Spectre

Plot synopsis:
Mexico City: a Day of the Dead parade.A man in a white suit and skull mask walks past, as another man in a skull mask and skeleton suit spots him and starts walking into a hotel with a woman.The couple enter their room for some intimacy. The man is Agent 007/James Bond (Daniel Craig). He hides a small sniper's rifle in his suit jacket and steps out onto the balcony, telling his lover he'll return soon. Bond walks toward the building next to his hotel and and takes aim at the man in white he's Marco Sciarra (Alessandro Cremona), a man Bond has been tracking.Bond overhears Sciarra and two other men talk about blowing up a stadium and inquiring about someone known as "The Pale King".Before Bond can make a move, the men spot him and shoot back, but, Bond kills the two men before blowing up the bomb destroying their room. A large part of the destroyed structure collapses onto the roof.Bond hides, and falls through the wreckage, but walks out into the city to pursue Sciarra.Bond follows his target through the parade as Sciarra calls for someone to meet him in the square.Sciarra goes to a descending helicopter and climbs aboard Bond catches up and beats Sciarra's thugs before jumping in the helicopter with him.As it takes off, Bond fights both Sciarra and the pilot. The helicopter flies dangerously close to the civilians, but, Bond tries to kill his target.He finally succeeds in kicking Sciarra out of the helicopter and throws the pilot out as well. Bond takes control of the helicopter and flies off. He looks in his hand at something he pulled off of Sciarra's finger; a ring with an octopus symbol on it.Back in London, M's (Ralph Fiennes) not happy with the damage Bond has done, especially as he didn't have authorisation to be in Mexico.Bond tells M he was taking an overdue holiday and his encounter with Sciarra was ust a coincidence.M officially grounds Bond.As Bond leaves, he's introduced to the new head of the Joint Intelligence Service, Max Denbigh (Andrew Scott). Bond refuses to call him by his name, and instead refers to him as C, which annoys Max.Bond meets with Miss Eve Moneypenny (Naomie Harris) and shows her the real reason he went after Sciarra; a tape from M's predecessor (Judi Dench), just prior to her death, instructing Bond to find Sciarra, kill him, and go to the funeral in Rome.Moneypenny gives Bond a box of items recovered from Skyfall. Bond looks into the box, and sees amongst other things, a picture of a man and a boy - with a third person's face burnt out of the picture.Bond takes a ride on the River Thames with Bill Tanner (Rory Kinnear) where they get a glimpse of the new JIS building. Tanner say C's plan is to create "Nine Eyes", a programme which will allow access to intelligence streams from nine countries.The Nine Eyes programme will also decommission the 'double-Oh' programme because, they claim, it's unnecessary and obsolete with their new electronic surveillance methods.The men meet up with Q (Ben Whishaw), who gives Bond only a single tool; a watch, but Q suggests the alarm is very loud. He also injects Bond with 'smart blood,' that'll allows Bond to be located anywhere in the world by Q's computer.Bond later steals a custom Aston Martin DB10 made for 009 and heads for Rome.Bond arrives at Sciarra's funeral, where he encounters Sciarra's widow Lucia (Monica Belucci). At night, in her home, Lucia is nearly executed by 2 men, until Bond shows up and kills them first.Despite knowing Bond killed her husband, he still seduces her, and learns of a secret meeting of a criminal organisation Sciarra was part of. She also tells him where the meeting will be held, at midnight.Bond arrives at the hideout of this organisation by using the octopus ring as entrée.There, he observes a number of people at a boardroom table discussing events in Marrakesh and Tunisia, as well as the planned bombing in Mexico.A man cloaked in shadows (Christoph Waltz) enters and oversees the meeting. They also mention The Pale King and plan to get rid of him. He calls upon a man named Gerhardt to be the muscle in their plans, but a much larger fellow, Mr. Hinx (Dave Bautista), steps in for consideration. Hinx slams Gerhardt's head on the table and kills him by plunging his thumbs into his eyes. Hinx calmly wipes the blood off his fingers, and assumes the role of the main henchman.The leader man in the shadows then sees Bond in the balcony, and refers to him by his name, saying it's been a while since they've last met.Bond appears to recognise the man as well. One of the henchmen in the building nearly attacks Bond until he throws him over the balcony. Bond gets into the Aston Martin, and tries to make a hasty retreat, but Hinx gets into a Jaguar C-X75 and a race through Rome ensues.The race