Stars: Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Berenice Marlohe, Ben Whishaw, Albert Finney
Director: Sam Mendes
Oscar History: 5 nominations/2 wins (Best Sound Editing*, Sound Mixing, Cinematography, Original Score, Original Song-"Skyfall"*)
Snap Judgment Ranking: 4/5 stars
I must admit freely that, because of my Millennial background, that even with my love of classic film, the first Bond that comes to my mind is Daniel Craig. He wasn't the first Bond I was introduced to in theaters (that would be the tail-end of the Brosnan years), but for me, when I think Bond I go to Daniel Craig in Casino Royale (let's be honest, I think of him emerging from the water in those blue swim trunks, but that's an entirely different matter).(With high-profile movies, I consider everything about the film a spoiler, so I'll just give you a head's up that we're hitting spoilers both light and heavy soon, so proceed at your own risk) It's important to note this, as I go in with none of the prejudices against him because he's blond or tougher or a little sexually androgynous (more on that later), and can just dive right into the film at hand, which is a doozy. We open with Bond trying to run down a man in Instanbul (along with the comely Naomie Harris, a mysterious agent with MI6, and one of two "Bond girls" in the film), we get to see one of the best action sequences in years, complete with motorcycling across the Grand Bazaar and a train being cut in half, and Bond inexplicably going over a waterfall, presumed dead, with the bad guy getting away, and remarkably none of the cavalcade of bullets reaching their target. As his body enters the water, the iconic typography starts to roll across the screen and Adele pronounces, "this is the end..." and little do we know that she's truly speaking about a major character in the film and that she's giving away some rather large plot points, albeit ambiguously. Then again, it's Adele, so really you're just so wrapped up in the buttery silk of her voice that it's hard to focus on the actual lyrics.
As the film continues, we get confirmation that the target of this film, and indeed the primary focus of this film, is going to be M, giving Judi Dench a chance to shine in the movie. We also see that, of course, James Bond has not perished after being shot and thrown down a waterfall (because who could that ever kill?), and once MI6 headquarters is attacked, Bond reappears either out of duty or out of his devotion to M, something not clear at the time, though it appears to be more the latter as the film continues.
This leads Bond to Shanghai, where Craig is given yet another exotic locale to do stunning acrobatics. In this film we get a nod to the slightly aging (but still sexy as hell) Daniel Craig, as he doesn't pass his physical field tests to get back to work as an agent, but M puts him out there anyway. A telling nod to this is when Bond is hanging on to the bottom of an elevator and can barely hang on. I will note that for me, who has a nasty fear of high, open spaces, this sequence was probably the most "turn-away-from-the-screen," and this is a film that includes a man pulling a bullet from his body. Watching Bond sail up that open elevator shaft, 100 stories from the ground, was a great action visual, as well as a bit nauseating.
Before this feat of daring, we are also briefly introduced to the new Q, the hauntingly beautiful Ben Whishaw, who has a fun way of playing with Bond's head, continually perpetuating the age-issue by being considerably younger than Bond, and constantly messing with him about his seniority.
After killing the assassin, in true Bond fashion, he also finds a woman, the beautiful Severine, and we get perhaps the only good pickup scene in a movie where Bond is fairly celibate, compared to his usual outings. Marlohe, unlike say Eva Green a few years back, doesn't get enough time or enough depth to showcase any sort of acting talent, other than the ability to make her nails both alluring and look like daggers. In his pursuit of Marlohe, who will lead her to her captor, Raoul Silva, Bond gets a hilarious sequence with a pair of komodo dragons, and then he is invited to Silva's private island in the middle of presumably the South China Sea (it's a little hard to tell, considering it seems like you're going through an entire season of Anthony Bourdain locales in one movie during a Bond film). Of course, before he goes into the island, Bond seduces Severine in the shower, because he is of course James Bond.
And this is where we finally meet Javier Bardem's Silva. Silva is a villain in the classic sense of the film, one that could rank alongside Goldfinger in terms of grand scale ruthlessness and hambone theatrics. In their introduction scene, we get the scene that everyone will be talking about coming out of the film, the scene where Bardem, after revealing part of his plan to Bond (a former agent at MI6, he clearly loathes and obsesses over M, and wants to see her destroyed), he does some heavy flirting with Bond, playing with his chest and face, and insinuates that there's a "first time for everything," meaning indulging in the love that dare not speak its name, to which Bond replies, "what makes you think it's my first time?" It's a clever way to the end the scene, but it begs the question of if there was a Bond boy mixed in with the multitude of Bond girls?The film progresses from there, with Silva seemingly always ahead of Bond, and having the cunning and flamboyant malice of a Batman villain. We see M crucified by the press for not being able to handle the situation, and even before a Minister of the British government (played by Helen McCrory in a bit part, and I have to say the entire time that I was thinking "Cherie Blair is in Parliament!") it is questioned whether or not MI6 serves a purpose anymore in a post-Cold War world. This is followed by a round of bullets coming from Silva's men on the committee hearing, which of course answers the question with a resounding "yes!" better than anything M ever could say.
The film finally reaches its conclusion (though its pacing is brisk and you never really notice the length, the film is over two hours long) at Skyfall, the manor of Bond's boyhood, where we are treated to Albert Finney in a fun cameo as the gameskeeper of the estate (though wouldn't you have loved to have seen Connery take on the role, considering the 50th anniversary implications?), who, along with M and Bond, build a fortress out of this building and sustain Silva's attacks for quite a while, before the estate bursts into flames. M is shot in the film, and in the penultimate scene of the movie, she dies in Bond's arms (Silva having already gotten a knife in the back from Bond, the "old-fashioned" way), and we are eventually introduced to the new M (Ralph Fiennes, always sturdy in the film, getting just enough wryness out of his character to ensure that he'll make a solid future leader for MI6).
Clearly after devoting 1000-words to the film, I must admit to liking it, and I did. Though it's not quite as good as Casino Royale was six years ago (that may perch next to Goldfinger in the "untouchable" Bond film excellence category), it's a brisk and taut action thriller. Craig, a fine actor on top of being dead sexy and "just-enough-of-a-bad-boy" to fill the Bond shoes, is once again top-notch after his novocaine-headache of a performance in Quantum of Solace four years ago. Both Bardem and Dench sink their teeth into their respective roles, with Bardem clearly having a blast as Silva and Dench making an indelible mark as one of the best performers in the Bond series. The movie's action sequences are sublime, though there are some other marks that fall a little short, particularly the complete lack of interest in the two Bond girls in the final half of the movie. The movie also seems to borrow a bit from the Dark Knight franchise, not necessarily a bad thing, but you don't want Bond to get into the orphaned child story or the constant search for a parental figure too deeply. You want him armed with sleek guns, bodacious babes (of either gender, apparently), and exotic locales. But these are very minor quibbles in an otherwise excellent movie, and the entire film has me raring to go for the next 50 years of England's deadliest weapon.
And I shall now hand it over to you with food for thought-what did you think of Skyfall? Where does it rank on your personal Bond list? And with several of the Bond staples recast (Q, M, Moneypenny), who are you hoping will become the next villain, love interest, and Bond theme-singer for the next movie?
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