Enormously stylish, chic entertainment

Rating: 8/10 (30 November 2015)

Bond is back with Spectre. While never as good as the perfect Skyfall, it is a pretty entry in the franchise. To begin with the less positive, the story is somewhat bulky for one movie. It is supposed to connect the previous Daniel Craig Bond films together, although the impact would be more effective if they did not also introduce a classic Bond character through a plot twist. Two fine concepts, but too big to go together. That said, I enjoyed this movie a lot. Enormously stylish, chic entertainment. Many thanks to director of photography Hoyte van Hoytema. Every shot could be framed. The opening scene (set against the Day of the Dead in Mexico) is breathtaking, a big part of it was captured in one shot. The music feels somewhat more epic than other entries, with choirs complementing wide shots of a car chase through Rome. As I have seen a few Bond movies (mostly with Craig), for me Craig is Bond. He made Bond his own. The other actors do also a great job. Cristoph Waltz plays a villain again, but stays somehow away from being type casted. I find Lea Seydoux an excellent choice for the Bond girl, as she captivates the reserved character with ease. I expected and would have liked if Monica Belluci had more screen time, but so be it.