Skyfall

 

The James Bond franchise is 50 years old.  And to celebrate it, we get Skyfall, a confident and sometimes-thrilling action movie that falls just a little short due to one crucial detail - James Bond in this movie is a depressed middle aged old poop.  Never mind the fact that Daniel Craig (who is wonderful in his third turn as the super spy) is only 44 in real life.  This movie hits you over the head scene after scene with dialogue about how Bond's getting old, isn't up with the times, is losing his edge, and is basically a metaphorical dinosaur in the spy business.  Not fun, and not necessary, if you ask me.

Heck, James Bond doesn't even have much time for the ladies anymore, if this movie is any indication.  He has scenes with two sexy young women - one a fellow agent (Naomie Harris), the other a cool vixen who actually is quite vulnerable (Berenice Marlohe).  He has some fun wordplay with the former, and a PG-13 shower scene with the latter, but they don't really have much to do in this movie.  No, the real Bond girl this time around is actually Judi Dench, who returns to her role as M, Bond's superior.  So, instead of the fun, sexy relationship we expect, we get a rather dry "mother-son" relationship.  Their relationship actually makes up a good chunk of the film, and as well done as it is by both Craig and Dench, it's just not the sort of thing we expect when we walk into a James Bond movie.

Less you, the reader, get the wrong idea, I should probably say right now that on the whole, Skyfall is a satisfying movie, and it does work.  I just was taken aback by the lack of fun Bond seems to be having here.  That's always been one of his trademarks.  Here, he's dour, depressed, and dutiful most of the time.  When the movie's not concentrating on that, it's great entertainment.  The opening action sequence that plays before the opening credits is one of the best in Bond history.  And director Sam Mendes (Away We Go) has a very clean and stylish vision, using minimal CG during the action sequences.  Mendes also does some neat shots, such as the way the lead villain (Javier Bardem) makes his entrance.  He starts out small and unfocused as he approaches the camera, sharing a somewhat dark story from his childhood, gradually coming into focus.  It's a great introduction, as well as a great performance by Bardem.  He makes his villain come across as a mad genius who gets great glee out of what he does.  Heck, he seems to be having more fun than Bond is.

The plot concerns Bardem's character seeking revenge on M, due to something that happened in the past.  So, once again, all the focus is on M, and Bond comes across as somewhat of a bystander.  Another mistake, in my opinion.  Maybe that's why while the action sequences thrilled me, the plot left me cold.  I've been trying to figure that out since my screening got out.  I knew I was enjoying the movie, but something was nagging at me in the back of my head the whole time.  While I love Daniel Craig's performance as Bond, I'm less thrilled with the way he's been written here.  He's obedient, he's gloomy, and even when he smiles and cracks a one-liner, there's still a touch of sadness behind it.  I don't want James Bond to be a live action cartoon, as he often came across back in the Roger Moore days, I just want a comfortable balance.  Here, the movie dips a bit too much into Bond's dark side.

If this is the direction the series is going, at least there's still plenty to admire.  I think long-time fans of the franchise will get a kick out of this movie the most, as there are some throwbacks to watch out for.  Plus, as I mentioned, this is a genuinely well done movie.  At least the rapid-quick cuts from the last film, Quantum of Solace, are gone.  The movie seems to be trying hard to strike a balance between the edginess of 2006's Casino Royale, and the traditional Bond elements.  Yeah, he doesn't have a bunch of crazy gadgets here (as the young Q says at one point, "we don't do exploding pens anymore"), but he does get a car with hidden guns built in at one point, so that's something at least.  I got the impression that Mendes and his writers were trying to please both old and new fans here.  And, for the most part, it works.

 

I guess I just want Bond to lighten up just a little bit.  Aging isn't such a bad thing.  Besides, Bond is immortal, anyway.  The last thing he should be worrying about is being out of touch with anything.  I probably wouldn't have minded so much if the screenplay didn't consistently seem to hammer home the fact that Bond is getting old, with somebody bringing it up seemingly every 15 minutes.  Skyfall can be a lot of fun.  Most of the time.

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