Better than the previous ones, but . . .

Rating: 6/10 (9 August 2008)

I hate to be a grumpy boots, but this Bond left me distinctly underwhelmed, despite reading of the plaudits awarded by other movie critics. In fact, I had given up on the Bond franchise years ago: I simply wasn't in the slightest entertained by the silly story lines, the leaden and very obvious puns, the improbable violence and and overall cartoonish feel to the films. In fact, I haven't even seen a Bond film with Dalton in it, only a few with Connery and only one with Roger Moore. Why watch this one? Well, the critics DID all say it was a leap forward and, anyway, my wife had bought it on DVD. So I settled into bed, switched on my laptop and was prepared to discover that true redemption is even possible in the tacky world of movie-making. Well, the good things first. Long gone, thank goodness, are the truly awful puns and the incessant. remorseless jokiness which always left me cold. Stylistically, the franchise had finally moved with the times and if nothing else the film, from the point of view of craftsmanship, is very well made. Daniel Craig is a very different Bond, though I, for one, still find it impossible to swallow the central Bond myth that 007 is 'licensed to kill' without which he is just another film hero. And I still remain unconvinced by the look Craig gives Bond - he might be togged up in a tux and all that, but he still looks as though he has just walked off the nearest building site. This Bond is no toff, and I always thought Bond was meant to be a toff. Well, there is plenty of action, though not a great deal makes that much sense and the chase sequences do go on a little too long. And then, just as I thought we were going to get an explanation for all the tooing and frooin - the film ends. What! Just what was going on? It was though we got only half a film. Perhaps I am no longer in the demographics at whom this kind of film is aimed. Perhaps I never was. All I can say is that as an actioner, this isn't half bad, but if you are looking for anything more - such as an intelligent, intelligble plot - look elsewhere. As for all the guff that Bond is a 'new man', a man who can get in touch with his feelings despite the expensive hardware he is given by MI6, all I can say is: who cares. First of all I want a proper story. Without that everything else is fluff and nonsense. Sorry.