A big, shiny, fun-packed mixed bag

Rating: 8/10 (29 November 2006)

Pros: They threw out all the old camp JB stuff like Q and Moneypenny and the gadget-packed car. The fights are believable; stunt performers at the top of their game, esp. on the cranes. The plot is on a human scale; no doomsday machines or stuff like that. Daniel Craig is physically right, and the romance angle is well written and acted. Music, credits sequence, cast, are all refreshingly well put together. Amusing nods to the genre.
Cons: Product placement is too obvious; 'I say, darling, let's take a boat on the canal - you don't mind if my S*ny V*io comes along too, do you?' Maybe just me, but the CGI and miniatures were just obvious. About five too many helicopter(cgi?) tracking shots at the beginning of scenes. Plot holes galore. And when do they charge all their phones?