![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=91.7){kind=small}
Quantum of Solace
This review contains spoilers.
I liked Casino Royale a lot, it was a real spy story rather than an action film, Bond was a brutal killing machine, rather than an innuendo dressed in a tuxedo, and there was a real story being told. The real story of Quantum of Solace is that some of the brave decisions that made Casino Royale such a good film are being gently unwound.
Take the car chase. In Casino Royale the car chase lasted about 20 seconds, if that, and ended in disaster for Bond. It was also heart pumping, edge of the seat stuff. The car chase that opens Quantum of Solace would have fitted into any other Bond film without much effort, there is sideswiping, traffic dodging, an off road detour and a very windy road in Italy. The direction is pacy, modern and in your face, but it's not the same.
Then there's the women. The real Bond girl in this one is Camille, a Bolivian Spy on a revenge mission who could easily have turned up opposite Moore, Brosnan, Dalton or Connery, although they'd have done the decent thing and eased her grief by seducing her. Craig just gives her useful advice on how to shoot people. I liked Vesper Lind, she was no use in a fight, her only notable skills were that she was really good at accounting and could correctly estimate a mans suit size - but she had real character and had something close to a relationship of equals with Bond. The compulsary second Bond girl in Quantum is Fields (we only learn that her first name is Strawberry in the credits), she lasts about three minutes of screen time, wears the least likely trench coat in the history of espionage and completely fails to be a babe. Indeed if the point of her encounter with Bond is to illustrate his use and dispose attitude to women, one is also left wondering why he chooses to use and dispose the woman who does the paperwork rather than someone more interesting.
There are also endless visual references to other Bond films. Walking out of a desert in evening dress, a goldfinger style killing, the aforementioned car chase. Bond is recalled to London and has his passport taken away. There are even references to the last Bond film, this Bond it seems is constantly chasing adversaries who make rooftop escapes and death defying leaps. The chase that opened Casino Royale was superb and different, given that Quantum is essentially one long chase a bit more imagination around these elements would have helped.
Still, despite the concern that in an effort to get more 'Bond' elements into the mix the production has taken a backward step there's still plenty to like. Although the story is basically one long chase it does expose an interesting set of plots as Bond seeks to find out just who was responsible for Vesper's demise. In providing a villain who is only one part of a larger network, and who's dastardly plan is only a small part of a much greater conspiracy with influence everywhere a pleasing sense of paranoia is introduced. The British and American governments are shown to be pragmatic, amoral entities rather than principled forces for good. You don't get the feeling anyone was going to send Bond a medal for halting the coup.
Indeed in Quantum the script writers seem to have come up with a very good bad guy for the 21st century. A loose network, a leaderless? organisation with no guiding principles beyond its own ambition. A sort of proto illuminati on the verge of making its play for domination, and an organisation which most of the world's intelligence communities simply don't believe in.
One thing that I like, but others haven't is the balance of power when the fighting starts. While most Bonds are constantly coming up against psychotic killing machines they were outmatched by our new man is a psychotic killing machine who scares the villains. Sure some of the bad guys give him a hard time, but it's mostly the bodyguards. This to me is how it should be, in a confused and murky world Bond is a bullet carving relentlessly toward the heart of the issue. His foes are cunning, devious and well resourced but if he can just work out who they are and get close enough they're doomed. That's what the 00's are for.
Overall, a good effort but not quite in the Casino Royale class. Next time we need more imagination and less of the formula stuff.
Then again, there's always 'A Quantum of Hitlers'
I liked Casino Royale a lot, it was a real spy story rather than an action film, Bond was a brutal killing machine, rather than an innuendo dressed in a tuxedo, and there was a real story being told. The real story of Quantum of Solace is that some of the brave decisions that made Casino Royale such a good film are being gently unwound.
Take the car chase. In Casino Royale the car chase lasted about 20 seconds, if that, and ended in disaster for Bond. It was also heart pumping, edge of the seat stuff. The car chase that opens Quantum of Solace would have fitted into any other Bond film without much effort, there is sideswiping, traffic dodging, an off road detour and a very windy road in Italy. The direction is pacy, modern and in your face, but it's not the same.
Then there's the women. The real Bond girl in this one is Camille, a Bolivian Spy on a revenge mission who could easily have turned up opposite Moore, Brosnan, Dalton or Connery, although they'd have done the decent thing and eased her grief by seducing her. Craig just gives her useful advice on how to shoot people. I liked Vesper Lind, she was no use in a fight, her only notable skills were that she was really good at accounting and could correctly estimate a mans suit size - but she had real character and had something close to a relationship of equals with Bond. The compulsary second Bond girl in Quantum is Fields (we only learn that her first name is Strawberry in the credits), she lasts about three minutes of screen time, wears the least likely trench coat in the history of espionage and completely fails to be a babe. Indeed if the point of her encounter with Bond is to illustrate his use and dispose attitude to women, one is also left wondering why he chooses to use and dispose the woman who does the paperwork rather than someone more interesting.
There are also endless visual references to other Bond films. Walking out of a desert in evening dress, a goldfinger style killing, the aforementioned car chase. Bond is recalled to London and has his passport taken away. There are even references to the last Bond film, this Bond it seems is constantly chasing adversaries who make rooftop escapes and death defying leaps. The chase that opened Casino Royale was superb and different, given that Quantum is essentially one long chase a bit more imagination around these elements would have helped.
Still, despite the concern that in an effort to get more 'Bond' elements into the mix the production has taken a backward step there's still plenty to like. Although the story is basically one long chase it does expose an interesting set of plots as Bond seeks to find out just who was responsible for Vesper's demise. In providing a villain who is only one part of a larger network, and who's dastardly plan is only a small part of a much greater conspiracy with influence everywhere a pleasing sense of paranoia is introduced. The British and American governments are shown to be pragmatic, amoral entities rather than principled forces for good. You don't get the feeling anyone was going to send Bond a medal for halting the coup.
Indeed in Quantum the script writers seem to have come up with a very good bad guy for the 21st century. A loose network, a leaderless? organisation with no guiding principles beyond its own ambition. A sort of proto illuminati on the verge of making its play for domination, and an organisation which most of the world's intelligence communities simply don't believe in.
One thing that I like, but others haven't is the balance of power when the fighting starts. While most Bonds are constantly coming up against psychotic killing machines they were outmatched by our new man is a psychotic killing machine who scares the villains. Sure some of the bad guys give him a hard time, but it's mostly the bodyguards. This to me is how it should be, in a confused and murky world Bond is a bullet carving relentlessly toward the heart of the issue. His foes are cunning, devious and well resourced but if he can just work out who they are and get close enough they're doomed. That's what the 00's are for.
Overall, a good effort but not quite in the Casino Royale class. Next time we need more imagination and less of the formula stuff.
Then again, there's always 'A Quantum of Hitlers'
Comments