Bond #23: Coming home

Rating: Null/10 (26 March 2016)

In the opening scene, Bond is chasing an enemy over the roofs of train cars until he is seemingly killed by friendly fire. When there is a bomb going off in the MI6 headquarters, M can only rely on 007, the agent presumed dead, to find out who is responsible for the bombing. The villain Silva (Javier Bardem) is captured quickly and easily, but his plans really just begin with his escape in London. Bond and M have to prepare for battle in Bond's homeland in Scotland, outnumbered and almost without weapons...
At 143 minutes, the movie is definitely too long, moving slowly especially in the first hour. The episode of Bond traveling to Macao, just to cash in chips, kick a few baddies and obtain a suitcase, seems unnecessary and should have been cut completely. This movie's strength is not in exotic locations this time - 'Skyfall' is the only Bond in which the majority of scenes are set in the UK: first London, later Scotland. This is what makes it special, also the relationship between Bond and M is developed further, and we learn more about Bond's past. The battle in the old dark house is well staged. Bond faces the most psychopathic villain ever, a creepy guy with a distorted face (a victim of poisoning) and a death wish. Sometimes I found Bardem's performance bordering on the ridiculous, but I guess it's a matter of taste. All in all, an interesting and unusual contribution to the series, not simply following the well trodden path.