MOVIE: Spectre (2015)

Spectre Year: 2015 Rating: PG-13 Length: 148 minutes / 2.47 hours After the practically perfect Skyfall (2012), my expectations for what a Bond film should be were considerably heightened. And while Spectre (2015) still contained some elements that made me enjoy Skyfall, it missed that small little “aha!” moment that brought everything together for me. Sure, Spectre was directed by Sam Mendes, brought back franchise-famous villain Blofeld (Christoph Waltz), and had characters with emotional connections to Bond (Daniel Craig) that spanned across movies in Craig’s tenure, but it lacked the spark to make it fully work. Perhaps it was just abiding by the idiom that lightning can’t strike twice. That’s not to say that Spectre is a bad Bond movie, it just has a lot to compare against. The modern style and action that Craig’s Bond has are still better than some of the sillier entries in the long-running franchise. There’s a drag in the second act that probably could have been tightened up with...
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MOVIE: Skyfall (2012)

SkyfallYear: 2012Rating: PG-13Length: 143 minutes / 2.38 hours To me, one weakness of the James Bond franchise has always been the detached nature of the timeless character of James Bond (Daniel Craig) to anything from his past. He'd go off on some globetrotting mission to save the world while never having the stakes come anywhere close to where he lived—whether currently or when he was growing up. As such, the character of James Bond always felt like a caricature. An invincible man who always packed his plot armor before jetting off to a tropical paradise to deal with some megalomaniacal genius. I feel Skyfall (2012) is the absolute pinnacle of Bond films because it makes the main character human. The brilliant way Sam Mendes used Javier Bardem as the antithesis to Craig's Bond to highlight how loyalty is a two-way street is such a chef's kiss that I can't even begin to explain how it broke the mold for Bond villains. Visually,...
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MOVIE: Quantum of Solace (2008)

Quantum of Solace Year: 2008 Rating: PG-13 Length: 106 minutes / 1.76 hours Ever since the turn of the millennium, many film franchises have taken to starting over; reinventing themselves for this modern era. From superheroes like Batman and Superman to age-old classics such as Rocky and Rambo, these franchises have been going back to the drawing board in order to pull in ticket sales. The James Bond franchise is no different. In 2006, the ranks of Sean Connery, Roger Moore, and Pierce Brosnan gained Daniel Craig as the new James Bond. Quantum of Solace is a rather rare Bond film as it actually has a connection to its predecessor, Casino Royale (2006). It also has all the elements of the franchise. There are the spectacular opening credits, Bond girls, fancy car chases, and gunfights. Somewhat missing from the mix is the legendary set of gadgets, which was also missing from Casino Royale. Instead, an impressive graphical user interface on all the computers and cell...
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BOOK: Moonraker (1955)

Moonraker Year: 1955 Author: Ian Fleming Length: 410 minutes / 6.83 hours For those of you who have seen the movie Moonraker (1979), push everything you know about this story out of your head. About the only things that the film has in common with the book are the main character, villain, and an enormous rocket. While the film tried to capitalize on the sci-fi that was popular at the time, the original book takes a look at the threat introduced in World War II by the Germans: ballistic missiles. For its time, the book was relevant in a world that hadn’t even been to space yet. Having now read a handful of the James Bond books, my problem with this book stems from how formulaic it was. Only three books in, and it felt like Fleming was recycling content and would continue to for books to come (like in Goldfinger). I mean, never before has a game of bridge been so exciting, but using card games as...
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