Not bad...

Rating: 7/10 (11 November 2008)

I actually liked the title theme song by Jack White and Alicia Keys; I thought it was modern, evocative and punchy, not too dramatic. Or perhaps because I respond well to the White Stripes' brand of music. But while the sexy sand women were cool it wasn't as imaginative as Casino Royale's. Goldeneye's theme song is the most brilliant for me, I think.
As for the villains, I think General Medrano was overshadowed by the creepy Dominic Greene, played by the peerless Mathieu Amalric (The Diving Bell & the Butterfly). Casino Royale's first half was also more action packed and impressive with its parkour exhibition but Quantum of Solace is more consistent in its exposition.
Bond-girl wise, only Fields (Gemma Arterton) played it 'the usual way'. Olga Kurylenko (Paris, je t'aime, Hit-man, Max Payne) looked the unbelievable part of the usual model-with-an-agenda Camille but the lack of chemistry with Daniel Craig's Bond makes their tandem only shrug-worthy. At least Craig is finally slowly transforming into the role and isn't looking as primitive and thug-ish as he did in Casino Royale; he now looks more comfortable in a suit or out of it.
Overall, I think Quantum of Solace succeeded in cleverly staying away from the misogynistic theme while still retaining a little bit of the old fantasy image of James Bond, ladies' man. The old Bond flicks may be classics but aren't politically correct (even satirically), lending it a dated DOM-ish air. I think the brilliant direction of Marc Forster (Stranger than Fiction, Kite Runner, Monsters Ball) is what gave this franchise a bit more depth than usual.