Welcome back Mr Bond

Rating: 7/10 (31 October 2015)

007 is back and with a decent story to boot, we finally get to see some links between the past stories in Daniel Craig's Bond and also some new faces as well and some rather familiar one's too. Yes Spectre is a pure thrill ride and throws in some action that could be said to be slightly over the top but in any case, this is simply James Bond we're talking about. Spectre see's James investigating his past and some of those involved in it, as Miss Moneypenny says "You've got a secret. Something you can't tell anyone, because you don't trust anyone", this really forms a slight basis for the movie but in truth Bond I feel never really knows in this what is next and who may appear alongside it all.
Daniel Craig returns in a fashion I could only compare to when Pierce Brosnan first came into his role as James Bond, Brosnan went all action on us, big stunts with big musical pieces and that is exactly what accompanies Craig in this instalment. I did like Daniel Craig and it could be said he keeps the claims that he is the best ever in the role going along nicely, some fans will point out yet again the realism that his Bond has brought out(even if Craig channels Roger Moore at times in this). Christoph Waltz stars as the mysterious Franz Oberhauser and he does an OK job, I felt slightly as if the role needed to be darker but Waltz does bring a certain feel to the role that is humorous as well. Léa Seydoux is good as Dr Madeleine Swann a psychologist working in the Austrian Alps and that is where Bond first comes across her, the chemistry between the two is frosty and although Bond can't resist any woman, Swann is not a character that ultimately likes Bond the second she meets him.
Sam Mendes flies back into the role as the director and continues in ways where Skyfall left off, he brings much more action but I did feel he leaves out true depth. This can feel slightly too much like typical Bond, after Skyfall James had to come out of the blocks incredibly well to match it's previous film and this I feel although being a good watch, never quite reaches the heights of the one before this. Mendes does have a decent script to work off though, the four men behind it John Logan, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and Jez Butterworth create something that is typically 007 like, it more than meets any Bond film on it's merits in stunts, but in terms of emotion though yet again I feel this movie lacks that cutting edge.
From a technical point of view all the way through the movie is pretty fantastic, from the many many extras used for the opening scenes in Mexico City's "Day of the Dead" festivities to the car chase through Rome, this is one movie going big in every aspect. The films score is one of the most massive musical undertakings a Bond movie has ever had, the theme song from Sam Smith is very slow and even quiet, but the score is huge in terms of its use in action scenes and even some more romantic scenes. Spectre does try very hard to get it's stunts and effects pin point accurate, and for the most part it does, but it can at moments and I stress "at moments" can feel a little gimmicky, a sort of "look at what we can do" kind of feeling.
So all in all Spectre is for me a worthy addition to the catalogue that is James Bond, this one really is a hark back to it's past and not just in Daniel Craig's Bond, this uses elements from way back when Sean Connery was in the role. Cast like Ralph Fiennes and Naomie Harris are welcome sights and it makes Spectre altogether with its well done action and interesting plot recommendable, very much also to anyone who likes Bond to break things. Daniel Craig brings out in Bond a kind of beast at times, and it's almost as thrilling as Pierce Brosnan windsurfing a tidal wave (OK this film isn't as stupid).