Wonderful, hungry-erasing thriller.

Rating: 8/10 (30 November 2008)

So there I sit. 7PM, Mountain Standard Time. My Broncos have just won a critical game, upsetting a favored New York team. I have done nothing of use, including a lack of consuming food for sustenance. Suddenly, my father BURSTS in my door, and announces that he's come to pick me up, and we're going to see the new Bond film, Quantum of Solace. It's the only time my stepmother has to go, and it's a 7:10 show, at a theater a dozen minutes away. As the lights dim and the trailers for Star Trek and Watchmen roll, it hits me: I never actually ate anything, and the troublesome car alarm in my head that triggers a migraine when I don't eat for long periods of time is enacted. Then, the film begins.
My hunger was never an issue again.
While it may not be better than Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace is a fairly glorious expansion on its predecessor, beginning with a thrilling car chase that becomes an even more thrilling foot chase, and from there, almost never lets up or steps wrong. The action scenes are spectacular, the scenes of intrigue clever and satisfying, and the scenes of tenderness as curt as Bond, especially now that they've given him emotional depth, for arguably the first time in the entire series. That the death of Vesper Lynn in the previous film becomes such a plot point in this one is notable when you think back to, for example, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, where Bond's girl is killed as they're getting MARRIED, and is almost instantly forgotten. Here, Bond carries this burden with him throughout the film, and pleasantly, instead of making his revenge the focus of the film (something the filmmakers very easily could have done), it becomes more a sort of overarching theme of individual morality, and it was damn refreshing.
In the acting department, Daniel Craig does nothing to spoil his argument for being the best Bond of all. He may not have Connery's charisma, but everything else you could possibly want out of the character, Craig delivers, and I hope he remains Bond for the foreseeable future. The Bond girls, as would be expected dealing with someone as romantically grieving as Bond is, get the short shrift. His relation with Bolivian agent Camille (Olga Kurylenko) is almost wholly platonic, and his bedding of Fields (Gemma Arterton) is far more practical than hormonal. In fact, the woman he gets the closest to is the delightful M (Judi Dench), who has the audience's best interests at heart when dealing with Bond-related issues. On the other side, the producers got a hell of a find in Mathieu Amalric. His demonically wimpy disposition was perfectly balanced in a way I've never seen outside of perhaps Michael Emerson on Lost. Giancarlo Giannini, Jeffrey Wright and David Harbour provide ample characterization on underdeveloped characters, and really, there are no holes.
Marc Foster (Stranger Than Fiction) was perhaps an unusual choice for a brutal action film, but he does an excellent job presenting everything: each new locale gets an exotic, awe-spiring establishing shots, and the editing and camera-work had a delightful clarity to it, solving the main drawback of last year's The Bourne Ultimatum, the epileptic camera obscuring what could otherwise have been quality choreography. Quantum lets you see every impact, so you can really appreciate the skill involved, and even the CGI is integrated flawlessly.
The film isn't perfect. A small handful of scenes go on for too long, and Ms. Fields' appearance seems undersold in comparison to the rest of the film. Also, the grand finale in General Medrano's compound thing is excellent up to a point, but by the time he's having trouble incapacitating one wimpy executive and walking through fire and blowing out walls, suspension of disbelief is being spread a little thin. Luckily, by that point, the film had earned so much good will, it was easy to take it on the chin and move on, especially when the final denouement was so deliciously ruthless. Quantum of Solace is thrilling, wondrously-paced, and almost complete nonstop enjoyment. To be frank, I think the best compliment I can pay it is that it made me forget I hadn't eaten in 24 hours; It extinguished the fires brewing in my head, and that's a hell of an achievement.
Now if you'll excuse me, I gotta get my ass something to eat.
{Grade: 8.75/10 (A-/B+) / #2 (of 84) of 2008}