![]() As of Spectre, the villains are all retrospectively revealed to fall under the umbrella of a master honcho, iconic Bond-universe nemesis, Blofeld (Christoph Waltz), who must, for some reason, be Bond’s adopted brother. In the Craig cycle, Bond can’t merely be a secret agent chasing an assortment of bad guys. In the tradition of Skyfall and many other contemporary action extravaganzas, Spectre anal-retentively maps out the hero and villain’s family trees, insisting that their opposition is rooted in a convoluted generational squabble. Watching this film, one has to wonder, for instance, if anyone involved in the production attempted to inform the aggressively serious Sam Mendes that the final tortured act is essentially a straight-faced quotation of Austin Powers in Goldmember, an irreverent parody of, among other things, James Bond films. Which is fortuitous, as Quantum of Solace and Skyfall failed to ignite the grandiose sparks casually emitted by their predecessor, succumbing to an urge to contextualize every one of their ridiculous narrative turns at length-a literal-minded neurosis that also plagues Spectre. Despite these insipid traits, Spectre is still a hugely enjoyable film, and as long as James Bond's latest adventure is satisfying, thrilling, and a compelling slice of escapism then it should be celebrated, not chastised for trivial reasons.Martin Campbell’s Casino Royale was so unexpectedly moving and well-acted, so much better than any James Bond film had been in, well, ever, as to earn the subsequent entries in the Daniel Craig-headlined cycle a preemptive pass of gratitude. ![]() The car, women, gadgets, and villain have all been attacked, which is rather funny since a decade ago the first three were being used as examples as why Bond was obsolete in comparison to Jason Bourne. ![]() Instead of being celebrated for just how gloriously fun and entertaining it is, Spectre has been criticised for not matching the traits of its past. Of course, living up to these comparisons has helped make James Bond so great and what he is today, but it hindered Spectre. Any slight alteration to the character is instantly seen as the equivalent of a swift kick in the groin. It’s also aimed at the fans and critics that perennially judge James Bond against his prior films and incarnations. However, it’s not just directed to the filmmakers, who, in Spectre, failed in their attempt to build a mini-Marvel-esque universe by referencing Casino Royale, Quantum Of Solace, and Skyfall. This one’s a little bit harder considering James Bond’s esteemed cinematic history. Maybe we’ll get it at the start of the next film. Sadly, especially since Seydoux was so magnificent, it was so heartfelt and out of place that I was hoping for an On Her Majesty’s Secret Service type ending to befall Swan. Meanwhile, the fact that Daniel Crag’s James Bond was still lovelorn and seemed to walk away happily ever after with Lea Seydoux’s Dr. Plus, characters repeatedly use waffling imagery to describe situations, and dialogue regularly goes on for just one line too long. Instead, they’re the sort you smile at just to be polite. Sure, there are gags, they’re just not laugh out loud funny. Unfortunately, Spectre also doesn’t sparkle with wit or humor. Like its predecessor, Spectre is wonderfully structured and has a flowing rhythm and enjoyable energy that keeps it bouncing along nicely for its entire run time. And you can tell, which is both a good and bad thing. Spectre is written by Jez Butterworth, John Logan, Neal Purvis, and Robert Wade, with the latter trio having also penned Skyfall.
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