Good, but where's the excitement ?

Rating: 7/10 (1 November 2012)

Watched "Skyfall" last night and have to say that I left the cinema feeling a little disappointed. Maybe it was because of all the hype but it definitely didn't live up to my (maybe over-inflated) expectations. YES it was a good film but it just didn't seem like a good BOND film. As a previous reviewer has mentioned the most exciting part of the movie was the opening sequence but even then the fist fight on top of the train seemed a little tame and lack-lustre. Through the entire rest of the film I found myself waiting for some major action scene to unfold only for it to never materialise and the closest we came were the, all to brief, scenes at the villains hideout and then again a quick "gun-fight" at M's hearing. Where was the brutal hand to hand combat reminiscent of previous Bond outings like the encounter with Robert Shaw in "From Russia with Love", The elevator fight in "Diamonds are Forever" or even the encounter in Bonds hotel room in "OHMSS". I realise he is supposed to be under par in this movie but it seemed like Bond was completely over matched by anyone he encountered and as much as it pains me (as a Brit) to say it you just get the feeling that Jason Bourne could kick James's arse with one hand tied behind his back (I say this purely for reference purposes and comparison rather than as a big Bourne fan). In fact it felt from this film the only chance 007 would stand is if he shot Bourne whilst he wasn't looking !! I absolutely love the fact that the films are being given a slightly darker more character driven spin but this shouldn't be at the expense of the BIG action set pieces which is what a lot of Bond fans crave, myself included. It seems that in the excitement stakes (alright, good old fashioned scraps)the films are being left behind even by some TV series and this can't be good. If Bond is to be taken more seriously - A GOOD THING (the thought of Moonraker and Octopussy are enough to haunt anyones dreams) - then the villains should also mature. I'm afraid I found Silva more irritating than menacing. A match up with the type of character played by Javier Bardem in "No Country for Old Men" would be something I think a lot of people would pay good money to see. I did enjoy "Skyfall" but feel it could have been so much better. The grin on my face when I saw the DB5 and again upon seeing M's office restored to "the good ol' days" was probably truly sickening and I eagerly await the next outing of 007, but feel that I must lower my expectation of the excitement factor. For real, heart thumping excitement, I guess I'll just have to re-watch the fight with the Uruk Hai at the end of Fellowship of the Ring or even some of the earlier Bonds, dodgy editing et al. Shame there aren't any OFFICIAL Bond forums (or am I just not looking hard enough) ?