enters the walkway beside the Tiber River. Bond sees most of the car's gadgets do not work, except for a flamethrower, which he uses on Hinx's car behind him. Hinx's car crashes and burns. Bond ejects himself from the car, and lands far away thanks it's parachute.Bond's car crashes into the Tiber and sinks. Bond then contacts Moneypenny and asks for information regarding The Pale King and Franz Oberhauser; the man in the shadows.Moneypenny informs Bond the Pale King is really Mr. White (Jesper Christensen) - the same shadowy middleman from the crime organisation Quantum from first two of the re-booted Bond films; Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace.Moneypenny learns Oberhauser and his father were reported to have died in an avalanche. Bond locates Mr. White in Austria, where he lives alone in a dilapidated home, dying of thallium poisoning as a result of leaving the organisation.Bond convinces White to tell him where to find his daughter, promising his former enemy he will protect her. He slides White his Walther PPK, knowing he would prefer to end his suffering.White tells Bond the clinic to find her, and tells Bond she will lead him to L'Americain, which in-turn , will bring him back to Oberhauser.White puts the gun under his chin and pulls the trigger.Bond finds White's daughter, Dr. Madeleine Swann (Lea Seydoux) at a clinic high in the Austrian Alps. She asks him some test questions before he tells he he watched her father kill himself.Madeleine orders him to leave and angrily walks away from Bond outside the building before she is captured by Hinx and his fellow goons.Bond steals a small plane and chases the villains, eventually causing them to crash their cars before he rescues Madeleine, leaving only Hinx alive.Bond brings Madeleine to meet with Q, who has done an analysis on the ring.The ring contains files which reveal Bond's most recent enemies (Mr. White, Sciarra, Le Chiffre, Dominic Greene, and Raoul Silva) were all connected to Oberhauser, and other organisations like Quantum were subsidiaries of this organisation.Madeleine says the organisation's name is "Spectre", and L'Americain is not a person as Bond had originally believed, but a hotel in Morocco.Meanwhile in London, M learns Bond has left the country against his orders.He must also deal with C initiating Nine Eyes, though the decision to launch it must be unanimous, the South Africans are the lone dissenting vote of the nine countries. C again says the double-oh programme must be shut down.Bond and Madeleine travel to Tangier and locate the L'Americain Hotel.After searching the room for a few hours, Bond sees a mouse run into a hole in the wall and suspects that there might be something behind the wall. Bond punches out the wall and finds a hidden room adjacent to their hotel room. They find a stash of tapes and pictures kept by Mr. White which leads to the next clue.A TV news item shows a bombing in Capetown.The two board a train headed to Spectre's main hideout inside a crater deep in the desert. As Bond and Madeleine sit together at dinner, they are interrupted by Mr. Hinx. Bond battles the gigantic man while Madeleine tries to get a good hit in. The battle spills into a storage car. Swann tries to help by shooting at the large thug, Bond wraps a handy rope around Hinx's neck and tries to choke him. In the mayhem, a string of linked beer kegs are disappearing out the open door and Bond manages to attach the rope to the barrels. Hinx realises what's about to befall him, mutters "Shit," and disappears out the door. Exhausted and sweaty, the two look at each other. "What do we do now?" Madeleine says. Moments later they are back in their cabin feverishly having sex.Q and Moneypenny find M eating alone in a restaurant and show him Bond is headed to a large complex in the desert, M says they can do nothing as C is watching them and says Bond is on his own.The train stops at an isolated station in the middle of nowhere and are picked up by a man in an old Rolls Royce. They are driven to the Spectre facility in a meteor crater in this very isolated part of the desert. Oberhauser and his men find Bond and Madeleine, where Oberhauser states he's the mastermind behind every painful event over the last few years of Bond's life. He brings up Vesper Lynd's death, as well as the last M's death. He then pulls up a video of Bond's last meeting with White, showing him passing the gun to White before his death, proving the incredible reach of their new surveillance technology. It is also revealed that C works under Oberhauser, and Nine Eyes will give Spectre access to all the intelligence streams. Bond is then knocked out by a thug.Bond wakes up strapped in a chair, prepped for torture. Oberhauser tells Madeleine how his father