his first film, "American Beauty," for which he won a Best Director Oscar. Apart from his next film, "Road to Perdition" (also starring Daniel Craig), he hasn't done an action film until now, which makes the selection of him as a Bond director curious. The results speak for themselves. The action sequences are fantastic, the opening one particularly so. They're stylishly filmed and provide huge jolts of adrenaline. Mendes doesn't resort the new standbys of shaking the camera and frantically cutting the film. They're relatively clean and therefore more exciting. The cinematography by Roger Deakins and score by Thomas Newman are also top-notch. Mendes does what he can to liven up the proceedings by skillful filmmaking and storytelling, and it's surprisingly a lot. But despite his best attempts, the middle portion of the film sags because of the derivative script.
In the end, "Skyfall" works because it goes back to the fundamentals of the Bond genre. It's not as over-the-top as Brosnan's films, but it's not hopelessly muted or grim, and contains all the elements that we expect from a Bond movie. Finally, after 15 years, James Bond makes a big comeback on his 50th anniversary.
Yes, dear readers, James Bond has returned.
Comments
Post a Comment