Jared J. H. CatapanoQuantum of Solace
December 13th 2008 23:31
As a child of the Pierce Brosnan’s James Bond films, I was extremely apprehensive of Daniel Craig taking over the role. Surely Brosnan is not, I believe by anyone’s standards, the best of the actors in this classic line of cinema but at first it’s all about which Bond you remember being ‘the’ James Bond. By the end, you make an informed decision and mine has always been Mr Connery. But that is neither here nor there. The newest two Bond films have gone in a very different direction than all of the previous. Craig portrays agent 007 as an off-the-cuff character with rage and a twist of insanity (not included, necessarily, in his martini). I enjoyed Casino Royale, but it has been nearly two years to the day since it opened and I have forgotten most of the plot points, which proved to be problematic. If you’re planning to go see this film, I would seriously recommend rewatching its chronological predecessor. Your problems will otherwise entail being incredibly confused throughout the first thirty minutes. References are made, characters are discussed, it’s a real problem. This is my major writing and directorial issue. Give the audience credit, but please throw us a flashback or perhaps clearer references than, ‘Jackie was a good bloke… I miss him.’ Is it possible they’re asking us to go rent or purchase Casino Royale afterward only to purchase a second ticket to make the connections? I doubt it, but it’d be a hell of a marketing ploy.
After the initial attempts of trying to remember what happened in the previous story line, the film became more interested in itself and, therefore, more enjoyable. Craig is almost as cold-blooded as his villainous counterpart. He seems to be obsessed with not screwing up like he did in Royale. What Haggis et al do with this Bond is create a character who is morally ambiguous. For one of the first times I wondered whether or not I should really like this guy. You know he’s end is righteous, but the means are sometimes hard to swallow. It only becomes more problematic once we see the theme of betrayal dominating and creating more questions of reason and morality.
Amalric, Quantum’s villain, plays an excellent sniveling Frenchman looking to dominate an essential Bolivian resource. Indeed, he isn’t as chaotic evil as, say, Dr No or Mr Big but he still retains that world dominance addiction albeit on a smaller scale. And he has the charming characteristic of throwing anyone and everyone who’s expendable in his operation under the bus. The nihilistic evil-doer is alive and well in this piece.
I would certainly recommend seeing this film, but don’t expect anything spectacular. Do expect a few interesting fight scenes that aren’t terribly well shot and are mostly in Borne Identity vein, some fun explosions and special effects, a few good jokes, and a very well performing cast. I won’t say ‘don’t waste a moment,’ but if you have the opportunity, go check it out.
After the initial attempts of trying to remember what happened in the previous story line, the film became more interested in itself and, therefore, more enjoyable. Craig is almost as cold-blooded as his villainous counterpart. He seems to be obsessed with not screwing up like he did in Royale. What Haggis et al do with this Bond is create a character who is morally ambiguous. For one of the first times I wondered whether or not I should really like this guy. You know he’s end is righteous, but the means are sometimes hard to swallow. It only becomes more problematic once we see the theme of betrayal dominating and creating more questions of reason and morality.
Amalric, Quantum’s villain, plays an excellent sniveling Frenchman looking to dominate an essential Bolivian resource. Indeed, he isn’t as chaotic evil as, say, Dr No or Mr Big but he still retains that world dominance addiction albeit on a smaller scale. And he has the charming characteristic of throwing anyone and everyone who’s expendable in his operation under the bus. The nihilistic evil-doer is alive and well in this piece.
I would certainly recommend seeing this film, but don’t expect anything spectacular. Do expect a few interesting fight scenes that aren’t terribly well shot and are mostly in Borne Identity vein, some fun explosions and special effects, a few good jokes, and a very well performing cast. I won’t say ‘don’t waste a moment,’ but if you have the opportunity, go check it out.
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