This is No Mere Bond Flick

Rating: 8/10 (24 November 2012)

It has been done. Finally, a Bond film has broken out of the bonds (no pun intended) of its franchise to breathe fresh air. Skyfall does away with the clichés and stigmas of its predecessors, and receives high marks as a serious, original action film; a makeover fitting for Bond's 50th anniversary.
Skyfall has once again stepped up the action, and does so throughout the entire film. Surprisingly however, it achieved this not though the franchises usually over the top nature, but as a result of its mesmerizing style. Every scene is lit with eye-popping precision. The cinematography was stimulating, especially in the scenes shot in the high rises of Shanghai, where neon lights swam and pulsated across the windows. The action also benefited from the heart pumping soundtrack that was at home with Bond's tempo and flair.
But what shocked me the most about Skyfall was its quality writing. True, the Bond franchise has had its fair share of well written films; however, the recent lackluster installments featured jumbled and often confusing plots. Skyfall dispels those memories with a simple, but engaging story that crafts a dire and unpredictable circumstance. Before the film started, I made a pledge to try to predict the plot twists, and was pleasantly surprised that my guesses were off on every attempt. Nearly every aspect of the story was improved. For one of the first times, we are treated to an interesting villain, a role that in the past was filled with cheesy, un-intimidating, and boring megalomaniacs. With all the characters I felt an unprecedented level of characterization, which caused me to actually care about their fates. In Skyfall we get to see another side of Bond, a side that more effectively emphasizes his complicated and unstable nature.
Skyfall felt like a true action film, crafted with extreme care and thought. It avoided the many shortcomings of its predecessors, providing a breath of fresh air to what was a stagnant franchise. Skyfall accomplished everything a Bond film needed to be and then some. Admittedly I have never been a fan of the franchise, but Skyfall made me a convert.