very disappointing

Rating: 4/10 (29 November 2008)

I really like Daniel Craig as James Bond; I think he has the look, the ruthlessness and the charisma for the role. But "Quantum of Solace" is a total mess. If you haven't seen "Casino Royale" you'll have a hard time following "Quantum" and even if you have seen it, you'll have a hard time following "Quantum". The story I thought was totally incoherent. Mostly it seemed to just be an exercise in putting together some chase and fight scenes. And they did nearly all of them---a car chase, a foot chase, a boat chase, an airplane chase (just about everything except chases on bicycles and spacecraft). Fight scenes? Gunfights, fist fights, martial arts, knife fights. . .
I know the filmmakers are trying to go on an entirely new take with Bond but "Quantum" is indistinguishable from the Bourne series. Bourne is fine and I like them, but I expect something different from Bond and I didn't get it in this movie.
Also, did I miss this or am I mistaken? At one point Bond is helped by "Ms. Fields" a British Embassy staffer in Bolivia. She is asked several times by Bond what her first name is and she refuses to tell him. She eventually is bedded by Bond and then killed in a way that is a total rip-off of the killing of Jill Masters in "Goldfinger." That's okay, I suppose, but why the coyness about her first name which is never stated in the movie (if it was, I didn't hear it). The mystery was unraveled in the credits when her name is given as "Strawberry Fields". A rather lame joke I suppose using a Beatles song but it would've been okay HAD HER NAME ACTUALLY BEEN SAID IN THE MOVIE!!! There's no question Bond would've had at least one quip about her name being a Beatles title but as far as I could tell, there were none. So why call her "Strawberry Fields" in the credits? Why not "Mildred Fields" or "Harriet Fields"? It's just an example of how this movie falls short.