Well, I guess it is typical, almost expected, that Bond movies are to be just that. Growing up in the 90s, I've been fed the Pierce Brosnan versions, and to be honest, I didn't fancy Daniel Craig ruining my ideal of double O seven.
I guess as much would be said of die-hard fans of Roger Moore and Sean Connery. It is a very personal thing, this selection of your Bond character, but coming back to Quantum of Solace, Craig's second installment as Bond, he has made me settle for a blonde spy.
The movie's potential manly/boyish tone is pretty much set in the first scene, before the opening credits. Tarmac, lorries, an Aston Martin, conversationless, guns, superb driving, dirt, death, the police; it is a million-dollar multiplication of your playground cops and robbers. It then proceeds to a false lull of inaction, and then something surprising happens, and then Craig sets off again. I wouldn't call it edge-of-your-seat action but something that has just enough gusto to keep you awake after a tiring day at work.
Well, the first thing you will notice, or I noticed, was that Craig was surprisingly agile for his build; but having said that, I don't remember Brosnan doing a lot of stunts requiring much agility. I don't think the Bond characters were penned with a Chinese gymnastic in mind. I think it was just weird seeing Craig that agile and fast.
While we're on the subject, I seriously miss Brosnan's good looks. Somehow, I don't think that women will fall for Craig that readily but for Brosnan, he's somehow just so natural in swooning and charming. Maybe that's why there's the noticeable lack of steamy scenes in Quantum.
This brings us to the women in the film; Olga Kurylenko plays the Bond girl, unusually exotic, abnormally forthcoming, and ultra-secretive seems to be the prerogative. Judi Dench reprises her role as M throughout the Bond movies I've remembered; strong, steady with a soft spot for Bond.
The movie is what you expect of a Bond installment and a little more; he struggles with himself at times, and the audience is made sure to know that. Lavish, witty, and over the top yet mesmerizingly dirty; ah, just another James Bond episode.
