Starts with a bang, and reminiscent of The Bourne Ultimatum

Rating: 7/10 (14 November 2008)

This movie takes place minutes after Casino Royal ends. It starts with a wild car chase on windy roads along a cliff and nearly jumps from one action set piece to another during the first hour. Conspiracies are unveiled and some riddles are solved. And the body-count is high.
The acting is just as intense as Casino Royal and Daniel Craig continues to make his James Bond a more human hero to the extent that this guy actually doesn't come out of a fight unscathed. Unlike Bonds of the past, this guy still gets hurt, but because he's a killing machine, he just keeps on going. Olga Kurylenko does a very convincing Bolivian accent, and her emotional obsession for revenge mimics that of Bond's, though her character isn't the trained killer that he is. Gemma Arterton's Ms Fields provides a giddy counterpoint to Kurylenko's character. And Judi Dench is always impressive as M.
I think where the film suffers though is in its final hour, which really isn't an hour, but 45 minutes. The action gives way to plot points that could have been seeded in between the action in the first hour. It makes the movie feel lopsided, and yet it doesn't take away from the suspension of disbelief. Mind you, the movie does end with a massive display of wild action and pyrotechnics.
But the one saving grace is that this movie ends much like The Bourne Ultimatum ended. Like Bourne, Bond has released the demons of his past and knows who he truly is. Judging by how many people clapped after the final shot of the movie played, a third Bond film is definitely expected.