Rating of
3.5/4
Review: Skyfall
MikePA - wrote on 11/12/12
I'll admit it - I was never so big on the 007 movies. I've seen parts of some of them, but I can't exactly tell you which one was which and who played Bond in them. I understand that Casino Royale is apparently the best film featuring Daniel Craig as James Bond. If that's the case, I gotta watch Casino Royale ASAP, because I loved the hell out of Skyfall.
Smart, riveting, and occasionally dark and gritty, Sam Mendes' Skyfall is a fantastic piece of entertainment. Flat-out terrific. It's a beautifully crafted spectacle with great performances all around and thrilling action sequences. Having not seen many of the other Bond movies I obviously can't compare performances, but I thought Daniel Craig was great as 007. He was chill, slick, a supreme badass, and when necessary, pretty funny. The supporting cast were all good, as well, including Javier Bardem who nailed it as the villain, Silva, and Judi Dench as M, the head of MI6. The film co-stars Ralph Fiennes as Mallory (M's boss), Naomie Harris as Eve, and Ben Whishaw as Q, who are all very good, too.
The movie opens with an incredible chase scene in Turkey, in which James Bond and Eve are on a mission to recover a computer disk that contains information of undercover British agents. Cars roll, motorcycles crash, and bullets are fired. A motorcycle chase on rooftops eventually leads to a brawl on top of a moving train between Bond and the man who has the disk. When Eve is ordered by M to "take the bloody shot," she accidently shoots Bond instead of the target. Bond falls off the train into the water and is believed to be dead. This action sequence is one hell of a rush, and the best of the year. Mendes keeps the energy high, while making it very intense and devoid of CGI. Some of the stunts may be beyond absurd, but that's the fun of it. After the chase is an interesting title sequence featuring Adele's song, "Skyfall." Some might roll their eyes, but I totally dug it.
M is in big, big trouble for losing that list. She is given the opportunity to retire, but she refuses to until the problem is resolved. Her computer is hacked by a mysterious villain, and MI6 is blown to bits as well as many workers. Bond returns, telling M he's been "enjoying death." Bond is put on a mission by M to find out who this mysterious bad guy is who has all of the information. Turns out this mysterious villain is Silva, a menacing, darkly funny, possibly bi-sexual computer hacker who puts MI6 and the life of M in danger.
Skyfall is bloody brilliant. Each shot is beautifully composed by cinematographer Roger Deakins. You're constantly given something cool to look at, even in the action sequences, which are all shot steadily and coherently. Visually it's astonishing, especially in the sequences that take place in Shanghai. Director Sam Mendes gives the film a very cool and classy feel, which I loved.
One of the best things about Skyfall is the screenplay. I liked that writers John Logan, Neal Purvis, and Robert Wade give the characters humanity and realism - James Bond and M, especially. They give the film substance and we explore a little bit of Bond's backstory. Bond and M are given a lot of depth and good development as they journey through this horrifying mission - they're too old for this crap! Even Silva is given some kind of depth, and as much of a d**khead he is, I really liked him. He always has an awesome entrance. I really enjoyed him as a villain and his motives to chase after M. The final action sequence is riveting, and the big finale works emotionally, though you kind of see it coming.
Skyfall had me hooked from start to finish. I loved every minute of it, and I can't wait to see it again. And again.
3.5/4
