Like many contemporary blockbusters, no attempt to think outside the box

Rating: 7/10 (17 February 2016)

Watching 'Spectre' feels familiar. In fact, at times it is all too familiar. When the credits rolled, my overall impression was that I had been served a "Best of Bond" compilation. Every scene, with the exception of just a few, reminded of a classic Bond film, the script reminded of classic Bond films, the villain, the gadgets, the cars You get my drift. The result is well-made and entertaining, but no more than that. There are no surprises and there are only few memorable moments.
I cannot give this more than a 7 because I base my scores on how often I would like to watch a movie again. Since this already felt like I had seen it all before during its first viewing, I can only give it a score that means "I would only want to watch this again maybe once or twice".
Spectre seems to suffer from the same problem of creative stagnation as many a contemporary blockbuster: it feels as if someone trained a large neural network by feeding it all the existing material, and then asked it to generate something similar. The result is merely a linear combination of what is already known. There is no attempt to break outside the established box. This is playing it safe, but it will never produce a 'wow' factor that makes people recommend the film as a must-see. If the next few films are made according to the same recipe, the public will lose interest in Bond films altogether.
The bottom line is, if you want to watch a Bond film as you know it, Spectre will not disappoint. If you want to experience something new however, you will be disappointed.