137 replies to this topic

[B5Erik]

OK, I've been avoiding CommanderBond.net in an effort to keep my knowledge of Skyfall to a minimum. My initial impression of Die Another Day was partially skewed by the discussion here. Casino Royale was definitely fodder for a great batch of discussions and debate, and QOS was (obviously) a hot topic as well.

So now that I've actually seen Skyfall I'm back. (I know - who is this guy? )

And what is my overall impression of Skyfall?

In a word - WOW! Now THAT's more like it!!

EON really upped the ante here, hiring a good director, a phenomenal cinematographer, making sure that the script was top notch, and giving the film one of the best overall casts in the history of the James Bond Movies. In a perfect world Mendes and Deakins would be nominated for Academy Awards for what they did with Skyfall. This isn't a perfect world, but we can dream...

Daniel Craig did a great job (even if he wasn't quite the Bond I'd like to see - but it sure seems like that's coming up in Bond 24), and the supporting cast was fantastic. Not a weak performance in the bunch.

And the action sequences? THIS is how action should be done! No shaky cam. No noticeable CGI. Just great action sequences with some tremendous eye candy in terms of visuals surrounding the action. Amazing stuff.

I've definitely warmed up to Casino Royale since it's release (and I liked it a lot to begin with), but for me this was the best so far in the Daniel Craig era. Skyfall is a HUGE winner.

So what is your overall impression or opinion of Skyfall? Give us your (spoiler free) mini-reviews!


By the way, if you want to read my full review at Vista Records, here's the link...

http://www.vistareco...play&thread=507

Let's just say that it is a positive review.

Edited by B5Erik, 15 November 2012 - 04:12 AM.

[Tarl_Cabot]

I think Skyfall arrived as a confident all around Bond film while maybe Goldeneye's Bond came back from it's Hiatus with many self doubts.This Skyfall Bond wasn't looking over his shoulder at Jason Bourne, John Mclane, Martin Riggs or Indy. In fact all four of those competitor franchises(non-Bourne Bourne) look laughable by comparison, which is remarkable. Bond is in the A Team again, like the good ol days.

I loved the movie and can't wait to see it again. I didn't really care for the score as much as I wanted to(I think David Arnold did his best work in the last two films) or the second consecutive back-end gun barrel but no complaints otherwise. Just 2 minor nitpicks really. The song and titles have been gloriously upgraded from the last go.

[seawolfnyy]

I loved the movie and can't wait to see it again. I didn't really care for the score as much as I wanted to(I think David Arnold did his best work in the last two films) or the second consecutive back-end gun barrel but no complaints otherwise. Just 2 minor nitpicks really. The song and titles have been gloriously upgraded from the last go.

David Arnold didn't score Skyfall or were you just comparing Newman to the last two Bond soundtracks?

[x007AceOfSpades]

At first I wasn't to keen on Silva, but that changed and some other minor aspects of the film.

It's a terrific Bond Film, It's a tie with Casino Royale. All In all, the four year wait was worth it, in return The Bond Fans were given a feast for their eyes (only) .

Here's to another 50 years!

[blueman]

Whoops, I'm in the non-spoiler section, edited.

[Baccarat]

Give us your (spoiler free) mini-reviews!

Utterly superb. Enjoyed all of it, but if I had to highlight one thing it would be the cinematography. The film looked fantastic. Also, I loved Newman's score (as you say "Now that's more like it!"). I'd be delighted if the same "team" was kept in place for Bond 24.

Edited by Baccarat, 15 November 2012 - 11:40 AM.

[B5Erik]

I cannot wait for the blu ray release for Skyfall. This is one of those Bond movies that will get more repeated viewings than most of the others.

[Yellow Pinky]

SKYFALL is an unequivocal home run for me! I loved CR, but overall SF just felt more "right" to me. It's scope is epic, the action is spectacular and easy to follow, the nods to the series' iconographic elements were perfectly placed, there was an abundance of wit, intelligence, and emotion, and the cinematography was jaw-dropping. It's rare that a movie as anticipated as this one was can meet heightened expectations, let alone exceed them. This film did that in spades. I can't wait for this weekend's second viewing!

