Skyfall

[Gopher]

Very very good, bordering on great. I loved the commentary on the state of Bond and old-school spy thrillers. Clearly they departed from the Bourne-wannabe QOS and made a movie that had the gravitas of Casino Royale and the larger-than-life fun of Goldfinger and the like. But they actually tried to justify the existence of stories like these and followed through with it in the third act. It tried things that most Bond movies wouldn't dare touch while remaining ridiculously fun. Opening and Shanghai were beautiful. Macao looked pretty but probably the film's biggest problem area. Neither of the Bond girls made much of an impression (though you could argue the real Bond girl of the movie is M!) and the CGI reptiles were too much camp. But then Bardem showed up, and the rest of the movie- while borrowing from The Dark Knight and Home Alone a bit too obviously- was pretty much awesome.The debate over whether or not Sean Connery should have played the owner of Skyfall is interesting. It would have made the weight of Bond's past all the more stronger, but it could have distracted from the rather great third act.

[keysersoze123]

I really liked it. Action scenes were among the best I have seen(especially the opening action scene). Cinematography was out of the world. This was easily Craig's best as a bond and I would say as good as a Connery's best. Screenplay was very good.Bardem was good but not that good as what was hyped. I almost expected ledger kind of performance. Rest of the actors were good(except Dench) but nothing great. Judi Dench has the best role outside bond and she was great. It also had a great finish with Fiennes as M and Harris as moneypenny.Overall great effort after a mediocre QOS. But I like CR slightly more than this.

[ACCA]

A good film, I really liked some parts, loved other parts, but a few parts disappointed me.This had the potential to be an absolutely BRILLIANT film. Skyfall had the potential to be the BEST film of the year, to be better than any other contenders this year... but Sam Mendes just couldn't pull it off.First off, the script was excellent, I really liked almost everything about the script. The cinematography was amazing, Deakins was a little bit influenced by Pfister and his Dark Knight and Inception work, but it was still excellent. The music was solid, but nothing spectacular. The acting was great for the most part. Bardem's performance was phenomenal; so sadistic, yet cynical and macabre, and even a hint of diabolical. Craig was really great as Bond, and Berenice Marlohe as Severine was amazing as well. The supporting cast of Fiennes and Wishaw was solid, and Dench was good as M, but she overacted in some parts. The action and special effects were top notch in the film as well, just amazing work on that front.I liked how they combined the old school and new school lines of thought in the film. Traditional ways mixed in with state of the art technological ways. I thought it was very well done.The influence of The Dark Knight, Inception, and Home Alone didn't really bother me, I didn't mind it.Now as to what detracted from the film, and kept it from being brilliant:The way Mendes used Severine in the film. She was only on screen for a grand total of a few minutes. As the main Bond girl in the film, that was insulting to me. In every Bond film, the Bond girl should always have a decent amount of screen time. Not only is Berenic Marlohe beautiful, but her performance on screen, as short as it was, was just breathtaking. During the intimate conversation with Bond, the way she kept smiling and laughing during the conversation while showing how distraught and terrified she was ... to me that was incredible acting. Also the way she shook and shuddered when Silva kissed her, that was amazing acting as well. Royale and Quantum both set a pattern of the Bond girls having meaningful roles on screen, and a decent amount of screen time as well. It was extremely disappointing to see how little screen time Severine had. And no, Moneypenny's screen time in the film doesn't count, as she wasn't really the main Bond girl in the movie. There was mention of Bond trying to save Severine, and she played her role as a tortured soul brilliantly, yet we never saw Bond even get a chance to try and save her. My second problem was Silva. Bardem performed brilliantly with the character, I loved it... but I felt he was underused, and they should have done more with the character. This has nothing to do with Bardem, but a lot to do with Mendes. There was SO much huge potential with Silva after his sadistic speech while imprisoned, yet Mendes mostly wasted it. Particularly in the 3rd act, I expected much more of a showdown between Bond and Silva. Yet the way it ended was very underwhelming.Also the action ... as amazing as it was, there just wasn't enough of it.Now Mendes didn't write the film, and he directed the script he had ... BUT, as director, he had the power and leeway to make minor script changes, or to film his own little scenes or performances not listed in the script. A script is essentially a general outline; it doesn't tell you exactly every step and every single thing to do while filming. Things like improv, or fleshing out a scene is all up to the director, and I thought that Mendes fell flat in that regard. Mendes also included too many redundant scenes, such as Bond and M staring out into the countryside, and M asking Bond silly questions she already knew the answer to.Overall I give the film a very solid B+, and extremely close to an A-.Hopefully the next Bond they get a more capable director, as I felt Mendes just wasn't the best fit.

