Skyfall

This is one of the best Bond movies I have ever seen. The story is superbly put together and has some interesting twists, the action is well done and contains none of the shaky cam which plagued the last film. The actors all do a great job. Some might still be put off by Daniel Craig's rough version of Bond, but I like it and he even has a few good old fashioned one-liners here. I wasn't sure about Javier Bardem as the villain at first. I thought he was a tad too flamboyant but eventually he grew on me, plus he had a very interesting backstory and as you might have guessed already, Judi Dench is fantastic as usual as M and she even has more to do in the story this time arround. This is not a completely formulaic Bond movie. Craig's bond is still more emotional than Connery or Moore ever were and for the first time we get some relatively detailed descriptions of his childhood. And something happens to Bond in the start of the movie that affects him for the rest of the film. But despite all that there are tons of James Bond trademarks like the martini, the introduction and even Q. Some might not like this new very young version of Q but I found him to be funny and very likable. They will never top Desmond Llewelyn's original performance, and instead of making a cheap Llewelyn clone, they make a completely different character which I think is the only right thing to do. This is not only a great Bond movie but just a downright great film.

The 23rd Bond film from Eon Productions starts well with an expected action-packed pre title sequence. And the title song by Adele is one of the best in the franchise, up there with Diamonds are Forever and Live and Let Die. There are many fantastic scenes and Daniel Craig is once more a commanding presence. Sadly, plot conveniences in the script, over-stylised cinematography and attempted alignment with predetermined character arcs become overpowering. On more than one occasion, Bond has the opportunity to act but instead he waits until it's too late. These are plot conveniences so that additional scenes can take place. They destroy audience trust in the protagonist. And it's not just Bond but the new Q who makes decisions that undermine character believability. In fact the whole set-up for the finale is a series of plot conveniences. M, played by Judi Dench, is once more made to fiddle with contraptions like a field agent. The actress herself admitting this is not believable. Javier Bardem (villain) and Berenice Marlohe (Bond girl) were brilliant in their roles but under-utilised as a result of the script. This film, it seems, is not so much about telling a story well but setting up for a new direction for the films. What was rebooted so well with Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace takes a heavy Skyfall. A decent action film but it can't be taken seriously.

As a lifelong James Bond enthusiast who has been extremely disappointed with the franchise's latest efforts (with the exception of Casino Royale), I was extremely pleased with this film. It strayed away from the storyline of the previous two films and I couldn't have been happier after the mediocrity of Quantum of Solace. This film has all the constituents from the Bond films that have preceded it. Big explosions, ridiculous stunts that not a single person in the history of humanity can survive, and let's not forget to mention the beautiful women that would make both genders stop and stare. So what does Skyfall have that the other Bond films don't? For the first time, we get a glimpse into our mysterious hero's dark past. Where he came from and what made him the person he is today.

Although I've always been the one to say that Sean Connery is the greatest Bond ever, I can now confess that Daniel Craig now holds that honor. Sean plays the comedic, smooth, and witty Bond to perfection while Daniel plays the mysterious, dark, and lonesome secret agent flawlessly. I will always choose a darker portrayal over a comedic one because it takes a certain mindset to depict someone of that nature. One of my favorite scenes is where Bond is sitting in a bar drinking alone. I don't care who you are or what your background is, if you are drinking by yourself in a bar, then you have issues that are haunting you. Whether you can admit it or not, you are in a dark place and that is exactly where this Daniel Craig portrayed Bond is. And I love it.

Aside from Daniel Craig, you have a cast that includes some of the finest actors that have ever graced the big screen. Javier Bardem plays a blood thirsty ex-MI6 agent out for revenge. His performance is equally as creepy and twisted as his portrayal of Anton Chigurh in "No Country for Old Men" and it is an Oscar worthy performance in my opinion. Judi Dench reprises her role as M and Ralph Fiennes and Albert Finney give important and memorable roles which I won't go further into detail about. Also two prominent figures from James bond history find their way back into the story line. Sam Mendes shows why he was the right choice to direct a film of this magnitude and along with the contribution of Oscar Nominee John Logan, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade come up with a memorable narrative after the disappointment of their last collaborating effort, Quantum of Solace.

I look forward to what the future has in store for everyone's favorite spy. If Skyfall is a sign of things to come, then I will remain incredibly optimistic about the future.

I first saw this with my family in a theatre in 2012.

Revisited it recently on a dvd which I own.

This is my all time fav Bond film.

This is the twenty-third in the Bond series n the third to star Daniel Craig as James Bond.

This time Bond returns to service after MI6's servers are hacked and M receives a taunting computer message moments before the MI6 building explodes.

Inspite of failing a series of physical, medical, and psychological examinations, Bond returns to the field to pursue an assassin known as Patrice n to recover a stolen hard drive containing details of undercover agents which is in the hands of Patrice's employer, Raoul Silva, a cyberterrorist seeking revenge against those he holds responsible for betraying him.

I love the pre credit scene in this one, the motorcycle chase on the rooftops is awesome, the train chase sequence is adrenaline filled n the scene at The Varda Viaduct is amazeballs.

The climactic action is more old skool n filled with solid atmosphere.

The title track along with the picturization n Bond's fall from The Varda Viaduct is very gothic like.

The abandoned palatial house, the vast moors, the chapel, the secret passageway, the isolation n the sky almost touching the ground, is filled with top notch atmosphere.

This time Bond faces Raoul Silva n lots of his henchmen n a komodo dragon.

Bond also faces Patrice, a mercenary working for Silva.

This time Bond gets to cool off with Naomie Harris, Tonia Sotiropoulou n Berenice Marlohe.

In this movie, for the first n last time we get to see Moneypenny doing field work along with Bond and later how she opted for the iconic desktop work.

"He knows us. He's one of us. He comes from the same place as Bond, a place you say doesn't exist, the shadows." The world's greatest secret agent is back, but is the need for an agent outdated in today's modern world? After MI-6 is attacked and M (Dench) is brought under scrutiny by the government Bond (Craig) alone is left to find out who is behind the attack while M is trying to both help Bond and defend the need for an agency that has been compromised. I know that a review is really not needed here, being the 23rd Bond movie either you will watch it or not. I am a huge fan of the series and was really looking forward to this after hearing this is the best Bond movie yet. I have really loved the Craig movies but for some reason they never had the feel of a Bond movie to me, I wasn't sure what was missing but they didn't have the same feel. Knowing that they were re-booting the series I was lenient and with this one the re-boot is complete. This had much more of a feel of a classic Bond movie and by the end I was excited to see the next one. I got chills watching a few times and especially at the end. This had possibly the best opening and ending to a Bond movie ever. I could go on and on about this but I will just say if you love Bond you will love this, if you have never seen one then this one will make you a fan. Overall, From Russia With Love is my favorite Bond movie but this a very close second, and I think may be more re-watchable. I wanted to watch this one again as soon as the movie was over. I give this a very high A.