Review of Spectre (2015) by Clarisesamuels — 24 Nov 2015

Spectre is uneven to say the least. There are scenes that are everything Bond fans could wish for, and there are scenes that are borderline absurd. The most brilliant thing about Spectre is the pairing of Daniel Craig and the glamorous Léa Seydoux. Those two make a beautiful couple with the most intense romantic chemistry, and if Craig were not already married, one would swear that he fell in love on the set. Seydoux brings out the best in Craig.

Be that as it may, Spectre has glaring flaws. It would seem the producers, director, and writers had plenty of time to develop the script; nevertheless, the script is half-baked, and Craig does most of his acting during chase scenes and rescue scenes. His lines are terse and laconic, if not positively epigrammatic. Director Sam Mendes must have read the criticism about the female roles in Skyfall, because every Bond girl in Spectre (there are four of them!) is intelligent, fearless, and undeniably strong. Seydoux plays the main love interest in the role of Madeleine Swann, and although she fiercely denies being a damsel in distress, Bond has to rescue her at least three times (possibly four, if you count the train scene, where there is a question mark about who rescued whom). The first rescue scene in the Austrian Alps, where Swann is abducted by the bad guys, brings back the Bond of yore. Bond not only shows up on the tail of the bad guys who escape in their Range Rovers, but he is skillfully piloting a BN-2 Islander military plane commandeered on very short notice. Nothing in the script explains how he absconded so quickly with an airplane borrowed from the British Army. He simply shows up in the cockpit, and he proceeds to rescue Swann by crashing the plane. Unfortunately, it is precisely that kind of illogical plot with its preposterous premises that got Pierce Brosnan replaced by Craig in the Bond franchise.

Naomie Harris is back with a strong supporting role as Moneypenny. Ben Whishaw as Q has an improved persona, and he is no longer just the kid who still has “spots.” Ralph Fiennes continues as M, a role which he had just taken over at the end of Skyfall. He’s been rehearsing at home, it seems, because he has developed his M to perfection. Fiennes has turned M into a force to be reckoned with, at almost Oscar-level intensity and nearly out of place in a Bond film. We do not get to see enough of Monica Bellucci, now on record as the oldest Bond girl (age 50 at filming). She is dark, mysterious, and quintessentially beautiful, but her presence in Spectre is too brief. The fourth Bond girl is Stephanie Sigman, who hails from Mexico, and one suspects she nearly ended up on the cutting room floor. She shares an opening scene with Craig, who then leads her into a hotel room ostensibly to make love. Next thing she knows, he’s climbing out the window. She has one line for the entire film: “Where are you going?” And then she’s out. Christoph Waltz is not quite as evil as he was in Inglorious Bastards, but he gets scarier toward the end.

Mendes tries to pay homage to classic Bond, but his directorial heart is not in it. Bond mistakenly asks for a martini, shaken not stirred, at a health bar where he is instead served a green smoothie for vegans only. The classic Bond car shows up as a brand new Aston Martin DB10 intended for Agent 009, but Bond steals it and trashes the magnificent vehicle in a canal in Rome. When Bellucci’s character asks him his name, he doesn’t say it with his usual austerity because he is too busy kissing her, so he is still panting when he says, “Bond. James Bond.” Not the same effect.

Nevertheless, Craig is still handsome, dynamic, and charismatic. He’s good to go for another round, as long as he publicly apologizes for saying he would rather slit his wrists than play Bond again.