[Hatebox]

The screentime of the 'main' Bond girl seems to be a common complaint, but it didn't bother me. I got the impression my cinema was genuinely surprised when she bit the bullet, and if sacrificing the primary love interest early on heightens the intensity of the villain then so be it. That said, we've now had 2 films in a row without an iconic Bond girl. The next installment should buck that trend.

[baumer]

I liked it but found it a mixed bag. On one hand, there were some pieces that blew me away. The train fight at the beginning left me breathless and the last stand at Bond's Bourne castle left me feeling the same. But I too wanted more from Bardem's character. He was so well played and his thoughts and speech were such a hoot to listen to, that when his demise is the way it is, it felt like we were cheated out of something. I'm not going to say a lot about this, as many of you already have and I like Acca's review, it sums it up beautifully. I liked it and would probably see it again, but I just didn't love it.7/10

[The Creator]

Probably my 4th favorite Bond film behind From Russia, with Love; Goldfinger; and Thunderball, but just slightly above On Her Majesty's Secret Service and Casino Royale.

[acsc1312]

First hour or so: B/B+. Shanghai scene, Bardem intro through the end: A. Overall A-

[filmscholar]

I give it a B- I felt technically the movie was great, of course Sam is a really good director. It was very well acted also. The throwback Bond homages were pretty good. My complaint was the screenplay/story. I'm sorry but the "X-Agent coming for Revenge" has been done to death as well as the "Steal the undercover agent list". These plot points again are played out, they could of came up with a better story than that. Javier was clearly under used. He came into the movie about 1 hour 10 minutes in. The Bond Girls were non-resistant. Also how are you going to bring in "Q" but this has to be the most lack of gadgets for a Bond Movie in history. The Ending was very anti-climatic but I did like the whole house scene. But I don't know about that strategy Lock yourself in a house and put "Home Alone" booby traps in it? Also Javiar death was anti climatic. So the movie had more flaws than critics were willing to admit. But it was still solid. Better than Solice, Can't put it over Royale.

Edited November 22, 2012 by filmscholar

[filmscholar]

Also I loved the Opening Sequence under water with the Adele song, that was very Classic bond.

[Phil in the Blank]

One of the best films of the year.Seriously go see it if you havn't before its too late.

[Water Bottle]

One of the best Bond movies ever created.

A

[DAR]

Succeeded in not being just a great James Bond film but a great film in and of itself. I thought it was absolutely tremendous. I love Connery I have a soft spot for him as Bond. But Craig has just been fantastic in all of these films. And I loved that Q was given something to do in this other than just show up for a few minutes and show us the latest gadgets. Loved it. A

[tommycruise]

Very strong in many regards, including the acting, cinematogrophy, action(although I felt it should have used more) and didn't feel campy despite having a lot of funny parts. One of the things I really liked was the removal of the gadgets which gave it a more serious tone and took out the campiness. Furthermore Bardem gave a brilliant performance but his character reminded me of the joker a little too much. I also felt it could have used more action in the middle parts because I felt the movie drag a little in some parts. But for what its worth I felt like it was a great movie and it easily one of the better bond movies.A-

[Ozymandias]

Very strong in many regards, including the acting, cinematogrophy, action(although I felt it should have used more) and didn't feel campy despite having a lot of funny parts. One of the things I really liked was the removal of the gadgets which gave it a more serious tone and took out the campiness. Furthermore Bardem gave a brilliant performance but his character reminded me of the joker a little too much. I also felt it could have used more action in the middle parts because I felt the movie drag a little in some parts. But for what its worth I felt like it was a great movie and it easily one of the better bond movies.

