Frenetic and arty Bond movie

Rating: 9/10 (31 October 2008)

This frenetic and arty Bond movie will loose some of the fans that Casino Royale's deeper plot pulled in to the franchise but the action is excellent (and not just repeats of Casino Royale's) and Craig is rock-solid in the role of the agent who overuses the license to kill (in one of the films best running jokes). Never has a supporting cast been quite as useful to the franchise as across the last two Bonds - M, Mathis and Leiter all proving crucial to the film. Will the artiness put some off? Probably. No other Bond has used montages with opera and horse races to counterpoint the action or engaged in formalist conceits like basing the key action set-pieces on the four elements. But there are lighter touches that anyone can appreciate - like a knowing tribute to Goldfinger. I like it a lot and can't wait for more Craig-Bond.