[jsteed]

After watching Skyfall for a second time, just as good as I felt the first time I saw it. A great Bond film up there with CR, OHMSS, FRWL, and GF. It actually felt much different with the previous 2 and seemingly made a great template on how to make a comtempory bond film by mixing old Bond elements with the new and fresh ones. It definitely will be one of the Bond films that I will watch multiple times when it comes out on DVD/Bluray along with the other great films in the series.

[Dr. Tynan]

Very good, bordering on brilliant.

Craig, excellent.

[Emma]

I saw it for a second time last night, and still found that I enjoyed it (although some bits did bore me since I knew what was coming). Time will tell if it is my favourite Bond film. But it is amongst my top three right now.

I liked it because while it hit many of the beats Bond films are knowns for it was different. Reflecting on the finale last night I thought that how they tied everything together in a non-hackneyed and predicatable way.

Skyfall to me is like, the Dark Knight Rises to Batman Begins. It really should have been the sequel to the first film. Rather than the middle film. In fact Vesper's death (betrayal) could have easily been tied in and used as the reason that Bond went to ground in SF.

I think that I will see it again in a few more weeks, in order to come to a more firm decision.

But yes it's a great film.

[Odd Jobbies]

Briefly:

90% fantastic...

Solid story and character work. Finally completely true to Flemings Bond.

Just a couple of points holds it back...

Firstly, it was laughable that Finney and M would use a torch in the pitch-black landscape, surely knowing their would-be killers would see the solitary light very clearly in the darkness..

Secondly was the god-awful cheese of Bond's enraged reaction to his Aston Martin's destruction. His beloved M is being shot at and bombed, but don't mess with the car, that's far more precious to me than M! Hmmm.... For him to be pi**ed off about it and further motivated to make Silva suffer is fine, but the slapped on Bond theme music sent this scene into total parody... And that brings me to the next point....

...Utterly ruining the tone of the films second-half was the couple that watched Bond jump onto the rear of the Tube train and said, "Blimey, he's in a rush to get home..." Skyfall is a great movie and deserved not to be lowered by such cringe-worthy broad strokes of 70's humour. It's up there with the pigeon doing a 'double-take' at the 'hover-gondelea' in Moonraker - total s**t !

Sadly this follows the same pattern as DAD (though certainly not to the same disastrous lengths), in which we have a fairly solid first half, followed by an outlandishly camp second half.

To me this wreaks of Pervis & Wade acting under the direction of Eon to get a nod to the old 70s Bond movie; virtually confirmed by Mendes in his interview with British film critic Mark Kermode when he says that he had the story first and then fitted the 5o years anniversary moments in where he could. So, i doubt he was too keen on them himself and if this hadn't been the 50th Bond movie, then it wouldn't have had the burden of these moments crowbarred in and could well have been the best Bond movie ever.

In a Roger Moore Bond movie this would've been fine, but in an incarnation striving for grittiness, reality and plausibility it pretty much undermines all of that. Sure Bond needs to get his witty 'Bond-Moments' back into the mix of Craig's Bond (and Skyfall had some witty moments), but there's a big difference between Cool and Camp, or between Whit and Benny Hill

Finally, Newman's score was superb, except in his use of the Bond theme; always cueing in slightly the wrong moment and always horribly vignetted with the cheesy single guitar strum ending as though he hated having to use it and treated like a cheap joke, rather than the signal that these are the moments that make Bond stand out from all others - that make him as cool as F***.

Apart from that it was bloody great and i can't wait to see it again

(Sorry to be negative, but i sincerely mean that this may have been the best Bond film ever IMHO, if it hadn't been for the above).

Oh, and of course Silva is probably the best villain in the series (the gay seduction scene is a hoot...

OK, i've got my Q-branch fire-proof savile row suite on, let the flaming of me begin

Edited by Odd Jobbies, 15 November 2012 - 08:41 PM.

[kissarmy71]

I was excited to see this one! There were many positive reviews out of the UK before it was released in the states. Many said it was a better movie and more fun like the old movies.

