Spectre

Released:  November 6^th, 2015

Rated:  PG-13

Distributor:  Columbia Pictures

Starring:  Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz, Léa Seydoux, Ralph Fiennes, Monica Bellucci, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Dave Bautista

Directed by:  Sam Mendes

Written by:  John Logan, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Jez Butterworth

Personal Bias Alert:  not a Bond fan, liked Skyfall

7 of 10

            This guy.  We all know Bond, James Bond and the cars, women, and martinis that come with him.  We also know Daniel Craig’s spin on the man, and whether you enjoy his dour era, you can’t deny that it’s banked some good money.  Spectre, no matter how well it does, will be hard-pressed to continue that trend, with the production budget inflating to a reported $350 million (for perspective, Titanic cost $200 million and Avengers:  Age of Ultron cost $250 million).  And what do audiences get for all this dough?  Just an average outing, one that delivers exactly what you expect from a Bond film and nothing more.

            This is a disappointing outcome after a promising pre-production.  The return of Sam Mendes as director had many hoping for another series highlight like Skyfall, and many were excited by the more serious duo of Bond girls that were cast.  But instead of pushing the envelope, Spectre falls back to its roots, taking Bond down another secret organization rabbit hole littered with chase scenes and loose women.  It’s hard to fault the film for the first element (these are action films, after all), but the latter is just tiresome, as eye-roll inducing as many of the antiquated trademarks have become.  What would be so wrong, Bond fans, with loosening the formula a bit?  Wouldn’t it be better to allow Bond to become a modern emblem of masculinity instead of the sad, boozy Sinatra impersonator he’s in danger of becoming?

            Series issues aside, Spectre gets so tied up in trying to bring you everything that you want from Bond that the screenwriters fail to add anything special.  It’s as uninspired as a band playing their decades-old hit; they hit all the right notes, but the boredom is undeniable.   There’s no love and care given to the villain, the love story, or even the investigation.  It’s all familiar beat after beat, endlessly referencing Bond’s past in a vain attempt to bring some meaning.  On the page, none of it is menacing or romantic, and any spark that appears is clearly coming from the excellent work of the people trying to bring the shoddy script to life.

            Mendes blew many fans away with his stylish approach to Skyfall, and he continues that gorgeous effort in Spectre.  If the film was being graded solely on presentation, it would earn top marks, with special accommodations going to cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema and conductor Thomas Newman.  They provide an example for how to make Bond’s tropes elegant, delivering the thrilling action sequences and extravagant locations we all expect in a modern package.  Care was given to the background activity of every scene, the lighting, and the music cues, culminating in a film that leads you through every obvious beat without being obnoxiously controlling.  They never betray the formula; they just make it the best it can be.

            Craig continues to keep his Bond an arm’s length away from the audience, and you’ll already know if he’s your cup of tea or not.  Monica Bellucci makes a brief and wasted appearance as an age-appropriate Bond girl (woman?), quickly seceding the film to French actress Léa Seydoux.  There are certain things you must do in the main Bond girl role, primarily serving as a seductress, which Seydoux excelled at in the Cannes-winning Blue Is the Warmest Color and in this.  The extra bit she brings is an air of self-confidence, not that of a plucky upstart, but of a woman who’s taken care of herself for a long time.  She does her best at what is the worst-written character in the film, and her energy saves the role from being an outright failure.  The same cannot be said for Christoph Waltz’s villain, not due to any poor effort from him, but from how largely absent he is.  The lack of a proper villain, or even a clear end goal, is the most problematic aspect of Spectre, and even a mustache-twirling Waltz can’t make him seem menacing enough to last.

            It’s lucky that such a cast and crew came together to lift Spectre’s stale script into decency.  Their efforts make it entertaining, a thoughtless but enjoyable ride that we’ve all been on before.

Other Notes:

Ø  I really like Ben Whishaw as Q:  “I’ve got a mortgage and two cats to feed.”

Ø  The intro of Waltz’s character is captivatingly weird.

Ø  As a Bond novice, I needed more of an explanation for the octopus, but I liked all the imagery they worked in.