Bond is back and he is human!

Rating: 10/10 (16 November 2006)

The lights went down on the early 10am screening this morning. One advert advising viewers to switch off their phones (bring back the stars trying to sell dodgy scripts) and we were off. A black and white MGM and Columbia logo and I held my breath. But where was the Bond theme? The walking into shot, turn and shoot? The one thing that signals a brand new adventure of the world's greatest action hero. But this is a very different Bond altogether. This is definitely Bond Begins. And I'm happy to say it works.
So it does miss that sense of familiarity. Instead we get a black and white sequence in which Daniel Craig shows that this isn't the cool, sophisticated Bond we have all grown up and loved for so long. This is a more ruthless, clumsy creature. Once we get to see his two kills allowing him to become a double-O, we start entering a more familiar area. An impressive title sequence (with an air of sixties kitch and a not-too-memorable theme tune) and we get to see Bond running, jumping and fighting in a building site in Africa. And what a sequence. Just what any Bond fan wants. A heart-stopping sequence that goes on forever and yet keeps the tension going throughout. And we see that Craig is a very athletic Bond indeed (apart from the odd moment when you can see the join between him and stuntman), we are no longer in CGI territory here. We have real men risking their necks in the cause of spectacle. This is the start of the complex plot.
Within the first hour we have action sequence number two, set in an airport. Again, breathtaking stuff (I won't spoil it), and then the plot really kicks in as hour two begins. This is what really makes this a newly defined Bond movie. There is very little action at all. The occasional flash of violent fight scenes but a lot of dialogue. We finally get to know more about the man. What makes him tick. How he feels. And how emotions towards another could put him in peril. Bond has finally become a human being. He bleeds like we all do. He hurts like we all do, both physically and emotionally. This is a man who still has all the elements that us men want: he's tough, rough and cool as ice, but he also has a heart that could be his downfall.
We then head towards the home straight. A fairly cringing torture scene (with cuts!) and an amazing ending, with the final bow including what we have longed for throughout. That music and that line.
When Craig was announced as the replacement of Mr Brosnan, I have to admit I was a little unsure, but I can forget those early days. He is terrific. He has made Bond a person, no longer an entity. He acts the role, and doesn't just walk through it. His feelings towards Vesper (the stunningly beautiful Eva Green) is very reminiscent of On Her Majesty's Secret Service and Bond relationship with Tanya (the only difference is that Craig can act, whereas Lazenby...) Sure it has the girls, the locations, the car (and a lack of gadgets, but that's not such a bad thing). But what it does have is heart. It's violent, but no longer in a comic book way. The one liners are there, but not thrown into every situation. And they have managed to make a game of Texas Hold 'Em Poker seem exciting and glamorous.
It may not be every Bond fans cup of tea, and it might be accused of being too deep (probably from the Roger Moore fans) but I loved every minute of it. Bond has been re-invented and Daniel Craig is the new King. Long Live The King!