Quantum of Solace

[NYgiantsfan5689]

Quantum of Solace got overall bad reviews. I'm here to tell you the following: don't listen to them. This movie picks up right where Casino Royale left off, with Mr. White in custody of MI6 and Bond looking for revenge for Vesper's death.

I'll take a different route here and describe my scores for the 5 options in the review.
First up, Story. The movie had a complicated enough plot that it left you with a few questions after walking out of the theatre to see how well you were paying attention, but overall it was easy to follow, and it tests your detective skills before answering the questions. It keeps you on the edge of your toes as Forster puts the audience in Bond's shoes trying to figure out who to trust, and you feel the anger and need for vengence when he does as well.
Acting: Craig is perfect for the role he plays, with less love-making and more action being perfect for the feelings Bond has for Vesper. Craig displays his emotions as only Bond would. He doesn't. But he portrays them enough through his gaze and reactions that the audience feels exactly what any human, even a stoic MI6 agent like Bond, would. Kurylenko is also very good, as she shows her character's stoic side, but in the face of severe trauma, she breaks down and shows her womanly side. It's perfect for a female intellegence agent. And her accent is HOT. Amalric plays his character as well, being a cool, cold-blooded villian who is just as smart as he is ruthlessly driven. But his character's wild, reckless side shows with his evil, blood-curtling shrieks in the final showdown with Bond while he swings a pipe aimed to kill.
Visuals: The only reason I downgraded this from a 5 to a 4 is because in the first 2 action scenes, the camera shots are so ridiculously fast, it's almost impossible to tell who's punching who, whose car is ramming whose, and who just got shot. And I know it's not just me. I talked to other people in the theatre who i went with and they agree with me. The scene with the final fight displays incredible visual work, with Bond running through a burning building collapsing all around him.
Dialogue: This movie does away with the cheesy one-liners, and replaces them with snide Bond remarks that do instigate a chuckle or two, but aren't eye-rollingly corny. Also, one thing that should be noted about the script, NO LINE goes unused. Everything uttered by any character in this movie is important to either plot or character development. When I was discussing the movie with my friends after, whenever a plot-related question came up, it was always answered with "remember when so-and-so said such-and-such?" "O yeah! Now it makes sense!" Many of the most important plot-related lines are made without any attention brought to them. Make sure you pay attention during the entire movie.
Closure: There are a few things I would have liked to find out. However, most of the characters have endings to them, and satisfying endings at that. Here's where the spoiler alerts begin. Don't read further if you haven't seen the movie.
I would have liked to see Mr. White's character closed. The last time he is seen is in the theatre, and he doesn't stand up like everyone else, so he doesn't get ID'ed by Bond. Also, the top British advisor to the Prime Minister involved in the organization is left unfinished. It would have been nice to close that up. But I'm nitpicking. The other thing that would have been nice to know more about would be Mathis. He dies with Bond finding out that's not his real name. But he never says anything about what his real name is or why he needed a cover name. However, I will admit that those details should and do give way to more important lines he utters while he's dying.

Overall: 3.5 stars out of 4

It was a very, very entertaining movie, filled with action at every turn. It was particularly graphic, especially with a particular find in his hotel room towards the end, as well as in the final fight scene in the desert. But it made for a very emotional movie with appropriate closure given to those emotions. See it. You'll be happy.

[browntown653]

I thought the film was great, absolutely great. It has its flaws for sure but it's hugely entertaining.

[cjkalt]

Yea, I'd take Casino Royale over it but it was definitely a 3.5/4 stars, and before we start nitpicking about what wasn't closed, if there is another Bond movie lets see if they work off of that before we complain about it not being closed

[browntown653]

Agreed, although I have heard they plan on the next film being a standalone Bond movie. But I certainly wouldn't mind them continuing the story.

[NYgiantsfan5689]

I know I nitpicked about the closing of some of the loose ends, but I think they closed too much to be able to continue it. I think it was a cool one-time thing to do a sequel, but I'm happy they're going back to the standalone

[browntown653]

They've established pretty clearly with Craig though that this is definitely a darker, grittier Bond. Being gritty and dark while also being popcorn entertainment seems to be all the rage in Hollywood these days...and that's fine with me after the success of the Bond and Batman reboots.

[NYgiantsfan5689]

^ I totally agree

[cjkalt]

^ totally agree this one time with these 2 Yankee/Giant fans

[DirtyKash]

So I finally went to see Quantum of Solace and I thought it sucked dick. It's in the lower tier of Bond films for me. Way too much action, especially chase scenes and just about all kinds of chase scenes (on planes, on motorcycles, on foot, on car, on rooftop, etc. and not to mention that the camera was shaky as heck). Also not enough English gentleman, Bond is getting to be too much like Jason Bourne; he's supposed to be a suave ****er. The plot was also kind of complicated for no reason.

I also saw Australia, and that wasn't too bad. Kind of long though.

[Dry1313]

So I finally went to see Quantum of Solace and I thought it sucked dick. It's in the lower tier of Bond films for me. Way too much action, especially chase scenes and just about all kinds of chase scenes (on planes, on motorcycles, on foot, on car, on rooftop, etc. and not to mention that the camera was shaky as heck). Also not enough English gentleman, Bond is getting to be too much like Jason Bourne; he's supposed to be a suave ****er. The plot was also kind of complicated for no reason.

I also saw Australia, and that wasn't too bad. Kind of long though.

It was clearly a bridge movie...I agree with DK though...we needed more suave.

Also, while I like the Bond going semi-rogue idea, it reaches a point where it's overkill.

5: Acting, Visuals (Can't deny it looked damn good and the acting was good, but it was a very limited script.)
3: Dialogue, Story (Limited script, and most of the dialogue was vague)
1: Closure who gives a shit about the rapist guy or this new Greene guy? I wanted to see Bond kick the ****ing shit out of white. I also don't like the fact that they made this "organization" that no one knows about. It's identical to Prison Break's "Company" and I already know that plot. Plus, we never find out the deal with Vesper's lover dude...

The next one better be good.

[The Hawk]

I hate to derail this, but........... Giants suck and Cowpokes swallow.