James Bond, perhaps the most famous, and longest film series, in the history of world cinema, steps into it's 50th year. And thus, it's very natural that it's commemorative release, Skyfall comes under great hype.
Intro scene: Bond chases a guy, whose got a list of all 00 agents undercover, amidst terrorist agencies worldwide, and at the peak of the chase, his associate, aiming at Bond and his opponent locked in a brawl, is ordered to take a shot, even if not clear at the enemy, by a tense M. The shot is taken, and Agent falls, to an assumed demise.
As this dissolves into the psychedelic opening credits with Adele's mystifying voice ringing all over, hearts race, and the audience are stooped into the movie. Attention is further captured in the next scene, where M comes under the ax, being forced to take up voluntary retirement, and minutes later, the MI6 headquarters goes up in flames - masterfully destroyed by an exceptional hacker. The plot now seems to be all too interesting.
But as every interesting opening, every awesome trailer, has come to show us, Skyfall ends up a disappointment. It is the story of how Silva, an ex-MI6 agent, hell-bent on killing M, (who also decides to put MI6 out of order and into shame in the process), after being 'betrayed' by her during an high-risk operation, an act that leaves him physically and mentally damaged, and how Bond, and M go on to stop him.
It is my personal belief that ever since Daniel Craig came up to the franchise, that Bond films have kinda lost their sheen. No more glamour, not much glitz (except for an Aston Martin here and there, a couple of Sony cellphones, that's all. And the women haven't exactly been impressive, I suppose). Craig's 'appointment', as the 007 was, and is looked upon with an amount of criticism, and sure, Craig isn't all ruggedly handsome as Pierce Brosnan, nor is he all suave as Roger Moore, but ever since he stepped in, every Bond film has been out of the usual. Both Casino Royale, and Quantum of Solace brought to us, not the stylish, charismatic secret agent, but a rather sentimental, traumatized person, a more human Bond. And Skyfall, brings to us, a broken Bond, damaged by age, emotion, and a gunshot to the shoulder. And thus, it requires an actor of mettle, not a rugged gentleman, and Daniel Craig, has successfully fit the bill.
Judi Dench, finally gets a little macho action in this movie, and it, perhaps, holds her longest screen time in the series. The handsome Javier Bardem, totally not handsome in this movie, playing the grotesque Silva, is just wonderful in his performance - as a villain almost powerful enough to beat the system, to take over the world, but refuses to employ his genius elsewhere and only for his revenge towards M. Ralph Fiennes, is back on screens with a nose, after a long time, and it looks like he's taken a position in this franchise.
Skyfall, is painfully long, or atleast makes you feel like it. While there are enough fist-fights, gunpowder and quick comic punches to keep the film going, it lacks the all-important uber-cool Bond touch, a feeling that will disappoint die-hard Bond fans. James' isn't here to save the world, he's almost running a personal errand for M. That's sad.
But nevertheless, we have a new Q. We have a new Ms.Moneypenny. And we have a new M. We have the actors, at their best, we have an interesting plot. And at the end of day, as the last scene comes in, the adrenaline kicks in, and you simply know, Bond is Bond, and the finish, sets the expectations for better action-packed sequels to come. And even after having sat for a 2-hour drag, at the end, your walk out of the theater turns into a suave stride, and as you step into your vehicle, and kick in that ignition, you almost feel like you're driving a Martin.
Aditya Baskaran
No comments:
Post a Comment