Not a Bond movie

Rating: 2/10 (22 November 2008)

This is a generic action movie, and not a remarkable one. The features that I expect of a James Bond movie are mostly gone in this film. After watching Quantum of Solace, I had to come home and watch half an hour of an old Bond flick, The Spy Who Loved Me, just to get the bland taste out of my mouth.
Quantum of Solace Pros:

credible Bad Guy and Bond Girl.

tolerable story.

Quantum of Solace Cons:

Bond is not cool. Craig delivers an intense, personally motivated Bond, in the tradition of Dalton and Lazenby (the Wrong Way to play Bond). Where is the coolness of Connery, Moore and Brosnan? Craig looks too serious.

Practically no jokes or quips. Everyone is so damn serious! Since when has Bond (a flat, almost comic book-type genre) become a drama?

No gadgets, no Q, no Moneypenny, no Bond Theme, no gun barrel - the list of offenses just goes on and on. What is the difference between Bond and any other action movie? The same trademark erosion happened to Die Hard in Die Hard 4, but that's a whole other story.

Inappropriate editing. The cuts are way too fast. Can we just watch a *single* fight in one straight cut? Please do not edit for me a feature length movie like an MTV clip or a commercial. Especially not Bond, which has a tradition of many real stunts. Just show me what you have without pulverizing the footage.

Bond plot layout is disregarded. A Bond movie is expected to end with the spectacular destruction of the Bad Guy's very elaborate compound. After that, James Bond and the girl get under the radar of MI6 and everyone else, and have sex. And what do we get? The destruction was not spectacular, the compound was not elaborate, Bond showed up with M (rather than disappear), and (the final insult!) merely kissed the girl. The film ends with yet another touching, personal story. Where are all the expected clichés? No, this is not what is expected of a Bond movie.

Overall, like Casino Royale, the movie is a disappointment.