Spectre
Dir: Sam Mendes
Starring: Daniel
Craig, Christoph Waltz, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Dave
Bautista, Monica Bellucci, and Léa Seydoux
148 minutes
Sony Pictures
Daniel Craig returns to the role of British spy James Bond for
the fourth time in the twenty-fourth installment of the long running franchise.
With director Sam Mendes taking the reins for the second time, previously
crafting the exceptional “Skyfall”, the James Bond saga continues, this time
with additional winks and nods to the past but still offering the usual
structure of a new villain hell-bent on taking over the world amidst a
bombardment of explosions and highly complicated maneuvers. In “Spectre” the
excitement and action typified by the James Bond legacy is well intact, it
starts with a “bang” and continues with even bigger “booms”. However at 148 minutes even the
most extravagant setting and exciting action scene, which are prevalent here,
can’t hide the lackluster and slow moving narrative that makes “Spectre” seem
just like a typical spy film and not the spectacle that defines James Bond.

Everything settles into the usual 007 routines, M (Ralph Fiennes)
doesn’t want Bond to ruffle any more feathers, Moneypenney (Naomie Harris) is
still the strongest and most steadfast companion for Bond, and Q (Ben Whishaw)
quickly introduces Bond to high-tech gadgets and a stunning new Aston Martin
equipped with more than just the standard “bells and whistles”. Bond’s new
mission involves tracking down a man who is part of a global crime syndicate,
an important missing link for Bond’s
past.
The villain this time around is Academy Award winning actor
Christoph Waltz, who is a fine addition to the Bond legacy of evil geniuses.
Waltz, with his distinctive accent and gleefully menacing smile, is an amusing
combination of attributes from past Bond villains. The intimidating presence of
Dave Bautista, who plays an assassin tasked with killing 007, also adds to the
formidability of the operation, especially so when Bond scrappily squares off
against the forceful foe aboard a train.
Daniel Craig has grown more comfortable since “Casino Royale”, playing
Bond in each film with increased humanity, at one moment on the verge of losing
a fistfight or losing control of his calculated emotions. In “Spectre” Bond is
somewhat more laid-back, given moments to show emotional intensity but also the
playful debonair style that Bond is known for. Mr. Craig does this all with
ease.
These characters all play their roles to the best of their
ability; unfortunately the issue with “Spectre” comes mostly from a rambling
narrative that is overlong by almost 30 minutes and filled with confusing
transitions about global terrorism, environmental catastrophes, and political
conspiracies in an attempt to create some kind of intriguing puzzle that mostly
feels like filler between the action scenes. Still the action is frequent and
some of the scenes are very well composed; an airplane/SUV chase through snowy
mountains and a car chase through the streets of Rome are especially fun.
“Spectre” tries to be more like the 007 of the past but it
struggles to execute throughout mostly because Daniel Craig is a different kind
of James Bond. Mr. Craig has been adamant about not playing this character
again but that doesn’t mean the franchise will end. The next James Bond will
have large shoes to fill as Mr. Craig helped compose a 007 that was more than
just a nice suit with a license to kill.
Monte’s Rating
3.25 out of 5.00
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