Spectre
Year: 2016
Director: Sam Mendes
Starring: Daniel Craig, Lea Seydoux & Christoph Waltz
Runtime: 148 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 01/12/21
Director: Sam Mendes
Starring: Daniel Craig, Lea Seydoux & Christoph Waltz
Runtime: 148 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 01/12/21
Skyfall was always going to be a difficult film to follow up because of its divisive nature. Some adore the film for its emphasis on character development, the gorgeous cinematography, and back to basics style approach to how a Bond film plays out. Others meanwhile felt that the film didn’t go far enough in many of these areas to truly carve out its own identity against the extensive 007 back catalogue. So with Sam Mendes returning to the directors chair, marking the first time since the 80’s that a director has directed more than one Bond film, expectations for Spectre were astronomically high with some wanting more Skyfall and some wanting something different. The result is, for me at least, an improvement over Skyfall but doesn’t reach the illustrious heights of Casino Royale.
Whilst tracking down a target in Mexico City using information given to him by the former M following her death, Bond (Daniel Craig) discovers plans for several terrorist attacks around the globe. Once the pieces begin to fall into place it is revealed that the mysterious organisation that Bond had been tracking ever since his first assignment has been the orchestrator of every major terrorist attack in the world, an organisation known as Spectre.
Acting against the wishes of the new M (Ralph Feinnes), Bond goes rogue to uncover the mastermind behind Spectre with help from psychiatrist Madeline Swann (Lea Seydoux), and Q (Ben Whishaw). But with Spectre agents inside MI6 and personal connections between Bond and Spectre, the mission will be his toughest yet.
Whilst tracking down a target in Mexico City using information given to him by the former M following her death, Bond (Daniel Craig) discovers plans for several terrorist attacks around the globe. Once the pieces begin to fall into place it is revealed that the mysterious organisation that Bond had been tracking ever since his first assignment has been the orchestrator of every major terrorist attack in the world, an organisation known as Spectre.
Acting against the wishes of the new M (Ralph Feinnes), Bond goes rogue to uncover the mastermind behind Spectre with help from psychiatrist Madeline Swann (Lea Seydoux), and Q (Ben Whishaw). But with Spectre agents inside MI6 and personal connections between Bond and Spectre, the mission will be his toughest yet.
Aside from the more up to date-ness of Skyfall, that film seemed to follow a template reminiscent of the Connery Era of Bond, which for a film marking the fiftieth anniversary of the series made sense. Spectre meanwhile feels more along the lines of a Moore Era Bond film. For some that’ll be great and for others it’ll be a massive red flag. Crazy gadgets and space age weaponry makes a return in Spectre and despite not being much a fan of that kind of stuff during Moore’s run as 007 I very much enjoyed my time with Spectre.
For me, it felt as though everything I liked about Skyfall was better in Spectre, and everything I didn’t like in Skyfall was swapped out for something else; these things didn’t always work either, but it was great to at least see Mendes trying something different.
From the incredible opening sequence in Mexico City (which is arguably the best opening to a Bond film ever) to the explosive climax at MI6 HQ, Spectre oozes both style and substance where it mattered most to me.
Craig gives a series best performance as Bond where his suave ladykiller demeanour perfectly meshes with the more damaged and bitter personality we were presented with in Skyfall. It’s an interesting mix that in theory probably shouldn’t work as well as it does. For those who disliked Craig’s generally gritter performance as Bond definitely will not be fans of this even darker approach, but I feel it adequately reflects what’s happening to the character and his declining mental state.
One of the only areas I feel Spectre doesn’t quite live up to its predecessor is with the roles of M, Moneypenny, and Q in the story. Skyfall featured all of these characters very heavily, but in Spectre they aren’t as involved in what’s happening. There is a fun sequence where Q gets caught up in a field mission with Bond, but it does feel like these characters were somewhat sidelined.