A-

I don't understand this. I never once thought of the Joker during this movie. Yeah, he is captured and escapes in similar fashion, but the character himself? Bleh.

[DAR]

When he pulled out his teeth, that was very creepy.

[rockNrollaDIM]

Skyfall is this year's MI4. Solid, pulpy, popcorn fun at the theater. Judi Dench gives the standout performance in this though Craig is great as Bond as usual. I'm not completely sold on Bardem's villain role, it's been four days and I already forget the character's name, but he was good enough. I just feel like every big budget franchise movie tries and fails to replicate The Joker with their big baddie, and it never hits. Anyway- very enjoyable actioner and obviously redemption from shit on a stick QOS.8/10

Edited November 27, 2012 by Silver Linings aDIM

[rockNrollaDIM]

Also I loved the Opening Sequence under water with the Adele song, that was very Classic bond.

Me too. That was awesome. The song might be the best thing to come from the movie. Not to take away from how fun it was.

[DAR]

Another thing I loved was how Silva's introduction was shot. I got a Lawrence of Arabia feel(when he walked from the elevator to Bond.)

[Vanilla]

"ahh, where's your training for this" Love Bardems introduction scene. One of the best scenes of the year.

[Webslinger]

Skyfall is, all at once, the best Bond film in decades (even a cut above Daniel Craig's first outing, Casino Royale), quite possibly the best pure action movie since The Bourne Ultimatum, and one of the best movies of the year to date. It starts off extremely promising with a spectacular action set piece in Istanbul, and makes good on that promise throughout the remainder of its running time. In addition to boasting some truly show-stopping action setpieces, it also works quite well as a cerebral character study. As in Casino Royale, this Bond is not the invincible superhero of the Brosnan era, but rather a flawed, vulnerable flesh-and-blood human being. Once again, Daniel Craig succeeds in playing a deep Bond who is clearly shaped by his past, whether that past is mentioned explicitly in this film (like the references to the death of his parents) or not (like Vesper's death in Casino Royale, which is never alluded to yet still seems relevant in considering the emotional distance he keeps from the potential Bond girls in this film). With Craig, we can believe that this is a cold, bitter man who channels his coldness into his job. Bond's relationship to M is also explored in more detailed and satisfying fashion than ever before, and Judi Dench does what is easily her best work in this role. Across the other six Bond films she has appeared in, Dench succeeded in making M an entertaining presence and providing light authoritative opposition to Bond; here, she seems like a genuinely remorseful person who must, to paraphrase the words of the lead villain, think on the sins she has committed in the context of her job. It's decidedly introspective work, and Dench nails it. Javier Bardem is also terrific as a relatively personally-motivated villain, allowing a perversely charismatic exterior to cloak a darker, more vile interior (and man, he and Craig go to town on the homoerotic subtext in their first scene together). It shouldn't come as much of a surprise that the performances are so strong under the direction of Sam Mendes, but what is surprising is the terrific handle he has over the action; every set piece is thrilling, and precision of Stuart Baird's editing lends plenty of tension to them. It's also incredibly pretty to look at thanks to the superb cinematography by Roger Deakins. Given how well the film sets up future installments in its last five minutes, I'm very excited to see where the filmmakers go next with this particular iteration of the character. I liked Quantum of Solace just fine, but Skyfall blows it out of the water and reminds us of just how great these films can be when they latch on to the right story and tone.

A