lowefreddy

I rewatched Spectre for its 10th anniversary. I've seen it umpteen times, and it shifts up and down my Bond film rankings. But honestly, sitting down tonight and bingeing it - I loved every minute. It's fantastic.

Sam Smith's song is sublime. The pre-titles sequence is brilliant. The score is phenomenal; I love it when Bond busts out of the Spectre lair like a total champ, almost making it look easy. It also has Léa Seydoux - what more do you want? I'm so glad she came back for No Time To Die. I remember, when I was about ten or twelve, watching Bond and Madeleine's romance and filtering it through whatever primary school crush I had at the time. Total adolescent male fantasy, but it sticks with you. I think this film holds some nostalgia for that reason - and also the fact that I watched it very young and it was one of the first Bond films I ever saw.

And we should talk about the humour more! I think it's really funny. "I believe I said bring it back in one piece - not bring back one piece."

"If you're looking for the car, I parked it at the bottom of the Tiber." "Not to worry, 007; it was only a £3,000,000 prototype."

I submit that the plot is very stupid, and that the Brofeld twist is daft. But I don't watch Bond for its plausibility.

I enjoyed every minute.

Pierce Brosnan is my favourite Bond, and this is a wonderful film. Brosnan gets to play a more complex and tormented Bond (relatively speaking); there is a hint of what was later brought to the forefront with Daniel Craig. Sophie Marceau and Denise Richards are both brilliant. It's wonderful that Judi Dench's M gets involved in a big way - and John Cleese came in as Q! I love the Brosnan/Cleese Q scenes; it's sad that we had only two Bond films with that pairing.

And the action sequences are fantastic, my favourites being the Thames sequence at the start, and the caviar factory shootout. Although I had a new appreciation for the finale this time around - it is thrilling, and very claustrophobic. It perfectly conveys the jeopardy of the submarine going further down...and Bond and Christmas getting more and more trapped. It's brilliantly shot.

This film's plot demands concentration, and I do suspect that for a general audience, it might not be that memorable. I think the Brosnan films are generally more well-liked by committed, serious Bond fans, rather than casual fans. Which is a shame - because he was so good, and once you get into the series, you realise how fantastic all four of his films are. But I get that, at first glance, this is one of the slower, more complicated ones, and the final one-liner might also put off casual fans.

But it is worth it for the serious Bondians; it's one of my favourites. Pierce is the best Bond!

Goldeneye hits the mark with great success. Along with Live and Let Die and The Living Daylights, it has a freshness to it that is customary for an actor's first Bond film. It is quite slow to start, but that's because it's setting up HIM, the man, the myth, the legend, etc. It establishes his character...and then it gets on with the plot.

It's one of Bond's rather smaller-scale affairs, and honestly, it benefits. It boasts one of the best pre-title sequences and one of the best finales; the latter especially feels very deserved and is a delight to watch. Pierce Brosnan nails it; he's so brilliant. All of the supporting cast are great, my favourite being Izabella Scorupco as Natalya. ("Do you destroy every vehicle you get into?" "Standard operating procedure." Brilliant.)

And while Tomorrow Never Dies remains my favourite of the Brosnan era, I get why this is a lot of people's favourite. It has lots of good stuff. The one major downside is the terrible music...but we'll skip over that. Tina Turner's song is cool.