Unfortunately..... I was disappointed. :(

A few reasons why:

* The opening credits were boring... only a few silouettes.
* The music score was horrible... the music during the action sequences just didn't fit.
* The introduction of "Q" ... the actor wasn't very convincing and didn't do anything for the character.
* Where were the gadgets.... the fingerprint gun and a tracking device....lame
* We didn't see the villian until late in the film... and he wasn't very menacing.
* The bond girl lasted...what....10 minutes.... before being killed off ??
* The exotic locations..... ?.... the ruined abandoned city= ugly....Skyfall mansion/house= ugly.... there really wasn't any exotic attractive scenery. It all was pretty drab.
* The storyline...the villian is an old agent trying to get revenge ...isnt that Goldeneye? The way his plot is planned out doesn't make any sense either.
* Moneypenny???

I was expecting a good time and it just didn't happen for me. I was actually bored through most of the movie.
I'm starting to get frightened at this point.... as to where the franchise is going.
James Bond was always larger than life..he had all the ladies, expensive cars, gadgets and went to exotic places.
Since the Dark Knight, every franchise seems to think movies today need to be darker and more serious. This formula doesn't work for 007. The bond films just haven't been fun since Pierce left. I hope they go back to the basics sometime soon.

Maybe i'm just too spoiled with the original bond formula.

I'm not too sure Cubby would like this current Craig direction of the franchise.

I've got my fingers crossed for Bond 24.

[Vauxhall]

Welcome to CBn.

I'm a fan of SKYFALL, so don't agree with most of your opinions, but it's always good to read different views. The great thing about an extensive franchise like Bond is that everyone has their favourite movies they can turn back to if they don't happen to like the latest offering.

[Hockey Mask]

I was excited to see this one! There were many positive reviews out of the UK before it was released in the states. Many said it was a better movie and more fun like the old movies.

Unfortunately..... I was disappointed. :(

A few reasons why:

* The opening credits were boring... only a few silouettes.

* The introduction of "Q" ... the actor wasn't very convincing and didn't do anything for the character.

* We didn't see the villian until late in the film... and he wasn't very menacing.

I didn't agree with most of what you said but I can't comprehend how you have these thoughts^^^^^^
They may have been the best openings credits of the whole series. Q was awesome and the FIRST time we haven't seen him as a one-dimensional charachter. Silva has to be one top 3-5 vilains of the whole series.

[00 Brosnan]

SkyFall is pretty much everything I was expecting/hoping from Craig's third outing and more.

Good pacing with some character depth ala Casino Royale, but with a little more humor and "traditional" Bond elements.

Honestly, I was a little annoyed with how much screen time Dench got in the first two Craig films, but I think she gives a wonderful performance and probably her finest Bond hour (maybe outside of telling Brosnan's Bond just what she thinks of him in GE). Javier Bardem brings an old-school style villain into the film and I find him to be wildly refreshing. Both women (Bernice Marlohe and Naomi Harris), give wonderful performances as well and I only wish they each had more screen time. Then of course there's Craig. The guy is Bond in this film, period. Outstanding.

I thought the locations and cinematography were wonderful as was Newman's score and Adele's title song. Aston Martin DB5 scenes are just bliss and I'm glad to see Q back.

I was expecting a good time and it just didn't happen for me. I was actually bored through most of the movie.
I'm starting to get frightened at this point.... as to where the franchise is going.
James Bond was always larger than life..he had all the ladies, expensive cars, gadgets and went to exotic places.
Since the Dark Knight, every franchise seems to think movies today need to be darker and more serious. This formula doesn't work for 007. The bond films just haven't been fun since Pierce left. I hope they go back to the basics sometime soon.

I personally think Casino Royale is brilliant, but I assume I'm agreeing with you in that Quantum of Solace is a mess. Anyway on to SkyFall, I can agree with some of your points, I think a lot of people believe, including myself that at the very least Bernice Marlohe deserved more screen time and that's probably one of the (in my opinion) few weak points of the film. The Aston Martin scenes were pure classic Bond, from the car to the weapons to the music.

I can also agree that the villain probably should have been introduced a little earlier, but Bardem definitely has a presence about him in every scene he's in. He might not have been your classic, stereotypical "menacing"evil villain, but he definitely had an odd air about him and could tell was capable of inducing terror into people. Marlohe's character was terrified of the man.