looked after Bond after the death of Bond's parents, and he was something of a brother to Bond until he faked his death in the avalanche. He has since created a new identity: Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Blofeld turns on tiny robotic, high-speed drill he uses to pinpoint specific pain centers in Bond's skull. Madeleine approaches him and admits her love for him. Bond slips her his watch Q gave him, and sets the timer.Knowing what's happening, she slides the watch toward Blofeld as it explodes and unlocks the torture chair. Bond and Madeleine escape, after a firefight with henchmen. The facility is destroyed by gigantic explosions as they leave the crater.Bond returns to London to join M, Tanner, Q, and Moneypenny. Madeleine leaves Bond because she wants no part in the life he leads. The M and Bond's car is ambushed, and Bond is captured.Bond is taken to the former MI6 building and quickly takes out his captors. He finds Blofeld behind a bulletproof glass wall, now blind in his right eye and sporting a mighty scar running down his face, through his right eye. Blofeld says Madeleine is somewhere in the building, which is set to explode, Bond has three minutes to find her or escape himself. Meanwhile, M and Q are in C's office and start hacking the computer to shut down Nine Eyes which is to go live at midnight. C fights M and tries to shoot him, but M causes him to shoot the glass ceiling, throwing C off-balance and causing him to fall over the balcony to his death.Bond finds Madeleine with 45 seconds to spare and escapes with her on a boat through a tunnel onto the Thames River as the building is destroyed - collapsed by multiple charges detonated simultaneously. Blofeld is escaping on a helicopter, but Bond manages to shoot him down with only his handgun. The helicopter crashes onto a bridge over the Thames River, Blofeld is badly hurt and tries to crawl away. Bond arrives and points his gun at Blofeld who urges him to shoot. The gun is out of ammo and Bond taunts the evil mastermind by saying he has better things to do. Blofeld is apprehended by M while Bond leaves with Madeleine.Sometime later, Bond arrives at the lab asking Q for one last favor: the vintage Aston Martin DB5 from the previous films, which was under restoration. He and Madeleine drive off in the silver sports car into London traffic.

Tags: comedy, murder, violence, revenge, intrigue, good versus evil, humor, suspenseful, sadist

Review:
Despite an initial action scene full of CGI that you can also experience in the trailer, this movie hasn't got too much to offer.The main problem is the bad script and dialogs and the pretentious style which tries to keep the tradition of older Bond films incorporating some not-so-witty and cliché humor and ludicrous action sequences with nothing new to offer.
Mendes is a good director who has made some successful films played by important actors, such as : Jarhead, American Beauty, Revolutionary road, Road to perdition and another Bond movie : Skyfall.
Sam Mendes and John Logan apparently came to the conclusion that it was time to bring back one of the most crucial ingredients for Bond's success with audiences over the years: the fun.Don't get me wrong; it's not suddenly ALL fun and games for Her Majesty's finest spy (and Craig still portrays him as a character driven by inner rage) - but the new film is a virtual celebration of the whole James Bond universe, from past to present, including the less grounded and over-the-top elements from the older films.
In fact, after a stand-out intro sequence in classic fashion, the spy with a license to kill takes us on a ride which - tonally - feels like travelling back in time to the glory days of such classics as You Only Live Twice, Goldfinger or From Russia With Love (and it's a ride back in time in more senses than one).This is supposed to be a spoiler-free review, so I won't go into any of the story details, but what unfolds after the introduction plays like a combination of the more grounded, serious Bond we've come to associate with Daniel Craig's films, and the more self-aware spy-romps of the Roger Moore era.
It's a mix that doesn't always work and tone and pacing can be a bit uneven at times (especially during the third act), but Spectre largely succeeds in paying homage to many of the classic Bond films while still delivering the gritty action people come to expect from the newer instalments and staying true to the character Craig has so successfully made his own.
So while his second entry in the world's longest living franchise is far from a perfect film, I believe Sam Mendes achieves exactly what he wants: he intentionally embraces the old Bond formula, but he also plays with it, twists it and introduces new story elements.
