Quantum of Solace

Rating: 6/10 (8 November 2008)

Casino Royale was a fantastic reboot to the James Bond 007 series, with the new leading actor establishing the role perfectly, so a follow- up was highly anticipated, from writer Paul Haggis (Crash) and director Marc Forster (Monster's Ball, Finding Neverland, World War Z). Basically it picks up directly after the end of the previous film, where James Bond (Daniel Craig), seeking revenge for the death of his lover Vesper Lynd, has captured Mr. White (Jesper Christensen), after evading pursuers Bond and M (Dame Judi Dench) interrogate him regarding his organisation. M's bodyguard Craig Mitchell (Glenn Foster), a double agent, helps White to escape, Mitchell is killed by Bond, searching his apartment they find he had a contact in Haiti, Edmund Slate (Neil Jackson), so Bond tracks him. Slate is a hit-man sent to kill Camille Montes (Olga Kurylenko), hired by her lover environmentalist Dominic Greene (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly's Mathieu Amalric), who Bonds finds out is helping exiled Bolivian General Medrano (Joaquín Cosio) to overthrow his government and become president, in exchange for a seemingly barren piece of desert, the General murdered Camille's family. After rescuing Camille, Bond follows Greene and associates to an opera in Bregenz, Austria, a deal is struck between Greene and South American section CIA head Gregg Beam (David Harbour) to maintain access to assumed stocks of Bolivian oil, Bond discovers the organisation's name is Quantum, and the identities of the executive board are identified by M's aide Bill Tanner (Rory Kinnear). A Special Branch bodyguard working for adviser to the British Prime Minister, Guy Haines (Paul Ritter), fights with Bond, and is afterwards killed by Greene's men, M assumes Bond killed him, he refuses to return and debrief, so his passports and credit cards are revoked. Bond meets with his old ally René Mathis (Hannibal's Giancarlo Giannini) in Italy and convinces him to join him in La Paz, Bolivia, there they are met MI6 officer Strawberry Fields (Gemma Arterton) who is ordered to have him return to the UK, but he seduces her, before attending a fundraising party attended by Greene, there Bond again rescues Camille, in a struggle Mathis is attacked, and Bond is framed for his death. The following day Bond and Camille fly a plane over the intended land acquisition of Quantum, the plane is shot down and the two end up skydiving and landing in a sinkhole, in the cave they discover Quantum is damming Bolivia's supply of fresh water for control of commodity. Bond returns to La Paz and meets M, he learns Fields was murdered by Quantum, drowning her in crude oil, M orders Bond arrested for disobeying orders, but he escapes and quickly returns to M to convince her that she can trust him. Bond meets CIA agent Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright), he tells him that Greene and Medrano will finalise the coup in a meeting in the Atacama Desert, the CIA's Special Activities Division attempt to kill Bond, but he escapes, at the meeting in an eco hotel Greene reveals his real plan to Medrano, to accept a contract to make Greene's water utility company the sole supplier, for significantly higher rates. Bond infiltrates the hotel, kills the Colonel of Police (Fernando Guillén Cuervo) for betraying Mathis, Camille kills Medrano, avenging the death of his parents and sister, the hotel is destroyed by fire, and Bond captures Greene, interrogating him about Quantum, before leaving him stranded in the desert, with only a can of engine oil. Bond and Camille kiss before parting, Bond meets Vesper's former lover, Quantum member Yusef Kabira (Simon Kassianides), in Kazan, Russia, he seduces women with valuable connections, his latest target is a Canadian Intelligence agent, Bond tells her this, but he spares his life and lets MI6 arrest him. In the end M tells Bond that Greene was found shot dead in the middle of the desert, with engine oil in his stomach, Bond denies knowing anything, she also tells that Leiter has been promoted, Bond is reinstated as an agent, he tells that he never left, finally he drops Vesper's necklace in the snow. Also starring Tim Pigott-Smith as Foreign Secretary, Stana Katic as Corrine, Oona Chaplin as Perla de las Dunas Receptionist, Miranda's Sarah Hadland as Ocean Sky Receptionist and Michael G. Wilson as Man Sitting in Chair in Haitian Hotel Lobby. It should be mentioned that the nonsensical title is taken from one of the short stories by Ian Fleming, and also there was a writer's strike at the time of the making of the film, which does explain a lot. Craig is still committed in the performance as the spy hero, the leading villain having no facial or bodily abnormalities is odd, and also Bond only seduces one of the two ladies, the action and chase sequences as always are exceptional and keep the pace going, but the problem here is it is let down by a not all that interesting paranoia and villain's fighting for resource power storyline, if you watch it more often you do get used to it, it is still a reasonable and worthwhile spy adventure. James Bond was number 3 on 100 Years, 100 Heroes & Villains, he was number 21 on The 100 Greatest Sex Symbols, and he was number 21 on The 100 Greatest Pop Culture Icons. Very good!