There was plenty of action and there were indeed some fun moments like the train jump and I personally liked Craig and Q's back and forth.

Edited by 00 Brosnan, 16 November 2012 - 04:33 AM.

[Iceskater101]

I also agree with Severine and how she did need more screentime. I was surprised that they killed her so quickly but I do love Eve's role a lot. I don't know me and my friend went to see Skyfall again and we both were very giddy and we loved it a lot.

[Colombo]

AND. WE'RE. BACK!

I personally Loved it. Wish the trailers hadn't given us bits of almost Every Scene though...there were no major surprises even though i stayed relatively spoiler free. Even the final scene/s were almost exactly as i (hopefully) envisioned in my minds eye...Who'd have thought that the sight of a leather paneled double-door would be so comforting & exhilarating!

Few (very) minor gripes though...

• Since Deakins establishing shots were so brilliant, I don't know why we couldn't have stated with the Gunbarrel with the iris opening out to an establishing shot of Istanbul, & Then to Bond coming into focus and walking down the hall (as he seems to be wearing the same suit it could even have been that the first shot is what happens After the gunbarrel) as it stands the only justification for its positioning is the 50th anniversary logo segue.

• Missed that shot of Bond telling Eve "Trust me" as he takes over the Land Rovers steering in the PTS (saw it on one of the youtube featurettes & i felt was a nod to his initial self confidence)

• In the neon highrise Patrice stalking sequence would have like more of a nail-biting end to bond getting off the elevator (like the cable-car in OHMSS) And bond allowing the killing of an innocent. Also the shot of Patrice falling wasn't nearly as dramatic as the one in the trailer.

• In the Casino/Komodo fight scene wish there was more tension. Maybe with all of the assailants falling in and bond having to take them on while keeping an eye on the dragons. So when he does the Moore-esque escape it's a bigger deal.

• On the island bond not trying to intervene when Silva shoots Severine (especially as he gained her confidence by giving her hope that he could kill him & save her) Even if he was hiding his pain behind humour, the quip about wasting good scotch seemed out of place.

• Considering that Silva's plan was have Mi6 move their digs, be captured (ala the Joker) and have his computer connected to their mainframe to hack it, i wish the aftermath had been more severe. When Bond said that he was more worried what the rest of Silva's plan was I expected more chaos to reign down on London...maybe attempt to derail a few more tubes, messed around with London Bridge, even cause a gridlock with malfunctioning traffic lights to distract attention away from his assassination attempt on M...so that while Bond is the 'trigger man' trying to stop him and save his boss; Q could save the day in the nick of time (and redeem himself for being a nitwit and plugging Silvas laptop in) from his terminal (in his pajamas )

• If the disadvantage of battling Silva in such an urbanized environment was emphasized, then the Retreat to Skyfall Lodge would be more the brilliant Mano-a-mano masterstroke its intended to be.

• Speaking of Mano-a-mano...the final confrontation should have been more drawn out. Maybe even with a Bond-Klebb-Romanova type resolution.

And my pettiest gripe would be Craigs hair cut...but it really was visually distracting to me. In the subsequent premiere shots he had a better look than that 'Tintin' buzzcut. And is he blonder? Don't know if it was the lighting, but in some scenes his eyebrows could hardly be seen!...I know its been 4 years but the change in his look from QOS to this is almost as startling as Moores from Octopussy to VTAK. Hope the face has the mileage for two more

LOVED EVERYTHING ELSE! But especially...

• "Agent Down" and the Sky falls & it starts to rain...gave me chills!

• The LALD vibe of the Kleinman titles sequence...makes me like the song even more!

• The approach to Silva's island...Thats more like it. No more QOS dirty laundry, rubber stamps & impolite stares...this villain is old-school and larger than life...but ekky like never before Bravo!

• The Aston Martin Reveal...the audience never fails to cheer!

• The Drive to Scotland.

• Opening up the DB5's defense mechanisms and seeing those front mounted browning guns again in 2012

• The Rooftop & Ending scenes.


