What do you do when the sky falls?

Rating: 10/10 (7 November 2012)

If some would take issue with it being described as one of the best Bond films of its generation (although I think that this is correct) then I submit instead that perhaps it IS the most relevant.
Issues of fealty, the necessity of our security services, and the changing face of global terrorism are all themes that are explored. Our hero is forced to confront the fact that he is expendable, and to acknowledge his place as a cog that's part of a much larger machine... The villain takes entirely the opposite perspective, which makes for an interesting ideological clash.
Indeed, no-one is invaluable, and 'M' questioning her conduct leads to a much more prominent role for Judi Dench, and meatier interaction between her and her agent, which is no bad thing.
However, the cost of this is that Bardem's villain is woefully underused... Bardem is such a good actor that it almost doesn't matter, and I get that the laser focus of his mission makes extrapolation unnecessary... but he gets so much build-up, courtesy of his associates... Then, when he finally appears, although he's not exactly a pussycat, he is a little one-dimensional; an insane, Lecter-like baddie - more horror-film shocking, than a ruthless megalomaniac.
There has been a recent sea-change from over the top action to something approaching character-study, though... and I applaud that. Bond may no longer be lovelorn, as he was previously in QOS, but he's still an existential loner, and it suits the icy reserves of Daniel Craig quite well... Bond was faced with proving he's a man for his times, and the verdict is: 'Cometh the hour, cometh the man!' If you want to prove you're still up to the job, you have to go back to basics... and it's 'mission accomplished', as far as this film is concerned.