A terrible event can lead to something wonderful........

Rating: 9/10 (31 October 2015)

After receiving a message from the past, and going against orders from M, Bond goes rogue to seek out someone, or something known only as the The Pale King.
This leads Bond on his own dangerous territory, leading him to the most personal mission he has ever faced.......
After the behemoth that was Skyfall, Spectre was always going to have the shadow of that film in its way. And thank goodness that Mendes and company haven't tried to go bigger, because that was the problem with Brosnans' cannon, and we ended up with invisible cars....
It seems the motto here is 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' and from the sublime pre-credits sequence, which references the wonderful opening to 'Touch Of Evil' , you can assure yourself that this is Craig's best since Skyfall.
Disregarding the blatant product placement, and once again referencing Goldfinger within an inch of its life, it's the subtle references that make you appreciate the fact that the makers, love Bond and know what a wonderful institution the series is.
Set pieces are on par with all the best bond has given us, from the car chase with some real laugh out loud humour during it, letting the viewer know that Bond maybe alone with little help and limited resources, but he still has that confidence and swagger to know he will get out if the situation with ease, especially when he is more concerned with whom Moneypenny is with.
The most important thing that this film has that the last three didn't have much of, is humour, and although Craig looks uneasy with the humour to begin with, the moment he says 'good evening' to a street cleaner, he nails the rest of it. This is his best portrayal of Bond, he owns the role, and he knows it.
So kudos to Fiennes, Whishaw, and Harris for stealing the film completely from him. For some bizarre reason, the film feels that little more special when we are dealing with 00 closure subplot, as it goes back to the classic feel if the more earlier bonds, and most importantly, Fleming's literature.
Bautista is good as the henchman, Craigs Bond has always needed one, but he does feel a tad familiar, like OddJob, Jaws, and Stamper raised a child together. But despite only uttering one word, he certainly has presence, and the fight on the train subtlety references LALD, and FRWL.
Waltz has very little screen time as the antagonist, but again, he is a wonderfully smug little man who doesn't wear socks, and his normality throughout, makes him all that more psychotic. He not in the film much, but as a character says to Bond 'he's everywhere'.
My only gripes are that Seydoux is a little bland, and although she comes across as hardened to the world female, she falls for Bond pretty quickly.
And the last one, is that there are two major plot points that are spoon fed to us. When Q gives Bond the watch (the funniest scene in the film), he says 'the alarm is very loud'. He may as well have said 'you'll use that to save you from a certain death'.
And Fiennes says to C regarding the termination of the 00 programme 'it's also a license not to kill'. Again, he may as well have said 'I bet you out of all the people in the film, Bond doesn't kill the one who caused him the most pain in these four films'.
Minor quibbles, but they do detract you from the film a little.
So all in all, it wraps up all of Craig's entries nicely, there is a wonderful treat for major Bond fans in a big twist, and although he is a wonderful Bond, if Craig chooses not to make another, this will be a perfect swan song.
It's a wonderful film.