It's apparent early on that Blofeld has eyes everywhere, and while he works primarily in the shadows (Christoph Waltz only having 20 or so minutes of screen time), he poses a looming threat to Bond because of his sheer cunning and a past secret that unravels itself when the two finally meet.Many parts of the film feel like a throwback to classic Bond.
What you want in a James Bond movie is over-the-top action surrounding the world's greatest spy who's up against unbeatable odds yet still comes out on top thanks to his charisma and general badassery, and this is precisely what Spectre delivers.
Spectre may be receiving mixed reviews within the community, but I believe that this is simply credited to the fact that Spectre differs from the other Craig Bond films like Casino Royale and Skyfall.
But if your genre is the action or you are a Bond fan-boy (but a real fan-boy, the one who knows that Bond is a dark killer with a great sense f humor as well a troubled human being and not just a fantasy and silly spy in silly missions with a handful of gadgets) then SPECTRE will be a total feast for you.Sam Mendes and Daniel Craig give us another triumph after the polemic "Skyfall" and this time both have managed to get a perfect balance between that intimate psychology from the previous outing and the nostalgia from a classic Bond movie (with quality, not just passable) that hadn't had hit the theater in a very while.
By that way we found ourselves in a very Bond centric movie (perhaps the only one in the whole franchise in which Craig is the absolute protagonist without being overshadowed even by the handsome villain) that explores and expands the character beyond the limits from the last third of Skyfall and a truly genuine adventure full of suspense and crazy twists to maintain the attention.Across many places (Rome, Tangiers, Austria and coming back to London for a classic suspenseful climax) we found Bond getting started in a personal mission out from the MI6 (although later he will enlist some of his confidence partners with him) that drives him from a enigmatic widow (Monica Bellucci steals the scene alongside Craig) to a beautiful and looking innocent Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux) until coming face to face to Franz Oberhauser (Christoph Waltz doing himself stills being fitted for the role and gives chills in his scenes with Craig).The story is bigger than Skyfall, Quantum and Casino Royale all together.
And marrying the credible word (political games, drones included) with the preposterous touch of any of the classic movies of Bond (Oberhauser, his hidden base, his plan) as well giving the Bond past a lot more of light and an effective closure by the end makes SPECTRE to succeed over any negative expectation and to give the audience the most entertaining outing coming from Craig and probably his best Bond yet (anyone knows if he's returning for another one even at another studio?).
It's clearly a movie for those of you who are truly fans of Craig's unique run, but for all the haters too (because that lack of Bondish elements are there and most notably than ever).The humor is back (a drunken conversation with a rat makes the funniest and most hilarious moment) even at times that you couldn't imagine (the torture scene is intense, much better than the classic one in Casino Royale, but handed with dark laughs at some parts).
But all the movie wants to be seen and experienced is explored and is a hell of a ride.SPECTRE is the most enjoyable Daniel Craig Bond film (and probably his farewell-with-a-bang), and the best Bond movie in recent memory.
My personal ranking of Daniel Craig as James Bond: SPECTRE (1º) / Skyfall - Casino Royale (2º, both deserve it) / Quantum of Solace (3º)..
Spectre is an amazing film.Daniel Craig once more is a fantastic 007 in his fourth appearance.Sam Mendes has directed a thrilling film and deserves a huge amount of credit because his target was to better Skyfall and he has succeeded without doubt.Dr Madeleine Swann is a magnificent Bond girl as she is highly intelligent and very attractive.Dave Bautista is an extremely physical henchman and the train fight is brutal,bringing back memories of the train fight in From Russia With Love(1963).Franz Oberhauser who is portrayed by Christoph Waltz is unbelievable in the film and is no doubt my favorite Bond villain.It's very clever how Sam Mendes has tied together the previous three films in to the film.Also the films ties together memories from the earlier films which is brilliant.The beginning of the film is extremely entertaining and is also throughout.The countries that are used in the film are very exotic and fantastic.M,Q,Tanner & Moneypenny also deserve credit for their appearances.The theme song makes sense once you've seen the film.The beginning of the film in Mexico is very entertaining.The ending is also fantastic.I can't wait for the 25th Bond to come out in the future.In my opinion this is the best Bond film in history.I hope Daniel Craig will once more portray 007 and that Sam Mendes will direct it.A truly excellent film - 10/10..
