Another great Craig Bond

Rating: 9/10 (28 October 2015)

James Bond is involved in a mission which M knows nothing about. Given that the department is under threat from a new broom in Whitehall who is looking to merge the UK's information-gathering machinery with that of other countries, M suspends Bond. As if that would stop him! What follows is a dizzy mix of opposing factions, with unexpected support and treachery.
When writing a review for a film which is barely out of the starting gate, but which is sure to have a massive audience, one has to take care to avoid spoilers. Well, everyone managed it for the big one in Skyfall, so I'm certainly not minded to blow any surprises here. And there are some, including faces we didn't expect to see, nods to the past, and even nods to Fleming's books.
But this isn't really a film for big surprises. It's a film which has a strong story, and some terrific action – just watch the opening set piece, and realise how long the first shot takes and the amount and nature of the camera movement involved in it – stunning! The cast are all excellent. Craig has now officially overtaken Connery as the best Bond in my book, Ralph Fiennes sits comfortably in M's chair, and the support team are better used by far than they were in the days when Lee, Maxwell and Llewellyn turned up for a day's work each. Christoph Waltz is an entertaining baddie, Lea Seydoux has an air about her which means that you're never quite sure which side she's batting for, and only poor old Monica Bellucci gets the short end of the stick in a part which is somewhat underwritten, and definitely underused. And while the music features all the usual Bond cues, there are several places where it is wonderfully original for a Bond film.
But, for me, there are two things which stand out. The first is that I really like the way the Craig Bond films have developed, and held to, an internal continuity – this film ties in with the previous three – as well as acknowledging a (necessarily fluid) continuity with earlier films. And the second is that, again, Sam Mendes has given us a Bond film which is not simply an action/adventure travelogue, he has given us a work of art, where every scene contains images which could be presented on the walls of an art gallery. Light, shade, colour, composition, all are used to fill the screen with a film which is a great pleasure to just look at.
The title song, the arrangement of which uses all the clichés we have come to know and love is, in my view, hideous. I may be out of step here, but I think it is a strangulated mess.