It has been a while since the last guest review (on Taken 2), my trusted friend, Ben, is back! Today, he is reviewing the 23rd James Bond movie, Skyfall.
The well loved secret agent, 007 (by Daniel Craig for the third times) broke the franchise' own record being the best opening Bond Movie in US last weekend (US$88.4 mil). Internationally, so far it has gained US$429.6 millions from about 80 markets (excluding US) and it is a matter of time (in day) to surpass Casino Royale (US$431) to become the highest-grossing Bond movie ever overseas.
Now, let's get back to business (I mean guest review), enjoy the following unedited review by Ben (Spoiler alert!):
"Skyfall" would probably be the most divided Bond movie ever made - I have heard reviews that coined in the Best Bond movie ever, while others lamented that it was the worst.
Why the great divide? It has to do with how you perceived a Bond Movie, Skyfall is the most un-Bond Bond movie - gone were the suave style, the Bond girls, the gadgets and the Bond-car. What you get is a more fleshy Bond. Personally Skyfall felt like 2 movies mashed into one, the first and second portions played so distinctively difference, it was as if the producer got 2 scripts, loved both so much that he decided to incorporate into one movie.
It was only until the credits rolled with the "50 years Anniversary of Bond" that I got the idea, Skyfall was a re-invention of the classic Bond, to change it for the newer generations. In fact, it started with Daniel Craig's first attempted with "Casino Royale", which was first of Ian Fleming's work and yet never got the big screen due to the unconventional style. (the 1967 film was more of a parody then an actual Bond movie), the subsequent "Quantum of Solace" which was the first direct sequel to a Bond movie (the rest of the Bond movies tended to be self-contained even with references across) The ending of "Skyfall" marked a new beginning of James Bond, from the dynamics to the direction (those that watched the movie will know what I am talking about)
Coming back to "Skyfall" the overall threat and menace of the villain was comparatively weak, it wasn't about world domination or even personal gain, it was about settling personal score. That made me wonder whether was that the best way to do so when the second part unfolded. With the data that the villain had plus his ability to control the network, there were bound to have much better ways to bring the whole system down.
Once again, the beginning sequences showcased why Daniel Craig was the Bond with the most hardwork, the action choreography was superbly designed and executed, out-shinning the remaining ones. Performances by Craig and rest of the cast were generally good, and this had to be the most witty Bond script ever.
Lastly in this Internet age, is that the best way to present Macau? Macau doesn't even remotely looked like a China version of Venice.
Have you watched Skyfall? What is your review?
Cheers!
P/S: I've also watched the Skyfall in IMAX and my personal rating is 4 (out of 5 stars)!
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