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shapinglightSo anyway, now that's over I suppose it's okay to post about trivial stuff again, so here's my review of the new Bond movie, Skyfall, which the Brit crits have all loved.
Predictably, I thought...
Spoilers behind cut
....Quantum of Solace was better.
:sigh: I know I'm going to be alone in this, and it probably stems from the fact that until the Danial Craig/Judi Dench era came along, I was never a Bond fan. I've seen a lot of the old movies, but even as a kid their sexism made me squirm (I was on the Indians' side in all the old Westerns too, even when all they did was yell a lot and fall off their horses) and I'm not interested in the cars and gadgets. Thus, that side of the new film was never going to appeal to me (though it's a lot more low-tech and believeable now and I thought Ben Whishaw was great as 'Q').
I also know that OTT villains are de rigeur in Bond movies, but though the villain in Casino Royale was a little in that vein, he wasn't overtly so, and the villain in Quantum of Solace wasn't so much a person as an organisation. But, see, that worked for me. A shadowy association of amoral plutocrats trying to acquire rights to the world's water supply struck me as very frightening and a very appropriate villain for the age we live in. But what do I know? I'm not a Bond fan, as I said.
Which of course is all me leading up to saying that the reason why I don't like Skyfall so much is because of the villain. Not that Javier Bardem wasn't good, or anything, but...nah. Sorry. Also, given all that subtext about Bond and the villain (I can't remember his name) vying for M's affections (who does mummy love best?), I think that would have worked for me better too if the villain had been more 'normal.'
I'm also sad that Judi Dench's tenure as M ended the way it did. Her last words to Bond, "At least I got one thing right," (which is about as affectionate as she gets) suggested the character felt she'd failed otherwise, and since some nutter just blew up half of London on her watch because of a personal grudge, I can quite see why.
I also didn't like the crusty old retainer at Skyfall. When M and Bond arrived at the house, I thought to myself, "I hope there isn't going to be some crusty old retainer in residence, because that would be such a cliche," and lo and behold there he was.
Aa-and I also didn't like that Bond didn't react more to the death of the poor girl (in fact, I wasn't even sure whether she was dead). That could have been better done, IMO.
All that said, there was lots to enjoy in the film. I still love Daniel Craig's performance (Bond is pretty much a sociopath, or do I mean psychopath? He's pathological, anyway), and love Bond's relationship with M (which, sadly, is now a thing of the past). All the Bond/M scenes were wonderful. I shall miss them (maybe so much that I won't want to see any more Bond films, especially if they've taken all the emotional complexity - such as it is- with them). I also enjoyed some of the set pieces enormously, in particular the one on the Underground (bet they filmed that at Aldwych), and the initial chase scene in Istanbul. I also like the new Moneypenny, who is obviously after the M job one day herself (and her fieldwork wasn't that bad at all, despite Bond's teasing).
So yes, it was good - enjoyable - but I think I'd be less inclined to rewatch it than I am Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace. Lucky for me, I suppose that, despite Skyfall being M's last hoorah (the Judi Dench M, that is), the first two films are a complete story in themselves.
What can I say? I like my action heroes more emotionally vulnerable and tortured. It's a thing.
Predictably, I thought...
Spoilers behind cut
....Quantum of Solace was better.
:sigh: I know I'm going to be alone in this, and it probably stems from the fact that until the Danial Craig/Judi Dench era came along, I was never a Bond fan. I've seen a lot of the old movies, but even as a kid their sexism made me squirm (I was on the Indians' side in all the old Westerns too, even when all they did was yell a lot and fall off their horses) and I'm not interested in the cars and gadgets. Thus, that side of the new film was never going to appeal to me (though it's a lot more low-tech and believeable now and I thought Ben Whishaw was great as 'Q').
I also know that OTT villains are de rigeur in Bond movies, but though the villain in Casino Royale was a little in that vein, he wasn't overtly so, and the villain in Quantum of Solace wasn't so much a person as an organisation. But, see, that worked for me. A shadowy association of amoral plutocrats trying to acquire rights to the world's water supply struck me as very frightening and a very appropriate villain for the age we live in. But what do I know? I'm not a Bond fan, as I said.
Which of course is all me leading up to saying that the reason why I don't like Skyfall so much is because of the villain. Not that Javier Bardem wasn't good, or anything, but...nah. Sorry. Also, given all that subtext about Bond and the villain (I can't remember his name) vying for M's affections (who does mummy love best?), I think that would have worked for me better too if the villain had been more 'normal.'
I'm also sad that Judi Dench's tenure as M ended the way it did. Her last words to Bond, "At least I got one thing right," (which is about as affectionate as she gets) suggested the character felt she'd failed otherwise, and since some nutter just blew up half of London on her watch because of a personal grudge, I can quite see why.
I also didn't like the crusty old retainer at Skyfall. When M and Bond arrived at the house, I thought to myself, "I hope there isn't going to be some crusty old retainer in residence, because that would be such a cliche," and lo and behold there he was.
Aa-and I also didn't like that Bond didn't react more to the death of the poor girl (in fact, I wasn't even sure whether she was dead). That could have been better done, IMO.
All that said, there was lots to enjoy in the film. I still love Daniel Craig's performance (Bond is pretty much a sociopath, or do I mean psychopath? He's pathological, anyway), and love Bond's relationship with M (which, sadly, is now a thing of the past). All the Bond/M scenes were wonderful. I shall miss them (maybe so much that I won't want to see any more Bond films, especially if they've taken all the emotional complexity - such as it is- with them). I also enjoyed some of the set pieces enormously, in particular the one on the Underground (bet they filmed that at Aldwych), and the initial chase scene in Istanbul. I also like the new Moneypenny, who is obviously after the M job one day herself (and her fieldwork wasn't that bad at all, despite Bond's teasing).
So yes, it was good - enjoyable - but I think I'd be less inclined to rewatch it than I am Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace. Lucky for me, I suppose that, despite Skyfall being M's last hoorah (the Judi Dench M, that is), the first two films are a complete story in themselves.
What can I say? I like my action heroes more emotionally vulnerable and tortured. It's a thing.