Never Shaken, Never Stirred
 If bond was back to basics in Casino Royale, he hits the ground; rolling in dirt in Quantum of Solace.Craig looks dirty for most of the parts, or is out there in rugged terrain I hugely anticipated this movie but was sort of let down because while this proved to be a good action movie, is not 'Bond' enough Yes, the silhouettes of shapely women in the title cards make a comeback in this one, and an elaborate breakdown of Bond's martini but save that, this guy could have been anyone. No one liners, not enough wit, no gadgets (thankfully, I thought they took it too far with the later Brosnan flicks making the whole franchise campy!) and bond is not his smooth self save on a few delightful occasions. This bond hardly cracks a smile and is one angry guy whose path you don't dare cross The opening few minutes of the movie are filmed fantastically and look racy to set the tempo for what is to follow. But halfway through the movie, the director takes far too long setting the stage and the film starts to drag a wee bit. Proof of it, well my hubby dear was slumped in his seat, asleep. I had to shake him awake, 'For God’s sake, this is a bond film!'.... That is until the 'Goldfinger' (spoiler: this scene has now been named 'Oilfinger') moment which truly shocks and get things back on track The action is plenty but a few of those scenes are filmed in such a way you don't know what's going on. Especially an aerial chase, you realise might have been fantastic after it is over, because you couldn't make out anything while the scene was unfolding! Craig is angered, more reckless than ever and charms, may be for just a microsecond, when he seduces Fields. Otherwise it's kick, punch, shoot and swerve all through. I expected more after seeing what he could do in Casino Royale. Overall he makes a great Bond nevertheless, meaner than we have seen him of late. I hope they bring back a bit of that charm though, it didn't have to totally go, coz it's hard to like Bond when he's this angry and messed up! Amongst those who surround Bond, the bond girl looks almost as rugged as Bond himself, and as usual is stunning. She bears a remarkable resemblance to Sophie Marceau. While she does quite decently well on her own, her back story is bit of a turn off and looks a tad bit out of place for a Bond movie. But then Bond is in revenge mode himself, so I guess we can give her a leeway! The villain, I love! Mathieu Amalric was impressive in the short screen time he had in Munich (I haven't watched the Diving Bell and the Butterfly yet so can't comment!). He's the clean shaven businessman and lacks any of those unique physical disfigurement, a la bleeding eye or a bullet in the brain or acne ridden face. And perhaps that makes him more identifiable as just any other guy out to do some bad. And he does a cool job of it. He doesn't have the best fighting tactics or a threatening voice (when he charges at Bond, his voice made me go...Oh, you can't be serious, but it felt just as intimidating that this fellow is mad enough to do damage). But really, he could have been given more stuff to do. The movie is a definite sequel to Casino Royale, so be sure to watch it before you watch this one. But that might be a mistake again, drawing no comparisons with it's predecessor, this is a good film in it's own right. But once you know what Casino Royale was about, this one tends to pale in comparison. It's a good movie, but could have been better, way better. P.S: Watch it once, in theatres, your TV will only make it worse for you :) P.P.S: The Bond theme by Alicia Keys and Jack White has come in for quite some criticism, but frankly I think it makes a good bond song. With Jack white's riffs giving the perfect Bond feel, this one goes the rock way, like You know my name from the previous movie did. Common, we once had Madonna do the theme, compared to THAT, this is a revelation!
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