That’s all that comes to mind now...probably more after my next viewing & probably still more after Blu Ray...release it already!

[Daddy Bond]

Briefly:

90% fantastic...

Solid story and character work. Finally completely true to Flemings Bond.

Just a couple of points holds it back...

Firstly, it was laughable that Finney and M would use a torch in the pitch-black landscape, surely knowing their would-be killers would see the solitary light very clearly in the darkness..

Secondly was the god-awful cheese of Bond's enraged reaction to his Aston Martin's destruction. His beloved M is being shot at and bombed, but don't mess with the car, that's far more precious to me than M! Hmmm.... For him to be pi**ed off about it and further motivated to make Silva suffer is fine, but the slapped on Bond theme music sent this scene into total parody... And that brings me to the next point....

...Utterly ruining the tone of the films second-half was the couple that watched Bond jump onto the rear of the Tube train and said, "Blimey, he's in a rush to get home..." Skyfall is a great movie and deserved not to be lowered by such cringe-worthy broad strokes of 70's humour. It's up there with the pigeon doing a 'double-take' at the 'hover-gondelea' in Moonraker - !

Sadly this follows the same pattern as DAD (though certainly not to the same disastrous lengths), in which we have a fairly solid first half, followed by an outlandishly camp second half.

I'm afraid I couldn't disagree more. The second half as camp??? If anything, it was anti-camp.

[B5Erik]

I'm finding it pretty hard to NOT plunk down the money to see this again in the theater. Damn, I love Skyfall!

I'm betting that the Blu Ray is out in late April or early May... (Which can't come soon enough for me.)

Edited by B5Erik, 18 November 2012 - 01:48 AM.

[EyesOnly]

One thing that irked me is the lack of volume to Craig's quips. He says them too low and mumbled. Like Dalton, he comes across uncomfortably delivering a one liner. Connery said them so dry and clear, and I think Craig is capable but falters.

What I like most would probably raise a few brows. The mention of his obsessive drinking and drug abuse....pure Fleming Bond. It's small, but a cool nugget I thought.

[jsteed]

I'm finding it pretty hard to NOT plunk down the money to see this again in the theater. Damn, I love Skyfall!

I'm betting that the Blu Ray is out in late April or early May... (Which can't come soon enough for me.)

It will probably be released some time in March on Bluray. The last two were released on video during March.

[byline]

Hubby and I went to see it again last night. This time, I wasn't distracted by trying to figure out what was homage and what wasn't, which allowed me to just sit back and enjoy the film. There's so much to love about this film, IMO. While I agree that Craig often mumbles his replies, I also feel that's the way someone in his position would speak. Bond would speak in an understated way, so as not to draw attention to himself. I have hearing impairment, but was able to understand most of what he said. Frankly, having difficulty discerning the dialogue is a problem with most films, I find. Unless it's strictly a character piece with no action to speak of, dialogue often seems to get buried under the sound effects and music.

[Odd Jobbies]

Briefly:

90% fantastic...

Solid story and character work. Finally completely true to Flemings Bond.

Just a couple of points holds it back...

Firstly, it was laughable that Finney and M would use a torch in the pitch-black landscape, surely knowing their would-be killers would see the solitary light very clearly in the darkness..

Secondly was the god-awful cheese of Bond's enraged reaction to his Aston Martin's destruction. His beloved M is being shot at and bombed, but don't mess with the car, that's far more precious to me than M! Hmmm.... For him to be pi**ed off about it and further motivated to make Silva suffer is fine, but the slapped on Bond theme music sent this scene into total parody... And that brings me to the next point....

...Utterly ruining the tone of the films second-half was the couple that watched Bond jump onto the rear of the Tube train and said, "Blimey, he's in a rush to get home..." Skyfall is a great movie and deserved not to be lowered by such cringe-worthy broad strokes of 70's humour. It's up there with the pigeon doing a 'double-take' at the 'hover-gondelea' in Moonraker - !

Sadly this follows the same pattern as DAD (though certainly not to the same disastrous lengths), in which we have a fairly solid first half, followed by an outlandishly camp second half.

