So, I just watched the new 007 movie with my wife this past weekend. I must say, I rather liked it. Back in 2002 I thought the Bond franchise was on the brink of death. Anybody who saw Die Another Day would probably agree with me. It was an epic fail from the open. I mean, Madonna doing a techno song as the opening theme? That kind of music should never, never, NEVER be used as a Bond theme. Then the movie was edited into such a fast pace that it was like watching a two hour MTV music video.
Fast forward to '06. Out comes another Bond. There was a little trepidation because of the last one already. And then they announced that the new bond would be the blond haired, blue eyed Daniel Craig. Blond hair and blue eyes? Noooooo! I didn't know what they were doing, but I watched it anyway (because who am I fooling, if it's Bond I'm gonna watch it, no matter how crappy it is.....even Die Another Day). Well, am I ever glad I did. Daniel Craig sold himself as Bond 110%. The franchise was reborn.
I only mention the previous one because it did end up being the cause of one of the minor problems I had with Quantum. Casino Royale was a reboot of the franchise, and Quantum of Solace is a direct sequel. This is the first time a 007 movie has ever been a direct sequel, instead of being a stand-alone story. This is only a minor complaint, since all I need to do is just re-watch Casino. Another minor complaint was that I never heard the line "Bond, James Bond". But really, that's just a minor detail. With this new reboot also, there are none of the gadgets that 007 movies have been known for. That is a little disappointing. It was the shortest 007 movie to date, but I don't think that did much to detract.
Other than that,things were good. Craig still pulled in a solid performance. We also got to see a bit more M in this movie, and she had a few good lines in there. Who doesn't love Dame Judi Dench as M? A lot of critics out there are comparing this movie to the Bourne series. I think they are referring to the action sequences, but I'm not sure why this matters. They are both spies kicking butt, of course there are going to be similarities. They are also saying there is not enough substance. I personally thought it had plenty. It had your typical bad guy that Bond chases after throughout the whole movie and ends up fighting in his evil lair out in the middle of nowhere. How much substance has ever been in the Bond movies? Bond? Check. Bad guy out for world domination? Check. Evil lair? Check. Lots of kick-ass action? Check. Bond showing calmness and composure even during intense action sequences? Check. Granted the bad guy in this movie seemed a little more subtle and the evil lair was not as fancy, but it was all there.
All in all, a very enjoyable experience. I will admit that there was something missing that I can't quite put my finger on, but it still felt like a Bond film and that's what counts most.
*******--- (7 out of 10)
Memorable quote-
Bond: "We're teachers on sabbatical....who just won the lottery."
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