I’m also undecided on my opinions about Spectre’s villain, Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Chrisoph Waltz). Blofeld is a legendary classic Bond villain and it’s fantastic to finally see him be brought into the Craig Era of Bond films, and Waltz’s performance gives him an extremely threatening presence in the film. But the story decision to make Bond and Blofeld ‘related’ is one of the few areas of the film I don’t like. I’ve put related in quotation marks because it’s more complicated than a typical sibling situation, but this just wasn’t necessary. Blofeld being the leader of Spectre has already made Bond’s life extremely difficult and filled with pain, so there’s already enough motive there to want to stop him, by adding in this familial connection the film does stray outside of the realms of believability.
For me, it felt as though everything I liked about Skyfall was better in Spectre, and everything I didn’t like in Skyfall was swapped out for something else; these things didn’t always work either, but it was great to at least see Mendes trying something different.
From the incredible opening sequence in Mexico City (which is arguably the best opening to a Bond film ever) to the explosive climax at MI6 HQ, Spectre oozes both style and substance where it mattered most to me.
Craig gives a series best performance as Bond where his suave ladykiller demeanour perfectly meshes with the more damaged and bitter personality we were presented with in Skyfall. It’s an interesting mix that in theory probably shouldn’t work as well as it does. For those who disliked Craig’s generally gritter performance as Bond definitely will not be fans of this even darker approach, but I feel it adequately reflects what’s happening to the character and his declining mental state.
One of the only areas I feel Spectre doesn’t quite live up to its predecessor is with the roles of M, Moneypenny, and Q in the story. Skyfall featured all of these characters very heavily, but in Spectre they aren’t as involved in what’s happening. There is a fun sequence where Q gets caught up in a field mission with Bond, but it does feel like these characters were somewhat sidelined.
I’m also undecided on my opinions about Spectre’s villain, Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Chrisoph Waltz). Blofeld is a legendary classic Bond villain and it’s fantastic to finally see him be brought into the Craig Era of Bond films, and Waltz’s performance gives him an extremely threatening presence in the film. But the story decision to make Bond and Blofeld ‘related’ is one of the few areas of the film I don’t like. I’ve put related in quotation marks because it’s more complicated than a typical sibling situation, but this just wasn’t necessary. Blofeld being the leader of Spectre has already made Bond’s life extremely difficult and filled with pain, so there’s already enough motive there to want to stop him, by adding in this familial connection the film does stray outside of the realms of believability.
Whilst it’s certainly a shame that cinematographer Roger Deakins doesn’t return for Spectre, I feel like Hoyte van Hoytema does a very good job at emulating the style that Skyfall had whilst also putting his own spin on it. Many of the shots are just as gorgeous, if not more-so than many of Skyfall’s, and until I was doing my research writing this review I didn’t realise that Deakins hadn’t returned.
I also much prefer the opening sequence of Spectre in comparison to Skyfall. Most of that probably comes from how much I dislike Skyfall’s theme by Adele, but Writing’s on the Wall by Sam Smith is a fantastic song that is paired very well with the opening titles.
Spectre seems to be a disappointment for many, but personally I love it. It’s not as strong as Casino Royale but I have so much fun with this film. I love the way it looks, sounds, the performances, and the action. For me Spectre is a perfect blend of classic Bond with the gritter Craig Era films. Plus with the ending leaving the door open for a direct sequel, it seems like Spectre is only the beginning for Bond’s battle against the eponymous organisation.
I also much prefer the opening sequence of Spectre in comparison to Skyfall. Most of that probably comes from how much I dislike Skyfall’s theme by Adele, but Writing’s on the Wall by Sam Smith is a fantastic song that is paired very well with the opening titles.
Spectre seems to be a disappointment for many, but personally I love it. It’s not as strong as Casino Royale but I have so much fun with this film. I love the way it looks, sounds, the performances, and the action. For me Spectre is a perfect blend of classic Bond with the gritter Craig Era films. Plus with the ending leaving the door open for a direct sequel, it seems like Spectre is only the beginning for Bond’s battle against the eponymous organisation.