3 stars for the cinematography (SPOILER ALERT)

Rating: 3/10 (23 January 2016)

After finally watching Spectre last night, I couldn't help but notice an insane amount of similarities between it and MI:Rogue Nation which came out earlier this year. Here are the similarities: Main Character goes rogue: in both movies, Ethan Hunt and James Bond respectfully go rogue and operate independent of the spy organization they work for. Both characters are searching for a shadowy organization (Spectre or the Syndicate) that is responsible for worldwide mayhem. Nobody seems to believe that these organizations exist, except for the main hero. Spy organizations are out of date: in both movies, while the main character is out on his own, the organization he works for is getting shut down. Literally, a major plot point in both movies involves the absorption of the IMF and MI6 into a larger government body. Austria: Both main characters travel to Austria in their respective movies. Bond goes to learn more from Mr. White in his cabin on a lake, and Ethan Hunt goes to the opera. Either way, both go to Austria Morocco: Bond spends a lot of time in Spectre in Morocco, specifically in the city of Tangiers. Ethan Hunt, in a stunning turn of events, spends a good portion of MI:Rogue Nation in Morocco too. -Both villains have weird ways of talking. Not too much analysis involved here, but that doesn't make it any less true The head of the British intelligence ends up being evil: In both movies, this is true. In Spectre, C becomes head of MI6 during its absorption into the government. He is revealed to have been working for Spectre at the end of the movie. The head of MI6 during MI:Rogue Nation, is revealed to have been the creator of the Syndicate. The rest of the gang joins in: after being separated for the entire movie, in both movies, Bond/Hunt's friends at the MI6/IMF join the fight against the villainous organization. M and Q join the fight during a car chase scene in London. Similarly, Jeremy Renner and Ving Rhames join in the help Ethan during, once again, a car chase scene. London: both movies end in London. I know, I know. But it's true Bulletproof boxes: In MI:Rogue Nation, they finally catch the villain by putting him in a bulletproof box. He tries shooting his way out but can't. In Spectre, bond find Oberhauser in the old MI6 building, but he can't kill him because he's surrounded by bulletproof, clear wall.
I'm thoroughly convinced either Christopher McQuarrie's script was stolen by Sam Mendes, or vice versa. Have spy movies become too clichéd over the years? Verdict: I preferred MI:Rogue Nation much more than Spectre) :)