Good One but cannot be compared to Skyfall

Rating: 8/10 (10 November 2015)

There is lot that has been said about Spectre and mostly about its comparison to last bond movie. Well, even all the Dark Knight Trilogy didn't possess the same level of greatness and so is the case with three Bourne Movies. But if we think about the genre that they belong to, then each one of them are examples of great craftsmanship. I would say same about Spectre.
It is a flick that runs as an extension of all last three Bond Movies and yes for more extend movie time than usual. After watching "Skyfall" again and again, one would realize that it was next to impossible to top that kind of material. Stretching from greatness of Casino Royale to dismal Quantum of Solace, "Skyfall" became the movie, where we got to see the additions of iconic supporting characters like Q, Eve Moneypenny and a brand new M while it never missed out on what made a 2006 Casino Royale a modern day classic. At few instances it was even better than Casino Royale. So with Spectre, this franchise covers that arch and merges with pre-Craig's Bond Era, where women are ready to fall into Bond' Arms, he drives a customized car to get him in and out of crisis and of course, the wristwatch that tells the time and beyond.
It marries the recent reboot of James Bond with the previous ones that has been reason of its popularity since 1962. It also brings back a villainous organization Spectre after 1971's "Diamonds Are Forever". One also raises the question with ending that is this last bond flick for Daniel Craig. It's not sure, but with Spectre it became clear, that as long as the twisted, broken and more real to life bond is there, audiences will be more interested in watching the franchise. Craig does that masterfully and there is dry wit to his humor and most of all he understands gracefully his flaw as single minded individual who while he is on to the task, he care less about aftermath of his actions on the people he grows close to.
The movie, skillfully deploys Christopher Waltz as the head of the Spectre, and David Bautista as villainous henchmen. However, Raoul Silva and Le Chiffe are still best bond villains to date. With women, there are plenty and this time repeats the history of the franchise, with getting them naked within the shortest possible screen time. Monica Belluci fires the screen at the age of 50. It's a shame that we missed her in bed with such an icon for so many years. Lea Seadoux plays a tough and smart Doctor Swann and Bond's Love interest but she is not even close to what Eva Green did with Vesper Lynd. But also now was the time that we see Bond more focused on what needs to be done, than what he wants in life. We saw him go broke for love in 2006, with 2008 flick it was reminiscences of his loss that motivated him, and in 2012 he gets scraped by his own organization for being worn-out. In Spectre, the movie opens with usual Craig's Bond's disrespect for his authority and rules. He gets bug in the body so his moves can be tracked (recall of Casino Royale) but skillfully avoids being caught and keeps the action running.
The set pieces are great and revolve around the world before settling for final scene back in London. We get to know more about MI6 in this one and the previous than we did in last 47 years before 2012 movie was released. Ralph Fiennes's M like Judi Dench, is again more involved and part of the plot than we have seen in any other flick.
The overall experience in its own capacity is great, from exotic locations to seamless action sequences. But in all of this we do have a habit of comparing it with Parkour Chase in Mombasa, Airport Scene in Miami, Motorcycle and Train Chase Scene in Istanbul and grandeur of SkyFall Mansion Destruction.
Spectre, is going to be an audience puller, overall a good one to watch. But we will surely miss the action, story, script and cinematography of the SkyFall and it is my rough guess, the box office performance too.
There is lot of buzz around Daniel Craig returning or not for next bond. Can't predict that but with surety I can say they may not find a face and eyes that looks weary, wet and yet as handsome as Daniel Craig.