James Bond: Skyfall <SPOILERS>

[Clinkster]

Very boring, terrible writing. Felt more like a run of the mill modern action than any bond movie I've seen.

 

[dr150]

It was disappointing. I put it on par with Quantum of Solace. Casino Royale's excellence will never be touched

i'm quite sure you mean "on her majesty's secret service's excellence will never be touched." no hard feelings, old boy.

Completely agree. OHMSS is the best Bond movie ever. :thumbsup:

 

[fustercluck]

Everyone i've talked to about it was disappointed as well but the reviews for the movie (both critic and audience) are gangbusters. I mean it wasn't a bad movie by any means but a Bond movie should be great, not just ok.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I was really disappointed in the opening sequence after all the hype surrounding it and the movie seemed to move slowly to me. As a result of that (and a big dinner beforehand), I fell asleep during a huge chunk of the movie. So I'll need to watch it again once it is out on blu-ray to be able to give a fair opinion, but I also thought that

Spoiler

the showdown at the end was boring and I especially thought the way Silva died was really anti-climactic and lame as well.

Everyone i've talked to about it was disappointed as well but the reviews for the movie (both critic and audience) are gangbusters. I mean it wasn't a bad movie by any means but a Bond movie should be great, not just ok.

Even my wife said she was mildly disappointed, and she is a huge Daniel Craig fan.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

goldeneye is the best bond film :sneaky:

I thought Goldeneye was "meh" when I saw it in the theater in 95, but subsequent views have led me to think that it is probably Brosnan's best Bond movie and a good overall Bond movie. The problem I have with Craig's portrayal is that they seem to go a little overboard on the "dark, gritty realism" and there is very little humor. No, I don't want them to return to the cheesefests of Roger Moore, but I'd like a little more humor.

And FWIW, Goldeneye did have the best opening sequence of any Bond even if it was unbelievable.

 

[StrangerGuy]

Never been too impressed by the new Jason Bourne Bond myself.

 

[mikeymikec]

My favourite Bond movies (no particular order):

OHMSS
Casino Royale
Probably a couple like FRWL or Goldfinger
Tomorrow Never Dies (honourable mention)

I thought QoS wasn't very good at all, lots of action, very little substance. I liked the ending with the Canadian agent, and I liked Bond mentoring the woman wanting revenge.

Skyfall was significantly better than QoS IMO. The ending was a little bit weak but still good enough to not topple the whole film.

I really liked the woman's acting, the one who betrays her boss, the scene where Bond spots that her bodyguards are keeping an eye on her behaviour rather than purely guarding her safety. I liked the general, 'unusual for Bond movies' plot (ie. the whole of MI6's security is compromised). I liked M having a semi-skeleton in her closet, depending on one's point of view.

However the computer element was almost as weak as in the film Swordfish - I mean, FFS, they've just retreated to (essentially) a minimal, tech-free-as-possible bunker because they know their systems have just been massively compromised, but a) they give network access to a computer belonging to a hostile agent and b) the cell holding said agent is controlled on the same network (when the agent is known to have very decent computer skills), and c) why is the cell purely controlled by computer? I can understand some level of computer control/monitoring of the cell, but does the computer doing that even have to be on the same physical network as the rest? Then the whole "ooh, let's give a 3D display to a virus-type-thing" and Bond spotting some sort of password, and I give this segment a solid 5 stars for sheer WTF'ness.

Some people will probably question my need for realism on this point, but IMO it would be like Bond suddenly being able to do bullet curving a la the film 'Wanted', or the stupid bloody invincible car scene in 'Die Another Day'. I'm fine with a bit of computer fictional trickery, like some sort of device that can auto-hack almost any computer on a network like in Iron Man 2 (as long as it isn't used to bridge otherwise huge plot flaws), but the sort of sheer bullshit like in 'Die Hard 4.0' with spotting a heat signature from a building over the Internet or the encryption system that wasn't encryption at all in 'Die Hard 4.0' again, or 'backing up all the important stuff on the Internet' in 'Die Hard 4.0' again, sorry, way too far.

I have Casino Royale, Tomorrow Never Dies and OHMSS on DVD. I'm not sure about Skyfall, I might pick it up cheaply at some point.

I loved OHMSS and Casino Royale because they portrayed Bond to be much more human while not turning him into a love-sick puppy or something distinctly non-masculine.

I liked bits of Goldeneye, though Famke Janssen's character who goes all orgasmic at the oddest moments was just a bit weird and 'this is what the writer thinks someone into BDSM might be like'. I loved Bond's first encounter with M in that movie, I suspect it set the scene for Casino Royale's relationship between M and Bond.

 

[xSauronx]

However the computer element was almost as weak as in the film Swordfish - I mean, FFS, they've just retreated to (essentially) a minimal, tech-free-as-possible bunker because they know their systems have just been massively compromised, but a) they give network access to a computer belonging to a hostile agent and b) the cell holding said agent is controlled on the same network (when the agent is known to have very decent computer skills), and c) why is the cell purely controlled by computer? I can understand some level of computer control/monitoring of the cell, but does the computer doing that even have to be on the same physical network as the rest? Then the whole "ooh, let's give a 3D display to a virus-type-thing" and Bond spotting some sort of password, and I give this segment a solid 5 stars for sheer WTF'ness.

this is probably the biggest thing that bothered me. the movie was fun, a bit too over the top at times but fun. but this element was ridiculous.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

Just saw the movie recently. You guys are tripping. One of the best Bonds ever and on par if not better than Casino Royale.