I'm afraid I couldn't disagree more. The second half as camp??? If anything, it was anti-camp.

Guess it comes down to how you define camp, but the old couple quipping the Moore-era line in the underground station (as Bond leapt onto the rear of the train) was parody in the extreme - and to mind mind pretty camp (and the 'Health & safety line that followed was fairly cringe-worthy too). No different to the pigeon double-take in MR and the man on the beach throwing his booze aside when he see the Lotus exit the sea in TSWLM. It's not just me, these are typically referred to as camp gags and the era being generally camp.

If this is a sign of the 'humour' that is mooted to be making a return then they can keep it - i've had enough of 'Carry-on-Bond' for a lifetime, thanks. We need to be laughing at the joke, not at the fact that Bond said something that's supposed to be funny because that's what Bond does (i.e. Parody). But that only comes when you have a single good writer and he's allowed to write it, rather than a 'team who bring different things to the table'.

But i was overstating the point to say the whole second half of Skyfall was camp. It's just that it was the second half that contained most of the homage and these were often pretty camp, distracting stuff - at odds with the rest of the film's wonderful grittiness and darker than usual look into Bond's mind. As i said, without the 'camp' that was probably forced upon Mendes this would've been the best in the series.

Edited by Odd Jobbies, 18 November 2012 - 02:03 PM.

[B5Erik]

You know, those one liners and homages to previous Bond movies made Skyfall MORE enjoyable for me. It was fun. Wink and a nod stuff. The movie needed that stuff so as to NOT get crushed under it's own weight.

[Odd Jobbies]

I particularly liked Severine being killed so soon. Her set up made it seem as though she were our typical Bond girl du jour. Killing her so ruthlessly (in terms of the Bond format) meant that everything we've come to expect from a Bond movie was now up for grabs and anything could happen. As it turned out 'anything' did happen and Severine's death was a foreshadow of the dark aspect to come with Ms finale.

[bourbon_no_ice]

I loved it. It's taken 3 films but the character has been reborn, and tastefully so. Were there a few things that were silly? Sure but a LOT fewer than others.

[Odd Jobbies]

...Were there a few things that were silly? Sure but a LOT fewer than others.

Absolutely right, but for me that's the tragedy, as without those very few things it would really have been a perfect film - not just of it's own class, but, like The Dark Knight , a perfect film in any class.

[plankattack]

If this is a sign of the 'humour' that is mooted to be making a return then they can keep it - i've had enough of 'Carry-on-Bond' for a lifetime, thanks. We need to be laughing at the joke, not at the fact that Bond said something that's supposed to be funny because that's what Bond does (i.e. Parody)

Amen to that. There are light years of difference between the irony of "They were on their to a funeral" and p(f)un provided by "Saved by the bell" and unfortunately the whole jumping on the Tube scene was reminiscent of some (IMHO)of the worst "laughs" in the series. Personally I would have laughed harder if Bond had just given the guard a look - the laughs are provided by her incredulous expression, rather than the need for 007 to say anything.

I suspect the humour is where the rubber meets the road for most people when it comes to defining "classic Bond" - where you fall on the "jokes" is probably in-line with how you feel about the re-boot in general. DC is on-the-record as to how much he admires the first four or so films, so I hope that the humour stays in-line with that era rather than some of the "quips" that's defined the series for the last 30 or so years.

[bourbon_no_ice]

...Were there a few things that were silly? Sure but a LOT fewer than others.

Absolutely right, but for me that's the tragedy, as without those very few things it would really have been a perfect film - not just of it's own class, but, like The Dark Knight , a perfect film in any class.

Well, you are right. It would not have been hard to fix.
1. If you are unarmed and disable a foe, you pick up a weapon. He did in some cases but not all. At the very end, he disabled the BG with a semi or automatic weapon kept going to the ice.
2. The church was obvious. They did not need to use the flashlight. Anyone in their right mind would have searched the church.
3. Did the train have to come into the tunnel?
4. I am reluctant to start this but I gave up my .380 (9mm short) for bigger caliber and more accurate sized handguns. It was really cool to see the PPS but a bit unrealistic except as a backup gun.

There are probably others that another viewing would help reveal.