Customer Reviews

Skyfall [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(78)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(16)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

With the impressive "Casino royale" to the disappointing "Quantum of solace", Daniel Craig's third outing as James Bond in "Skyfall" is probably his best. The reason why this is his best is because the movie has a great storyline, there is the entertaining bond theme tune, impressive nasty performance from Javier Bardem, comic performance from Ben Whishaw as Q and last but not least the classic Aston Martin DB5 which was used in "Goldfinger", which makes this an origianl old school bond film. Also the action sequences are very entertaining such as the sequence when Bond is chasing after bad guy Raoul Silver in the London underground and the action sequence towards the end which takes place in Bonds house which he was brought up. Sam Mendes who directed some great films such as "American beauty" and "Road to perdition" does a wonderful job in directing this movie. Spainish actor Javier Bardem does a superb performance as the nasty Raoul Silver who steals every scene he's in. It was also good to see Q in this movie which Ben Whishaw done a very good performance as the geeky gadget man and this is unbelievably the first Daniel Craig Bond movie to have Q in it. If you are a fan of James Bond then this movie is well worth watching and I would give it 8/10.

As Adele sings, "Skyfall, make you Warble, Garble, Garble," over the opening credits of the latest Bond Epic(tm) there is a tingling in your spine that only a few films every decade can create. As a franchise Bond is brilliant, but this is a series that is far better as a whole than the sum of its parts. There are memorable moments in many of the films, but most individually are flawed. This is as true of the Daniel Craig era of films as any other - `Quantum of Solace' was confusing. Perhaps `Casino Royale' is one of the few great Bonds when watched on its own, can `Skyfall' recapture this glory?

The short answer is no, the slightly longer not quite, and the longest answer continues in this paragraph. In terms of tone and acting `Skyfall' is Bond at its peak - there is a modern darkness to it and the likes of Craig, Javier Barden and director Sam Mendes brings real class to the film. The story is a decent one as Bond goes up against a new megalomaniac bad guy. If this smacks of old school Bond, then you would be correct. `Skyfall' is an attempt to blend the new post-Bourne Bond with the Bronsan years and behind. In my opinion this is only a partial success.

As a piece of fan service the small nods and winks to the old Bond are great; Q is back etc. However, other tips are a little heavy handed; an attempt to blend an OTT enemy with an intimate story does not work for me. Why would someone with almost limitless power put themselves in the path of danger? I like the new Bond; I like its realism and dark edges. Polishing them off to give Craig a more Moore appeal would be a shame. `Skyfall' is full of spine-tingling moments, especially for fans, but also worrisome trends. In my mind `Casino Royale' remains the defining moment for Craig's Bond.

3.5 stars

*Film only Review*

Following the outstanding Casino Royale, and the dodgy Quantum of Solace, Daniel Craig returns for his third outing as Bond in Skyfall and it is a cracking return to form.

A hard drive of names of undercover Nato agents is stolen in an extremely violent operation in the course of which Bond goes missing, presumed dead. A few months later the disk is decrypted and the names released in batches of 5 to the press, leading to the capture and execution of some of those exposed.

Bond, not dead of course, but losing himself in drink and sex in an unnamed beach paradise, cannot escape his sense of duty and so returns to the battle to help retrieve the lost hard drive from the shadowy grouping that has taken it.

Daniel Craig and Judi Dench are, of course, superb as Bond and M respectively. But the director Sam Mendes has enticed some of the best European actors alive to join the cast with Ralph Fiennes a smooth intelligence bureaucrat, Ben Whishaw utterly brilliant as the new Q, the stunning Naomie Harris as a superbly self-confident young field agent Eve, and the great Javier Bardem gloriously over-the-top as the villian. In a relatively small part Berenice Marlohe is outstanding, I thought, at portraying with the occasional flicker of her eyes or the tremor of a hand, the terror of a woman enslaved, literally, in a situation from which she can conceive of no escape.

One detail that seems to have escaped most reviewers is that Mendes, seems to have made Bond a Catholic: the later scenes in Bond's Scottish home are replete with suggestions and symbolism of covert Catholicism, including a priest-hole. Perhaps this was unintentional. But perhaps Mendes has plans for more personal inner conflict and tortured conscience in a mooted follow up. If Skyfall is anything to go by that would certainly be something to look forward to.

Skyfall is an entertaining Bond adventure that will please fans of Casino Royale and the much-maligned Quantum of Solace. It rectifies Quantum's shortcomings (lack of Bond motifs and formula, too much shaky-cam, too short) and is much more like Casino Royale (although the more exotic locations and Bond girls seem to have fallen victim to austerity). I'd say it falls short of the excellent Casino Royale overall however.

On the positive side, Daniel Craig continues to make an excellent Bond, some of the Bond formula is returning to the series and the action is staged clearly without over-editing.

However, it still feels like the producers are struggling to figure out what a secret agent is supposed to be doing for his political masters in a post-Bourne world, where political corruption is all around. Once again, this time it's personal (like Quantum of Solace), there is still no SPECTRE-like super-villain threatening the world and no "exploding pens". The producers have spent three films re-booting Bond - let's see Bond on a mission against a madman bent on world domination next time. Like Connery, Moore, Dalton and Brosnan used to do. Leave the "realism" to Jason Bourne.

A very good movie, but let's actually get on with Bond being Bond now!