 

[KeithTalent]

Dark Knight + Home Alone = Skyfail.

KT

 

[coldmeat]

I went into it expecting to be disappointed because of what I saw people posting here but I thought it was great. Sure there were plot holes, but it's an action movie and I can look past that. If everything was realistic, a story like this or a person like Bond couldn't exist.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

The scenes were amazingly shot as well. I couldnt help but be amazed by the colors. Shanghai skyscraper and Macau were the best.

 

[KeithTalent]

The scenes were amazingly shot as well. I couldnt help but be amazed by the colors. Shanghai skyscraper and Macau were the best.

Yeah Deakins is by far the best thing about this film. It definitely looked amazing.

KT

 

[Farmer]

The Craig Bonds are the best Bonds ever (I mean QoS was at least on par with the Brosnan films), but no Bond film is a "great" film. I would place Skyfall on par with Casino Royale.

 

[zinfamous]

i'm quite sure you mean "on her majesty's secret service's excellence will never be touched." no hard feelings, old boy.

I can get behind this statement.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

The Craig Bonds are the best Bonds ever (I mean QoS was at least on par with the Brosnan films), but no Bond film is a "great" film. I would place Skyfall on par with Casino Royale.

I dont count QoS since it was during the writer's strike and Craig said himself afterwards that he sucks at writing.

 

[zinfamous]

I thought Goldeneye was "meh" when I saw it in the theater in 95, but subsequent views have led me to think that it is probably Brosnan's best Bond movie and a good overall Bond movie. The problem I have with Craig's portrayal is that they seem to go a little overboard on the "dark, gritty realism" and there is very little humor. No, I don't want them to return to the cheesefests of Roger Moore, but I'd like a little more humor.

And FWIW, Goldeneye did have the best opening sequence of any Bond even if it was unbelievable.

To be honest, I think Craig's version is the closest to the character that Ian Flemming first creating. If you go back and watch Dr No, you'll notice that Connery is very, very different than how we've come to remember him.

He is very direct, very forceful--there is some mild smattering of coolness, but nothing like what his Bond became with the next 2 flicks. Bond is supposed to be a disturbed asshole, to put it mildly. The one thing, in my mind, that Craig doesn't bring yet, that Connery did so well--was that coolness.

I will always want Bond to discover a double agent simply by spotting an incongruity with his wine choice for dinner, or notice that his Omega has the wrong date stenciled in for that model, or that his Russian accent isn't really Russian and the way that he swallows the last syllable of consonated words is indicative of a dialect unique to some obscure southern culture in the Ukraine, etc.

I still think Craig is the best since Connery, and I only hope that with the turnover and re-establishment we get with the end of Skyfall (the one-liners and coyness seem to be returning), we might get to see more of that cool.

 

[zinfamous]

Dark Knight + Home Alone = Skyfail.

KT

I chortled at that...and was thinking the same thing while watching this sequence.

Yeah Deakins is by far the best thing about this film. It definitely looked amazing.

KT

agree with that. didn't know it until the opening credits, either. I knew Bardem, Craig, Dench; saw Fiennes, then Deakins, Mendes...holy crap! This can not fail!

:\

 

[Pia]

Some parts are great, and there's some good acting in there, but the movie as a whole is disjointed and frankly not very good. Plenty of stuff they should have left out. Some of it is weird and fails to add anything. (When did you last see a movie where the main character is presumed dead for months, and their return has *zero* drama or actual effect on plot?) Some is jarring, like the shout-outs to past Bond movies. And some is retarded. There seemed to be disagreement among my friends about which scenes / plot twists / rationalizations are the worst, but everyone found something to hate.

The CR reboot remains the best Bond movie, too bad the newest movies haven't kept pace with that.

 

[quackagator]

So when Moneypenny didnt have a clean shot at the badguy, was ordered to take a shot and shot Bond instead, why didnt she empty the clip into the badguy when Bond fell off the train?!

oh btw- In this reboot of Bond, Moneypenny is a field agent

Didn't have time. Tunnel came up almost right away

 

[cKGunslinger]

I thought it was pretty good. I did enjoy the feeling of the ending, looping back around to the traditional opening.

I think they overplayed the "sometimes the old ways are best" theme too often. It's like Spiderman's "With great power.." motto. We get it - you don't have to look into the camera and repeat it every 10 minutes.

Better than Solace, for sure. Not quite up there with Casino.

 

[skim milk]

I thought it was average. The shots in shanghai and macau with those vibrant colors were amazing though.

 

[sdifox]

never listened to Adele b4. Great voice.
Her theme song for skyfall reminds me of tina Turner's Goldeneye.

As for the movie itself, cant wait!


edit:
Judi Dench's contract as M expires with Skyfall. The studio isnt renewing.
Ralph Fiennes has signed on to be the new M in future films.

How did you avoid hearing Adele? Practically every radio sation played her non stop for the last year and half.

 

[silverpig]

I thought it was a pretty good movie. Casino Royale is still my favourite, but Skyfall was solid. QoS was forgettable.

 

[Leros]

How did you avoid hearing Adele? Practically every radio sation played her non stop for the last year and half.

It was my first time hearing Adele as well. I don't listen to the radio or watch tv, so I tend to be fairly ignorant of pop culture.