Way overrated

Rating: 6/10 (21 December 2006)

Yes the new Bond is tough and gritty and a refreshing change from the pampered pretty boys following Sean Connery. And the film has some of the best cinematography and action sequences that money can buy, why not? But this film is flawed and far from the 7.9 average it is currently boasting.
First flaw is the ridiculous plot. All of the Ian Fleming plots are ridiculous but without the self-mocking irony that infused most of the films -- exemplified by Connery himself -- their ridiculousness becomes annoying. And this film lacks any sense of self-irony. Daniel Craig is good as an action automaton (a la Dolph Lundgren), but his smirk is just a smirk and miles away from Sean Connery's knowing smile. The dialogue in the script is lame and flat, the wit forced.
Second flaw is the love affair between Bond and Eva Green, an actress whose passivity sucks the air off the screen. There is more chemistry in storefront dummies than between Craig and Green, and her role is particularly lame (would not MI-5 vetting have spotted her as a security risk?).
Third major flaw is the brutality of the violence. We are still in a fairy tale here and Bond does not have the justification for real-seeming violence that a Martin Scorsese film has, where there is a real payoff in terms of character and plot.