Bond Full Circle

Rating: 9/10 (9 December 2012)

Daniel Craig finally makes a Bond film worthy of Sean Connery, by general consensus the best Bond. To do that, the filmmakers had to go full circle for this film. Casino Royale was too serious; Quantum of Solace was just action; but Skyfall brings back the nostalgic Bond.
The movie has its usual intense chase and fight scenes. Some casino gambling. The ending is intense as it gets. One of the strongest Bond endings.
It's not without flaws. For example, the opening credits move the classic eye and shot trademark to the end. And the opening credits visual effects were confusing and not as fun as some of the cheesier but classic 60s and 70s Bond films. An unconvincing Komodo Dragon. And Albert Finney as an elderly Kincade shooting 'em up. The gorgeous Bérénice Marlohe is absolutely two notches ahead of Craig's companions, e.g, Eve Green in the Bond girl department. However, she is quite too expendable and Bond loses his female counterpart. Remember, Bond is supposed to get the girl. Don't confuse Eve played by Naomie Harris. Save that for a pleasant surprise.
Javier Bardem is a great actor as the villain but he falls a notch short of his role in No Country for Old Men. He's a bit awkward in the entering scene. Is he a villain? Or a strange dude? The good thing is that as the movie progresses, Bardem gets better with his Silva character. Otherwise the acting was strong with Judi Dench as M and Ralph Fiennes moving in as the future man. Ben Whishaw as Q represents the thematic anti-technology that classic Bond embraces. As the movie progresses, the new Q realizes, technology isn't all there is.
The movie is a bit like Never Say Never Again or Thunderball with questioning whether Bond is in shape, ready for action and deserves his license to kill. Or should he join AARP in the retirement home?
Some things can't be measured such as the propensity and art for killing. One can see some influence actually perhaps from the pursuit of Osama Bin Laden. To remain hidden from American intelligence, he had to cut off modern technology. M16 has just that problem. And so does Bond. To operate covertly, technology must be the most advanced. But what if it is compromised. How do you remain hidden? Ninja-like. Bond-like. It channels Sam Worthington's character in Terminator Salvation or Woody Allen's Sleeper. It's the sometimes played theme: to infiltrate the enemy, you must have no name, no record. You need your Aston Martin and Walther PPK. Several criticisms pointed out they didn't feel the classic Bond. Perhaps they were not paying attention since the film deliberately brought back that especially with the classic Aston Martin ripping out of the garage. And this is the film that reveals Bond's parents, as Ian Fleming would have it at the Skyfall cemetery.
The next mission leaves no electronic trail. But it can leave a paper trail or folder on the table for your eyes only. In that manner, it justifies the return to the classic Bond.