Spectre
November 9, 2015
The opening pre-credit sequence was worth the price of admission. Very stylish, very well done.
I’m a fan of Daniel Craig’s Bond, so I was inclined to like this. This may be the most Bond-ish of Craig’s Bond movies. Lots of old-school Bond tropes here: remote ski chalets; him and his current Bond Girl walking through an exotic foreign market very blond, very stylish, very Western, and somehow the bad guys don’t find them; and the beautiful daughter of someone-or-other who must be protected. And yes, there’s a chubby white Persian cat. This had less angst than the last couple of films, while still referencing earlier stories — he’ll never quite get over Vesper, these movies keep reminding us.
Best of all, I think: All the women he sleeps with survive! Huzzah! (To remind you: I was keeping count, because in both Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace, every single woman he sleeps with dies rather horribly and violently.)
Overall, this was a satisfying Bond film if not a spectacular one. And while I’ve enjoyed Craig’s Bond, it may very well be time to retire this particular stretch of tone and story and try something new. For the record, yes, I’m in the camp that thinks Idris Elba would be a fine, fine choice for a new Bond.
November 9, 2015 at 10:03 am
Saw it yesterday and had about the same reaction. A decent film, but not on the level of Skyfall or Casino Royale.
November 9, 2015 at 11:10 am
To be fair, in QoS, a key woman he (presumably) didn’t sleep with also dies.
November 9, 2015 at 2:36 pm
We saw it this weekend and both thought it was only OK.
Another black actor they should consider for the next Bond is Chiwetel Ejiofor. He was great in the Firefly movie ‘Serenity’, and has a natural British accent.
Philip Winchester is another possibility; he was born in the US, but had a consistent English accent in ‘Strike Back’, has SAS training and does action scenes really well.