I have been a huge fan of Daniel Craig's portrayal of James Bond since 2006's "Casino Royale", but I also noticed that that film's immediate sequel, "Quantum of Solace", was a bit of a letdown after the former movie's strong performance.
I felt like it all came together to produce a fantastic addition to the 007 movies.If I had any lone minor criticism, it might simply be that unlike the 007 movies of the past, the Daniel Craig films do all share a common chronology, and so there are certainly hints of the three previous movies that pop up in "Spectre".
On guard, 007's seductive charisma is set aside as he fervently pursues vengeance for M and truth for himself.Daniel Craig has been James Bond for close to ten years now, a near unbelievable fact until you go back and realize the first film, Casino Royale, was released in 2006.
Excellent pacing, Great car chases, Great action sequences, Good drama, Not too much cheese, Brilliant nods to Bonds of old, Ties the Daniel Craig era up nicely.Did not feel like a 2.5hr film either.I would recommend any Bond fan see this film or any Bourne fan for that matter.The Bond girls in this film are also a lot better and more fleshed out than in previous Bonds.I just cannot fault Spectre!GO SEE!.
The plot of the movie is relevant and grand and does investigate the questions of today that are being thrust into the light by people like Edward Snowden.Relative to Skyfall, SPECTRE is a completely different kind of movie, sure it's still a Bond movie and there are certain things that one expects to get from a Bond movie and they are delivered in ways that will be classic in years to come.Bond's discovery of the organisation is handled very well and the glimpses of Waltz in the first act present images to Bond fans that are reminiscent of Pleasance shifting the bodyguard out of his line of sight or the metal door opening in the dark room to throw the shadow of Dr. No across the floor.
As always, a Bond film thrives first and foremost on the sophistication of its lead actor, and although Daniel Craig has proved his infallible refinement in previous installments, like "Casino Royale" (2006) and "Skyfall" (2012), his talents aren't supported nearly as much in "Spectre".
I really don't understand what the critics were smoking, in my opinion Skyfall was a good Bond film but very overrated and basically The Dark Knight with James Bond.Spectre in my opinion is far superior and finishes the overall arc of Daniel Craig's James Bond, depending on if he wants to make another or not.The music was great (apart from the Sam Smith theme), Acting, Action and story.
5. The movie repeated plot elements from prior Bond films in an almost blatant way, (and not for nostalgia like in Skyfall, but apparently because the writers have run out of ideas).
I knew what action scenes were coming up, the story itself wasn't that interesting, the chemistry between characters (other than Bond and Q) was tired to watch and the ending just seemed incredibly rushed; one minute they're dealing with this and then - boom - they're back in this country and doing this and that and over here to do this and fix this or fail at that and then do this and finish....Considering the rest of the film is dragged out...
The pace is just completely wrong.I hope this is Craig's last Bond film and Sam Mendes too; the directing skills he brought to Skyfall (whether you liked the story or not) were clearly a fluke..
As Bond fans we all have our favorites, but for me, I'd place SPECTRE as the best of Craig's Bonds - for me, better than Skyfall and equal to Casino Royale.But no matter how you like your Bond, this is certainly an entertaining film worth your time.
I don't understand why some critics comparing spectre and skyfall both are different type of bond films...and one should not compare both films of the same series..well just watched the spectre and once again Daniel Craig proves that he is the best bond with his superb acting Sem Mendis also proves that he can make such a great bond movies like skyfall and spectre and i personally want the same team to return for the Bond 25 which is expected yo be the Craig's last bond movie well i will not write so much about the plot but the performance of all the actors including (lea Sydoux, monica belucci, Christopher waltz ,ben whisshaw, and dave batista) were superb and spectre is fully entertaining ,wonderful and as awesome as skyfall and a true bond fan will love it...
The latest take on the famous British spy James Bond has been pretty worthwhile the last few years, starting with the great reboot 'Casino Royale', the average 'Quantum of Solace' and the best and my personal favourite 'Skyfall' which features the best plot, nods to the original and realistic action.
