too long at the fair, 007

Rating: 6/10 (10 January 2017)

Time to retire this franchise.
Big budget boredom - 007 is like Ol' Man River - he just keeps rolling along, but in the case of 007, this franchise has had it. My advice: After the first truly electrifying 13 minutes, turn this off and keep your happy memories.
In this one, Bond goes rogue after receiving a message from the beyond, in a way. He infiltrates a secret meeting and learns about the evil group SPECTRE. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, there's a new M (Ralph Fiennes) and a merger with MI5 and a decision to kill the Double O program. Might be a good idea, in fact.
Madeleine Swan (Lea Seydoux), the daughter of an old enemy, may have the clue to finishing off SPECTRE.
A good cast includes, besides Craig, Fiennes, and Seydoux, Christopher Waltz as the head of SPECTRE and Sherlock's Moriarity on PBS, Andrew Scott, one of the best of the new crop of British actors.
But all that doesn't help the script. That great budget and no one can write an exciting story. Car chases, sex with women Bond met 2 minutes ago, cartoon villains, torture - it's all there in small enough doses to make the 2-1/2 hours go by like the original Birth of a Nation.
I've seen Craig on stage twice - he's wasted here. About as exciting as flipping channels with a remote.