Great Action Movie

Rating: 9/10 (14 December 2012)

At 2 hours 23 minutes, this is a long film - but it did not feel like it. It starts off with a frenetic shoot out, car, motor bike, train chase that sees the destruction of dozens of cars, wagons, stalls, bikes and even a train carriage! I did not time it, but it probably lasted 10 minutes or more.
It is in about 4 segments, each of which could almost make a film in its own right: Bonds chases assassin who steals list of secret agents; Bond goes after the former secret agent (Silva) turned rogue assassin; Silva wreaks havoc on London, trying to get at M; Silva goes after M in Scotland.
The film is about two main themes: Revenge and Relevance
Revenge: The rogue assassin, Silva is a former British agent, who believes (with some justification) that M sold him out. He has concocted an elaborate plan to gain his revenge on her. How plausible this plan is could be challenged - it seems to depend upon a lot of chance things coming together in a somewhat unlikely fashion.
Relevance: M is under attack from the Government about whether she is competent, on the one hand and whether there is even a need for her department on the other. Likewise, Bond is under pressure to demonstrate whether his skills are still relevant, on the one hand and whether his body is still up to the job ("it's a young man's job") on the other.
Is it a good film? Well, let's suspend belief, because Bond films are not really meant to be plausible. There is plenty of breath-taking action, some snappy dialogue, some good acting, a bit more character development than the usual Bond film and some pretty wild imagining. The 143 minutes goes very quickly and I did not want it to end. So I would give it the "thumbs up". Really exciting and absorbing film and possibly the best Bond film to date.