Naomie Harris(Pirates Of The Caribbean) as Eve MoneyPenny,Monica Bellucci(The Matrix Reloaded) as Luica Sicarra and Christoph Waltz(Inglorious Basterds,Django Unchained) as Franz Oberhauser/Ernst Blofield The films Main Villain.also the film is high octane thriller and it shows Why Global Surveillance is Wrong it also Linked The Previous 4 Bond Films Le Chiffre,Dominic Greene,Mr.White And Silva were all Part Of Spectre also I enjoyed That The Film Had Humor and wasn't Super Serious.Also amazing Production design from Dennis Gassner(Waterworld), Costumes Design by Jany Temime(Children Of Men),Cinematography by Hoyte Van Hoytema(Interstellar),Score By Thomas Newman(Serenity), Screenplay By John Logan(Gladiator), Neal Purvis(Quantum Of Solace), Jez Butterworth(Live.Die.Repeat:Edge Of Tomorrow) and Direction from Sam Mendes(Skyfall ) Second Best Bond Movie Of All Time 10/10.
It's a stunning visual coup, unprecedented for the series or in any other similar action film of recent years, and announces that Mendes, after making "Skyfall" (2012), is still interested in innovating within what has become a venerable British institution.Craig, reprising his role for the fourth (and it has been hinted, final) time, looks more relaxed and at ease as Bond than ever before.
If only it had a bit of a better script.All in all, it is one of the best James Bond films to watch and despite some very silly scenes and very cheesy things that happen throughout the movie, it is not enough to ruin the whole movie.
3.5/5 – Jay The latest take on the famous British spy James Bond has been pretty worthwhile the last few years, starting with the great reboot 'Casino Royale', the average 'Quantum of Solace' and the best and my personal favourite 'Skyfall' which features the best plot, nods to the original and realistic action.
It still follows Bond in his grips to do right for his life and lead him where he was meant to be, but his path crosses with an organization called 'Spectre' which holds a sinister plan and brings not only Bond to a surprising truth about his life but the past events (Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace and Skyfall) were conducted by the one organization.In terms of performances, the cast really nailed their roles but I tip my hat to Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz and the lovely Léa Seydoux who give the best moments for the film's character.
It still follows Bond in his grips to do right for his life and lead him where he was meant to be, but his path crosses with an organization called 'Spectre' which holds a sinister plan and brings not only Bond to a surprising truth about his life but the past events (Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace and Skyfall) were conducted by the one organization.In terms of performances, the cast really nailed their roles but I tip my hat to Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz and the lovely Léa Seydoux who give the best moments for the film's character.
From shoot-outs, fights on a helicopter and trains, chases and destruction, the film carries a fun spy-action spectacle that audiences know and love, the opening sequence alone was truly the best film openings for any Bond film ever.I know it's far too early to tell or even predict but I think Spectre will indeed earn some award nominations for technical achievements; to provide why it's cinematography, sound editing, mixing, music score and title song are all above great.
From shoot-outs, fights on a helicopter and trains, chases and destruction, the film carries a fun spy-action spectacle that audiences know and love, the opening sequence alone was truly the best film openings for any Bond film ever.I know it's far too early to tell or even predict but I think Spectre will indeed earn some award nominations for technical achievements; to provide why it's cinematography, sound editing, mixing, music score and title song are all above great.
It was like watching a more modern poorly executed rehash of the funeral scene from Live and Let Die.The storyline was slow, the action obviously false, and the monotone pathetic ramblings of Craig made the film exceedingly unwatchable and a total waste of time for me.I would rather have watched Chitty Chitty Bang Bang - at least that is well produced with an excellent interpretation of the original.IF the Bond franchise is to continue the Producers really need to get their heads out of their backsides..
It was about time to watch a film that it has all of these specific details that we've been used to in the past(Sean Connery's & Roger Moore's films).Spectre is a film that has the suspense,the plot,the action,the music and the style of an original Bond movie.I loved it and when i watched it, i had the same feeling as i was watching the films from the golden era of the James Bond movies,something that was missing for the last years.Spectre was the best by far among Daniel Craig's 'Bond' movies.I wish that every 007 movie from now on would be like this one, which was a return to the correct direction!!!I enjoyed it a lot!.
However, the action is topnotch and the fight sequences featuring Daniel Craig and Dave Batista are the movie's real highlight.Overall, Spectre proves to be a worthy addition to the James Bond film franchise but unlike Casino Royale and Skyfall it fails to leave a lasting impact.