Daniel Craig owns Bond.

Rating: 7/10 (6 November 2008)

So after the breakthrough movie that was "Casino Royale", Bond is back in "Quantum of Solace", and after a breakneck car chase to deliver Mr White, he is back in the thick of things, discovering the far reaching tentacles of the mysterious organisation that the Aforementioned Mr White (The villain from the end of the last movie) works for. After some more work, Bond discovers a slender lead in South America where he meets the beautiful Camille, a woman with her own problems and issues, and after another action set piece embarks on finding out more about the people that are after him and her, finding the link between the two, whilst trying to evade the CIA, his own compatriots and the bad guys as well.
It is true that the film has no big villain, but, what is intimated at within this film is that it is coming. Daniel Craig, who has been unjustly criticised for his portrayal of Bond is a man at odds with his own people as well as his own beliefs and we see that inner turmoil surface at a number of points in the film, however, in this film we get more of a glimpse of Bond as a fully polished article, the way he moves seems slicker, more nimble and this is reflected in his physique which is more about definition than bulk; his expressions, delivery and every nuance of his performance are outstanding.
Due to the writing also we get to see Bond in different lights, when he has to stay with a colleague who is not going to make it, he shows a compassion that we have never seen, because usually he arrives after they are dead and could do nothing, this time he has to deal with the fact that maybe, he could have done more, and we see a new side to him, that is refreshing.
The other big strength to the film is the action which is handled with real aplomb by Marc Forster, which, with the exception of a few moments, allows you to see, feel and react to the pummelling Bond receives in this outing, add to that a score that, although lacks memorability of some previous Bond scores, accompanies the action terrificly.
So, why is it getting slated? According to IMDb critics this film is no better than the sheer awful "Wanted". This is nonsense and like saying that "Batman and Robin" is 0.1 less than "Batman Begins", such is the complete lack of perspective. The film does have three major drawbacks, the first is the terrible theme tune that re-crops up in David Arnold's score bringing the mood of the piece down, rather than enhancing it like "You know my name", the next downside is the fact that M always seems shocked when Bond kills people who are trying to kill him and not useful ...Duh! that's his job, and the final thing that the film misses that Casino has, is charm. Bond is charming in Casino and due to the story arc in this film he lacks the charm that he has in abundance in the last outing which is what reduces this score by three (See what I did)
However this does not stop this being a cracking ride and a far better second outing which is alway a nightmare for any new Bond, so kudos to Craig, for sticking with it and proving that he was no lucky punk with the first film.
007 out of 10.