Marval Movie

James Bond movies are not about plot. I can't tell you the plot to the last five Bond movies, nor could I really tell you the plot to any of them truth-be-told. No, what you remember about Bond movies are the locations, the women, the actions sequences and the gadgets. They are a sequence of memorable moments, that are then put in one container, shaken-up and then served to us.

Now Sam Mendes and Daniel Craig have paired up again (this is Mendes second Bond movie while its Craig's forth) to create more memorable moments and sequences for us to remember and catalog under the James Bond file in our memories.

We open on Mexico city while a celebration of the Day of the Dead is happening. The camera glides down and follows Bond from the streets, to his hotel room, then the rooftops to begin his assignment. This is all executed in one long, smooth take that is reminiscent of Orson Welles Tough of Evil.

Hoyte van Hoytema does a great job in following Roger Deakins as cinematographer. Just like in the last movie what this has working for it is striking images, all beautiful that invoke a haunting, moody feeling from the screen.

Daniel Craig has proven himself as a good Bond. I was unimpressed by the movie Casino Royal and his performance. Since Skyfall and now this movie he wears the tuxedo's and the climbing gear with confidence, asks for a martini with ease and cool. But he brings a more stoic nature to his performance, there are shades of anger and loss. He is a man that devoted his life to a job that requires killing and when its over he must face the emptiness.

This movie continues the tradition of having the big henchman that peruses and physically challenges Bond. This one comes in the form of Mr Hinx played by Dave Bautista. He is the right role for a Wrestler to take on, he was good in his role in Guardians of the Galaxy, but this is a role where his previous experience works to his advantage. It is a role of pure physicality and body-language, which is executed effectively and with minimal effort form this expert.

Continuity is a loose term in the Bond franchise as well as being something just not really brought-up. Each and every Bond movie has been considered its standalone movie. We know who Bond is, if not then he'll tell you, and there are always the reoccurring tropes of the franchise, women, car, martinis etc. This movie does the tricky, it carry's through on some of the continuity from Skyfall and Quantum of Solace (which at this point I have not seen) and streamlines it so that if you haven't seen the movies you can still get the idea. The point the movie makes is that the past troubles that Bond has had are from the same source.

This movie does lack some of the perfection of Skyfall. It is the last twenty minutes that you begin to question where this is going and maybe the last beat was a better ending place.

James Bond movies are set pieces for spectacle and memorable moments. This is a memorable movie with very good performances, helped with fun lines and expertly executed cinematography that make some of the silent images memorable. Some extra smoothing-out could have made the whole thing tighter and sleeker but a really good moments still deliver a solid package.

Rating: 3 1/2 stars out of 4