Fine thriller with brilliant Craig and Kurlenko

Rating: 9/10 (22 November 2008)

James Bond (Craig) sets on a mission to find out who is responsible for the death of his love in the sequel to Casino Royale.
Daniel Craig (Layer) reprises his role as the British agent and has a more accomplished role than in his previous outing. The character was very quiet and subtle but here he is more open and upfront, not to mention more talkative. This is the finest point of the film as the character is developing and viewers get to see the darker side of the hero and as this is a predecessor to all other Bonds, it shapes the character in exactly the right way.
Kurylenko (Max Payne) is a fantastic Bond girl. She looks the part, worn down by her past and carrying her own agenda. She is dark, feisty and mysterious, a great combination and has some great on screen moments with Bond, just watch out for a great boat chase.
The plot is fantastic. Whereas Casino Royale set the tone for introducing Bond into the world, this 2008 sequel builds on the central character and gives viewers more of a story. Bond has a stronger aim in this sequel, to find out who is behind the tragedy of the last film.
Though Casino Royale had a strong plot, there was quite a bit of dwindling on certain points, such as the long and overdrawn card games.
Here everything is done quickly and in an exciting manor to, justifying the action genre. The determination behind Bond is excellent and really gets the action pumping. There is a beautiful score to further generate the adrenaline feeling.
Bond fans will be pleased with the action sequences as Casino Royale lacked in that area. Here we have cars, planes, boats and on foot chases all generating that action styled feeling that the Bond franchise does so well. However the early action sequences, specifically the opening car chase scene, is poorly directed. The fast montage does not do the car chase any justice. There are 1 second shots showing brief glimpses of vehicles and characters and is never effectively established. The feeling is there, but without a clear cut picture it is hard to get a proper view of the sequence.
The direction improves as the film dives deeper into its dark revenge driven plot. The plane sequence is excellent, and the most realistic plane chase in a Bond film.
Jack White's 'Another way to die' title song is a love it or hate it number, which has received heavy scrutiny.
This 25th Bond instalment is a fine action thriller with great acting and a finely scripted plot and Craig is on his way to becoming one of the best ever Bonds