Why oh Why would you ruin a good run?

Rating: 5/10 (25 November 2015)

Now, let me put this in context.. Spectre is the latest part in the reboot of Bond! A reboot, need I remind you, that people have loved so far! After the brilliant performances and tight stories and scripts that we have had with Casino Royale and Skyfall (yes, I left QoS out because you know why), Spectre was supposed to be the coming of age of bond.
When I got to know of the title.. I was gung ho about Bond finally finding his nemesis, Blofeld.. It was supposed to be the instance when Bond met his match! It was the instance when Bond would be challenged mentally, physically all backed by a superb and gripping story and a script which avoids the clichéd imprints of the comic era bond! Blofeld is to Bond as Moriarty is to Sherlock! It is that, for lack of a better term, "Epic"!
Enter Spectre.. in a plot which has: a) The 00 division being considered for scrapping; b) A high ranking internal official 'C' who has gone to the dark side and turned a mole... played by virtuoso actor Andrew Scott (Moriarty from Sherlock the Series)... c) Blofeld! The strength of the character is completely missing. d) A canon which establishes Bond and Blofeld having briefly grown up together;
The potential in this movie was astronomical! Instead what i saw was a plain Jane movie about a secret agent trying to save a girl with car chases, exploding watches and bland screenplay.
OK, let me try and take this point by point.
a) The 00 division disintegration: This alone should have been enough to run the movie! What started in Skyfall with M (Dame Judi Dench) trying to justify her stand at the court room and the ensuing carnage caused by Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem) should have continued as the struggle between M - Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes) and C - Max Denbigh (Andrew Scott). An attack from the internal enemy shaking the 00 division to its very core would have been a brilliant movie with Blofeld just making the slightest impression towards the end... There was none of the clever word play, the internal politics, the ego clashes between C, M and Bond....
What the movie did give, was such an important plot point as a backdrop to the visually appealing yet mentally lacking pseudo confrontation between bond and his chief adversary.
b) Andrew Scott is a strong actor, his strengths are in his subtlety. His back handed slap which comes out of nowhere. He is a good villain. And the character had all the place and stature to be unyielding. Yet, there was no power play. What C said, M took as order and didn't say a word in protest.. Remember the conversation between Judi Dench and Ralph Fiennes in his office in Skyfall, that was a battle amongst equals.. this was more like M saying.. "but sir, please, we need hand towels in the men's room".
For a service head of the 00 division, M should have had more up his sleeve. And for a new chief coming in, C - max Denbigh should have been much more developed as a character.
c) Blofeld: If you've done a reboot where you've introduced Bond as a gritty individual who stops at nothing to do the right thing no matter his wrong ways! You should by default have an equally explosive character doing the dirty business! Blofeld in himself is a character whose actions speak louder than words. Who's pure menacing nature would make your intestines coil and make you sick to your stomach! One whose words would make you want to lock your doors and shutter your windows!
Blofeld is everything Bond could never be! He is the institution. He is suave, menacing and dangerous at the same time. When you have an actor like Christoph Waltz, and a character like Ernst Stavro Blofeld, you give them both their due! You don't make them a mere pawn in the revenge seeking game! Especially when they are almost brothers!
d) Blofeld and Bond brotherhood. This was a needless inclusion! Excellent though the thought is, the mere inclusion of it warrants much more of a back story. When you are introducing characters who have crossed paths before, at least give the audience a clue as to what the path was.. just saying they were brothers won't cut the cake!
A blow by blow account of the time they spent with each other during their youth and what made Blofeld do what he did should definitely have been the defining core of the movie!
More misses beyond the above listed points are the inclusion of Monica Belluci, frankly could have been avoided. Everyone's character needs more depth. Look at the depth that you established for Skyfall.. build from there.. it isn't tough! Moneypenny needs to be more conniving, she is a power player regardless of her position. M needs to have balls made of brass, he is the authority! If you want a henchman, Dave Bautista is a great choice.. but have him do something more than just run rampage across Rome.
All in all, this movie removed the grit from Bond. It took him back to the days when he was a comic book hero who just always got the girl and nothing more. 5 out of 10 is for just having the character's names. Those alone should have made the movie for you! Big disappointment.