November 18th, 2006
I haven’t enjoyed a Bond film this much since Tomorrow Never Dies, which is nice after the abomination that was Die Another Day: with its rubbish soundtrack, rubbish screenplay, over-the-top special effects and cheesy one-liners, such as: “Saved by the bell”, “I’m Mr. Kil”, and “Time to draw the line”.
Though I liked Brosnan Daniel Craig, the new blond Bond really helped to reinvigorate the character. His Halle Berry-style exit from the water showed a physique that left little doubt to whether he can manage his own stunts, and he lent substance to this with some of the best acting since Timothy Dalton. Even though at times he reminded me of the Terminator, during scenes of dialogue he’s genuinely charming, especially when playing opposite Eva Green, who satisfyingly sheds the stereotypical “Bond-girl” image.
I couldn’t help but laugh at “Le Chiffre” (Mads Mikkelsen), a villain who seems to have regressed back to the Blofeld-era: complete with a bad comb-over, a scarred eye that periodically weeps blood and—wait for it—a platinum asthma inhaler. Inexplicably in the film they manage to put a tracking bug into it, yet don’t think about doctoring it with some sort of drug that could impair his ability to think properly.
The film really shines on a small scale, looking at individual action sequences and pieces of dialogue, but as a whole it’s overly long and has the feeling of being cobbled together just to provide the set-pieces in which Bond can be Bond. Admittedly, exotic locations have long been a hallmark of Bond films, but often there is no attempt at all in providing at least some context behind scenes.
Though the film-noir start is impressive, for all I know the requirement for becoming a double-oh agent is to randomly kill two people—what were they supposed to have done again? Why is Bond now chasing some gymnastic try-out across scaffolding?—what happened to the guy who fell into the snakes? The briefcase chase at the end was particularly annoying, forgive me if I’m missing something, but what exactly was the significance of the briefcase? It was said that the funds were being transferred in a bank, which would take next to no time if it was done electronically.
Other spy thrillers such as the Bourne series manage to offer both a plausible plot and plenty of action sequences and with this competition you have to doubt the relevancy of what has become a bit of an institution. Casino Royale has admirably tried to step away from its often formulaic predecessors, but I don’t see how the films can progress much further without eventually ceasing to be Bond films altogether; as by definition you need at least some of the catchphrases, which Royale seems so eager to eschew.
Bartender: Shaken or stirred?
James Bond: Does it look like I give a damn?
The amount of bloody in-your-face product placement by Sony, from Cybershot digital cameras to laptops and mobile phones, has made it obvious to why they are continuing a rather tired franchise, but I think it’s going to take more than a portable defibrillator to keep it alive. Of course they’ll chuck more money at future films to please an ever more jaded audience, but by then you might have Bond playing on his Playstation 3 before a day’s sleuthing. Royale has managed to rekindle an interest in the series, but only by providing a prologue to the suave spy we already know. This is a trick they can’t take advantage of again.
November 21st, 2006 at 9:56 pm
nice bond quote… I like that mucho. LoL.
e-mail me.
Now to get away from bond…
what kind of FREE web publishing software would you reccommend the most? my web teacher’s looking for one and I told him I knew a brit who would be able to help me.
BITCHES AND HOES!
November 22nd, 2006 at 8:36 pm
Oh, Danni, you tease.
Sure, I’ll drop you a line.
November 23rd, 2006 at 4:04 pm
thanks for the help!
February 3rd, 2007 at 11:10 am
Awesome, man