Skyfall

Skyfall is directed by Sam Mendes and collectively written by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and John Logan. It stars Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Bérénice Marlohe and Albert Finney. Music is scored by Thomas Newman and cinematography is by Roger Deakins.Bond 23 and 007 has to literally come back from the dead when a stolen hard-drive makes M (Dench) look bad at a time when a face from her past comes homing into blood thirsty view.There is one sure fire fact in cinema that nobody can dispute, that of there never ever being a James Bond film that all Bondphiles will agree on. From each corner of the spectrum will come arguments that said Bond film is not gritty enough, not fun enough, not enough sex, not enough action, not enough fantastical stunts and etc etc etc. Well that's fine of course, we all have our peccadilloes we prefer in our Bond movies, but we do live in different times now, the world has changed, and so has Bond. You may not get the ultimate Bond you want, but this is a 21st Century Bond and a new era of 007 is upon us, something which makes Skyfall even the more bolder and braver because it marks the 50th anniversary by blending the old with the new and mostly achieving brilliant results.Skyfall allows us to bathe in nostalgia whilst also forcing us to re-evaluate just where we are at in terms of our beloved super secret agent. One of the great things about this Bond is that there is a bubbling under current of time's importance delicately perched on each side of James Bond's shoulders. Is he (and M etc) outdated? Or is the future still in need of such operatives/organisations? Director Mendes and his team don't take any of the easy options that were clearly available to them to answer the question, they instead build a film around Bond and M as characters, embrace the traditions of the series and hit us hard in head and heart.The plot of Skyfall as written is simple, absolutely nailed on it is straight and true to Hollywood conventions, but what fills out the simple plot is a series of Bondian delights, thrills spills and emotionally splintered kills. The stunning pre-credits sequence sees Bond traverse the rooftops of Istanbul on a motorcycle and then fight on top of a speeding train. Only to then find himself expendable. Which leads to Daniel Kleinman's title credits sequence that is filled with ominous portents of death and blood, in turn backed by the wonderfully Bondian of old title song warbled by Adele. It's clear at this point that this Bond movie is nodding to traditional values whilst promising to deliver some emotional pain. And so it proves.A washed up Bond enters the fray, and he convinces, he's dishevelled, unshaven and unfit, but he's still a tough bastard who can drink hard and stare a scorpion down. He'll be back soon, we know this, and he will be in wonderful physical shape, and loyal to his surrogate mother for sure. Ah, but there's the adversary on the scene now, a villain to finally give Craig's Bond something to fret about. It's Javier Bardem's (perfect) Silva, a cyber terrorist with a shock of blonde hair, a nasty dental trick and a devilish sexiness that unnerves during an interrogation scene; to which Bond cheekily opens up some wink wink possibilities. There is other sexual tension in the film as well, not just a steamy shower scene, but the ongoing banter with Naomie Harris' (excellent) Eve that positively fizzes with smirking innuendo.But ultimately this comes down to the love between a man and a woman, the kind that is so different to the type that has so often underpinned a Bond movie. Bond will kill or be killed for M, and how marvellous to see a director really able to give Judi Dench the direction she so deserves, and Bond, in Craig's magnetic and gritty hands, responds in kind to deliver a last half hour as good as any in the 50 years of Bond on film. As we know, all turf is Bond's turf, but this time it really is HIS turf, and as a little back story comes seeping out, Bond gets to exorcise some demons whilst kicking considerable ass. Get ready Bondphiles, this has the emotional wallop only seen in the best Bond movies of old.All the Bondian trappings are still here, exotic locales, gorgeous women, speeding vehicles, fights, stupendous stunts, bizarre lairs and balls out machismo. It's also funny! I myself commented when reviewing Quantum of Solace that it was pretty ace as an action film, but for many it's not Bondian enough, and the truth of the matter is Bond still needs to have a degree of fun, no matter how grim and gritty the storyline is. Thankfully Skyfall is often a blast, with Craig (surely convincing even the most stubborn of dissenters how good a Bond he is) having the confidence and skill to lace his Bond's macho broody instinct with a desert dry wit and shrug of the shoulders nonchalance. Other side of the camera the tech credits are high, with Deakins proving to be one of the aces in the pack. His capturing of vistas, be it a neon city scape or a mountainous valley, are eye delights, his colour tones are beautiful, I promise you, nobody these days does golden browns like Deakins.It's not the masterpiece that I or gazillions of others hoped for, and it does have flaws (new Q a bit too geeky safe, finale lacks a substantial battle with the villain) and remains simple in plot, but it's Bond's birthday and the birthday boy has been done proud by the makers. It's a new era Bond for sure, but that most definitely isn't a bad thing, it knows its past and it now knows its future and we all still know the name without doubt. 9/10

Discussing a new James Bond movie is a bit like tasting a wine - you either love it or hate it, and anyone undecided cannot possibly drink regularly. All in all, it's as much a gamble as what our protagonist likes to make at the average hotel bar.But Skyfall excels where many of the Bond adventures over the past decade have failed; this surely cannot be disputed. It is also the reason why Skyfall has actually managed to capture the imagination of the audience, and not simply starved it through an awkward balancing act in the production department. Having also watched this movie at the cinema on its release, it's thrilling to have the experience ported over to Blu-ray in practically flawless fashion, which itself highlights perhaps one important advantage of digital photography (despite the lack of subjective 'depth').Skyfall is nothing short of a complete surprise, not the least because Quantum of Solace was so disappointing. It pays a perfect tribute to this now 50-year old franchise, and does so with all the hallmarks that we recognise Bond movies for. Thomas Newman's soundtrack is cued perfectly to every last piece of drama on the screen, and this greatly adds to an area of filmmaking that has largely been neglected for some time now. It indelibly raises expectations, moves us and causes concern as Bond transcends through a series of emotional conflicts. Even Adele's theme song, which was laughably (not for her) called a "whale tune sung by a whale" is actually very good. The important thing is that it's entirely memorable; can the same be said for the past couple of outings?While the plot is very straightforward, extra attention should be paid to how Skyfall positions itself into the Bond timeline. It was simply a pure stroke of genius to transition the present characters into something ready for the future, and the climatic twists undoubtedly compliment both the history of these movies and the direction will they head. Daniel Craig - while displaying more wrinkles than a few years ago - looks absolutely comfortable by the hair-raising last shot of the movie.The Blu-ray itself is a great reference for High Definition, generating the spectacular cinematography of this movie with stunningly vibrant colours and considerable detail. Unusually, I would go as far as to say that the lossless audio was a greater asset than the video, since it pierced out with the effect of having more than power than the TV speakers could even offer!The DVD included is handy for all the wrong reasons, because lets face it, you then don't have to worry about inconsiderate friends scratching your discs or case... The Digital Copy on the other hand is absolutely pointless. Why would you sacrifice such a wonderful viewing experience with worser-than-DVD quality on a small screen? It's just a token gesture.If you enjoyed Casino Royale and are still waiting for a true follow-up, then you need look no further. This is a considerably long venture for Bond at almost two and a half hours, but your attention is never lost any point. Craig has made the transition from a 'guy next door' to someone truly befitting a Walther PPK, and director Sam Mendes has outdone himself in keeping the story basic, but the characters complex. Considering how each Bond actor has faced a unique set of traits that we are all now well aware of - be them for the better or worse - Skyfall is a stamp of approval for the Craig era.Finally, Amazon's Limited Edition 'Steelbook' packaging is a really nice asset if you're into this sort of thing. It's only a metal case, but the artwork is beautiful.