I grew up with James Bond. I love the over the top extravagance and the sheer fun of them. I thought the new change with casino royale was excellent but thought quantum of solace was just awful.
I was looking forward to this for a long time and had heard good things. If you haven't see this and are a James Bond fan, I think the best description is a cross between Bourne and bond. Daniel Craig really comes into his own and gives the part something that approaches a real depth.
I thoroughly enjoyed this film. Full of action from the start, a story thats good fun and characters that are as over the top as any before (the villain was brilliantly mad). It even has a new Q!! There are some very good pieces in the film which I don't feel it's fair to even hint at without fear of ruining the film. Suffice to say that the end hints at a really interesting future for bond and the potential of some good films.
Sam mendes has really directed well and I would be extremely happy for him to do more.
I took my dad who is a die hard original fan and even he left with a smile on his face.

I know not everyone will agree with this but I have never been more impressed with any bond intro then Skyfall. I went to see Skyfall on the day of release in the UK and the cinema was totally packed out. I really enjoyed the movie, it had a good plot and the action was brilliant. The intro just stood out completely for me, the way the opening scene transcended to the intro just blew me away. The Skyfall theme by Adele was fantastic aswell, it just came together really well and seeing it in the cinema just enhanced it even more. It usually takes a lot for me to be impressed when I go to the movies and this has to be by far the best movie I've seen this year (especially after seeing that DREADFUL paranormal activity 4 ;) I am definately pre-ordering this and for anyone who hasn't seen this, BUY IT, you won't regret it, but I know there are a few bond fans who will think Casino Royale is better, you might spend the rest of your life debating that question but will see how good the next movie is. Five stars ;)

The movie begins in a similar fashion to the previous Bond films, great, but still like the other action heroes out there. Then half way through we see Craig transform into the Bond we love. Such a fantastic movie!

Directed by Sam Mendes it looks beautiful, it has terrific action parts of the film, great humour and classic bond touches which are unmistakable. Massive box office taking at the cinema, now own it on DVD.

The transition is complete. Bond has resolutely shifted from superficial superspy to multi layered hero. Yet whilst Skyfall firmly grounds Bond in reality it still gives us some of the best action of the series.

Movie opens with a classic Bond set piece, a breath-holding chase by car, motorbike, and train (not to mention JCB) where Bond tries to recover a stolen hard drive. The climax of this stunner segues into the most unique title sequence to date with a macabre montage of glimpses into the film to come. And with Adele's song blasting out, if you haven't got goosebumps all over by now, you'll need to check your pulse.

Skyfall follows Bond from has-been agent to last line of defence as he and the film's antagonist, Silva play cat and mouse around the globe. One of the most beautifully shot Bond movies, we are treated to glorious cityscapes in Shanghai, Macau and London and stunning visuals of Glencoe in Scotland. The thoroughly engrossing storyline, which majors on Bond's family legacy and his relationship with M and her skeleton-revealing past, is interspersed with spectacularly staged action pieces, which thankfully forego the shaky-style edit overused in Quantum of Solace. To top it off, the heady soundtrack totally absorbs us into an atmosphere like no other Bond.

Thoroughly character driven, there is not one bad performance from the leads. Craig and Dench are as usual top drawer, as is Bardem who bestows Silva with a depth not seen before in a Bond villain to the extent that calling him a villain doesn't do justice to his layered character. Ralph Fiennes as ever is quality but the surprise of the bunch is Bérénice Marlohe who, whilst looking like a typical Bond girl, is in fact nothing like with her unsettlingly edgy performance.

A perfect mixture of story, character, exposition and action, this Bond film is as good as anything you would want in an action thriller, it is a bona fide 5-star movie whereby when the final scene ends you will be positively salivating for Bond 24.

Having just watched this movie 24 hours ago in one of the most charming cinemas around, these are my impressions of the new Bond movie. PLEASE DON'T READ ON IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE FILM YET! Beginning with a vivid chase (this time less hectic than in "Quantum of solace"), a fallen hero, dropping out of MI6 before changing his mind and returning to stop the evil villain (Javier Bardem) who personifies the notorious and extremely excentric character whose principal aim is to take revenge on "M" (Judi Dench). The plot is plain and simple this time, easy to follow and highly entertaining. New (old) characters are introduced here, namely a young nerd turning out to be the next "Q", Ralph Fiennes as Bond's strict supervisor and new superior "M" and finally - who would have guessed that - "Eve" Moneypenny who steps into line as M's secretary in the last chapter of the film. Isn't it getting a bit too much here? I started getting used to the absence of these classical characters after "Casino Royale" and I still have the impression that somebody must have forced director Sam Mendes with a loaded gun to include all this on occasion of Bond's 50th anniversary. However - the film contains lots of classical elements old fans will definitley go for: Q's gadgets (Walther PPK and a transmitter) - even the Aston Martin is back again (getting "refurbished" in the end - among M's death one of the scenes that made me brush some tears away ...)I think after two or three more times of watching, this Bond film is turning out to be the second box office hit after "Casino Royale" - "Quantum of solace" is more or less a mediocre inbetweener as far as I'm concerned - and compared to other highlights of the series like "Goldfinger" and "Diamonds are forever" a solid production in its own right. Thanks to the classy Bond song by Adele and an exciting and thrilling plot this is an overall pleasure to watch!