Weeksy
I’ve read quite a few differing opinions on “Quantum Of Solace” now – some people say that it’s good, but not as good as “Casino Royale”, some say that it’s a decent action flick, but not really up to the par of a “007” film (whatever that means to a series of films that has wildly varied in quality over the last 20+ releases) – while others say it’s fantastic.
I have to say that I’m definitely in that last category – I truly believe that “Quantum” is as good, if not a better film than “Casino Royale” – it’s full of action (the same kind of “Bourne” influenced action which definitely needs to stay), full of hot women, exotic locations, heinous evil plots – I don’t really know what some people believe is “missing” from this one.
Maybe it’s because “CR” was such a dramatic change of pace from the escalating camp factor that was beginning to creep into Pierce Bronsan’s outings (I mean, it was getting pretty Roger Moore at the end there), and seeing another film in the same style isn’t quite as fresh to the viewer – for the uninformed, “Quantum” picks up immediately after the events of “CR”, and doesn’t let up until the credits roll – the basic plot is that Bond (Daniel Craig) is out for revenge following the death of Vesper Lynd, and finds his leads pointing the way to a large evil type Organization of influential people in the habit of buying & selling countries around the world (and usually their primary resources) to the highest bidders. In this case – the face of this group, Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric) is the main bad guy that Bond has to contend with, along with new gal pal Camille (Olga Kurylenko), and the returning Mathis (Giancarlo Giannini) & Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright).
Behind the political espionage, “Quantum” is basically one linked action sequence after another – from the opening car chase to the final moments in an exploding hotel, this really is a film that doesn’t stop from word one. Which brings me to the other criticism I’ve seen – that of the villain, and not being “villain-y” enough – no offence, but who was the last truly nasty Bond villain? For me – Sean Bean, without a doubt – rogue agent, old friend of Bond, revenge against the world, blowing stuff up with a satellite pretty groovy stuff, and probably one of the best Bond villains yet – I don’t think I could tell you many other villains throughout the franchise though – let me see – Christopher Lee, Yaphet Kotto, Christopher Walken, Donald Pleasance…… ummmmmmmmm, the guy that played “Dr. No”, Robert Davi was in one I think, Richard Kiel as “Jaws” & Oddjob are memorable as well, but they were henchmen…. My point being – as someone who is a casual fan of the Bond series – in my mind, there haven’t been a ton of really memorable villains – and if people are pointing to Le Chiffre from the last film as a benchmark villain – you could call me surprised.
At any rate, for the first “Direct” sequel in the 007 films, “Quantum” is a great film – not “OK” or “meh” – it’s a great film, I don’t see any way you could consider it not to be – it was kind of interesting that the way things are left at the end, you could quite feasibly see the next flick being a continuation of the storyline, and considering the relevance of the title doesn’t really become apparent until the last minutes, I’m actually looking forward to seeing the next chapter if that is the path they decide to go down. I’m glad to see that the makers have really embraced the “Bourne” style now, and as for Daniel Craig – he’s knocked his second time round out of the park as well – really can’t wait for the next film, and as for “Quantum”, it’s one of the rare flicks that I’ll actually go to see at the cinema again – great stuff.
Read Clint’s Review of “Quantum of Solace” Here
