This will be more of a commentary of my various thoughts on the movie.I’ve seen the movie three times so far. A last minute decision to check it out at midnight opening day added one more screening than I originally planned – such is life.
My initial reaction was that it was long on action & short on dialogue. I was very middle of the road on it when I left the midnight screening. But, in reflecting after seeing it a few more times, I regard this movie as more of a continuation of Casino Royale than a sequel. So, if you look as these two movies as one, I think the balance between action, dialogue, & story, are pretty good.
The PTS was excellent (outside of the editing which I’ll discuss below). The speed of the vehicles combined with the narrowness of the roads & the missing door on the Aston provided more than enough tension to the scene. Arnold's "Time To Get Out" cue worked perfectly here.
The title sequence was bland. The font used & how the names appeared was interesting but that was about it. While I'm on the fonts, my initial reaction to the different location titles for each place was less than enthusiastic. I've warmed-up to them in subsequent viewings & now think they work rather well.
I had hoped that hearing AWTD over the titles would make the song a bit more palatable but that was not the case. The song isn't the worst but I don't see me cruising down the road one day & searching for it on my iPod to give it a listen. Now, Arnold's six note AWTD motiff that he repeats throughout the score works for me.
The locations throughout the film were excellent. Nice to see such a variety this time around.
Gemma Arterton's character was underused in the movie & her Goldfinger-esque ending seemed just out of place.
Elvis was underused too although when Greene puts the gun in his hand, points him towards Bond's direction, & then runs away, that was a laugh out loud moment for me. Not an obvious joke but typical of the type of humor in the movie. It was these types of subtle things that were present throughout the movie that gave it more humor than most have given it credit for.
Nice to see Mathis back in action. Loved the scene where Bond shows-up at his villa. There was one shot where his lady friend was on the lounge chair catching some sun that reminded me of a similar scene with Tiffany Case in Diamonds Are Forever. The biggest shocker in the movie for me was Mathis' death.
The plane & freefall sequence didn't seem to be needed. It's like it was more, "We have Bond in a car chase, a foot chase, a boat chase, & on a motorcycle - let's put him in a plane to round out all these chase sequences." On the plus side, the exchange between Bond & Camille in the dry river bed was very good. When Bond drops the "I apologize" line for messing up her chance to kill Medrano, it had this feeling like he truly was sorry & was not just patronizing her.
The ending with Yusef & Corinne was probably one of the best dialogue scenes in the movie. Bond explaining how Yusef was just using her to get information was well written & Craig’s delivery was spot on. As Corinne leaving the room, the very quiet “Thank you” she utters was a great end to the exchange.
Nice to see Craig do the traditional gunbarrel but it needs to be at the beginning of the film. Maybe I was confused when, at the end of Casino Royale, we hear him say "Bond, James Bond" & the Bond Theme plays. I thought that was the character becoming the agent we all know. There’s always next time to get the gunbarrel in the right part of the movie! I also noticed that, as the gunbarrel ended & it lingered on the screen, you can see Craig walking off of the screen before it fades out.
Arnold’s score was well done. His working in AWTD along with the subtle placement of the James Bond Theme throughout was excellent.
I'll be curious to see what else the Quantum organization is involved in. The stealing water thing was reminiscent of old western movies where the bad guys dam up a river or stream to prevent the guy downstream from getting water for his cattle forcing him to sell his land or go out of business when all the cattle die off. Not particularly diabolical when you compare it to other villains who strive for things like world domination but it is an effective way to make money.
On the editing, the frantic pace of it leaves a lot to be desired. It was just too fast in many places. Two examples. First, in the PTS, we barely see Craig's face as he is driving the Aston. A definite shame because his facial expressions bring a lot of depth to his portrayal of Bond. Also, the piece of metal sticking out of the truck that eventually rips the Aston's door off, is shown ever so quickly just before it happens. A wee bit longer would have been fine. The second example is the chase at the opera. After Bond & Greene lock eyes & Bond then takes off down the hallway, the gun fight in the restaurant is mostly a blur. Some of the clips go by so fast they almost take a second or two to register. That Special Branch guy seemed to come out of nowhere. Him falling off the roof was a nice little nod to The Spy Who Loved Me, though.
Gad to see MGM finally update their logo to a high definition version.
I really think this is one of those movies that benefits from a repeat viewing more so than others. Once you get a feel for the scenes, it is easier to relax & just let it happen. Tough for me to really put new Bond movies in context as far as a rating because the newness hasn’t worn off. For now, I would rate Quantum of Solace as a 3.5 out of 5.
