3 stars (out of four)
James Bond was having a bit of an identity crisis. Where
does the suave secret agent fit into the movie landscape of 2012? And do we
even need him anymore? If Tom Cruise’s Mission Impossible movies have a firm grip on over-the-top, cartoonish
action, and the Bourne franchise
continues to hold the mantle of gritty realism, what can 007 offer that his
American competitors cannot?
2006’s Casino Royale,
the first film to feature Daniel Craig in the role, reinvented Bond as a stoic
hero. Mr. Craig’s rugged face and understated performance gave the character a
noir edge that nicely offset Bond’s more charming side. For my taste, 2008’s Quantum
of Solace took the character too far in
that direction – too brooding, too moody – and risked encroaching on the
well-worn territory of other franchise reboots that adopted a darker tone,
namely Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight movies.
Skyfall, Mr. Craig’s
third Bond movie and the twenty-third overall in the series, strives for
balance. There are moments of sheer ridiculousness (as when a construction
excavator is driven while atop a speeding train), plenty of breakneck chases
and a few brutal fistfights. Daniel Craig is as intensely focused as ever but
there are hints of a smile hiding behind the rim of his martini glass. And as
for my question posed above, Skyfall
answers that too.
Elegance is the special ingredient that makes Bond distinct
from his peers and keeps the series a worthwhile entertainment. Skyfall is a classy action picture, evenly paced and in no
great rush (though at 143 minutes, it is too long). Director Sam Mendes soaks
in the film’s international locales and shoots them in rich, frequently
gorgeous wide shots. The movie hops from the rainy streets of London to the
neon-streaked skyscrapers of Shanghai and ends at a stately abandoned manor in
the Scottish countryside.
Mr. Mendes also indulges himself at the right times. The big
explosion that punctuates the film’s climax has to be one of the biggest, and
certainly one of the most thorough and satisfying, movie explosions in recent
years. And in the opening scene he spends what would surely be the whole budget
of other movies on a chase that begins on foot, blasts through a Turkish
marketplace with cars and motorcycles, and ends on the aforementioned train.
So, yes, this is a good Bond film. I would probably rank Casino
Royale a little higher, but I’m hardly a
Bond scholar, so take that for what it’s worth. I’ll admit there were a few
moments when the movie lost me and I had no clue what was happening or why but
I was never bored.
How could I be with Javier Bardem strutting around as Raoul
Silva, the blond-haired, flamboyant villain of the film? Mr. Bardem, clearly
enjoying himself, delivers his monologues with no shortage of flair. His laugh
is a sinister little laugh but he means to do great harm to Bond’s employer,
MI6. A disgruntled former agent, Silva has major beef with M (Judi Dench), the
agency’s head, and will not be satisfied until she is dead.
Meanwhile, MI6 faces scrutiny from government bureaucrats
who question the spy agency’s ability to function effectively after a list of
undercover agents is stolen and leaked to the public. Leading the investigation
is a government higher-up played with subtle menace by Ralph Fiennes.
It is up to James Bond to protect M and preserve the
agency’s future. Naturally, while saving the day, he also finds time to tangle
with a lovely named Sévérine (Bérénice Lim Marlohe) as well as fellow field
agent Eve (Naomie Harris). The always great Albert Finney makes an appearance
late in the film too as a wily, old groundskeeper.
Skyfall is marked by
a back-to-basics approach that works well. When a brainy kid shows up as Q (Ben
Whishaw), MI6’s technology developer, he gives Bond a sleek and simple gun and
nothing else. “Exploding pens and the like,” he says. “We don’t do that
anymore.” There are probably a few too many winks and nudges like this in the
film, as though the filmmakers were trying to defend the franchise’s relevance
with coy in-jokes, but I appreciate the movie’s straightforwardness.
Even the theme song by Adele, the first actually decent Bond
theme in years if not decades, has the feel of a series reinvigorated. Skyfall is not another revamp of the franchise but rather an
affirmation of its continued quality. There is still a place for Bond at the
movies and he didn’t even need to change up his style to prove it.
- Steve Avigliano, 11/12/12
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