‘Skyfall’ doesn’t have a ton of car chases, gadgets and pyrotechnics and is in our opinion, way better for it. Skyfall is the biggest-grossing James Bond movie of the franchise to date, with box office earnings of over $790 million dollars. This time around, the plot centers on Judi Dench’s M, whose past comes back to haunt her Bond has to protect her against Silva, played by Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men), a former 00 agent-turned cyber terrorist. They have to revert to low-tech methods in order to outsmart their hi-tech opponent.
Taking you from the rooftops of Istanbul, to the casinos of Macau, Skyfall keeps up Bond’s fondness for international jet-setting, martini drinking and tuxedo-wearing, but there are less hotties than you’d be used to for a Bond film. Bond didn’t have any romantic interludes in 2011’s Quantum of Solace, but he gets some action this time around, in the sexy shape of Severine, played by the UBER-HOT Bérénice Marlohe, as well as lots of flirtations with his partner Eve, played by Naomie Harris.
The movie moves away from the easy “good guy versus bad guy” setup of previous Bond movies, drawing a line of uncertainty, showing that in the world of intelligence, things are a lot more complicated than we’d like to believe. The movie also tries harder than previous Bond films to speak to current political and social concerns when M has to give responses about the practices of MI6.
The casting choices for Skyfall were excellent, and the entire cast did an exceptional job with their roles. Bardem does an amazing job playing Silva. The character has some definite deep-rooted personal issues, but we more so felt sorry for him than anything. Craig and Dench hold the film together through its few but unavoidable cheesy moments. Ben Whishaw stars as the new Q, who is WAY younger and more realistic, compared to his techno-brained movie ancestors. Rounding off a solid cast includes Albert Finney and Ralph Fiennes.
Skyfall is a well-executed action drama that breathes some very much needed new life into the franchise. For a director not known for his action capabilities, Mendes and his team did a good job of keeping the film engaging, balancing both action and drama, to give you a Bond that you will definitely be proud to be a fan of.
Go check it out, we guarantee that you won’t be disappointed.
