Sam Mendes' SKYFALL
Movie review by Dennis D. McDonald
I’m not a big fan of James Bond movies. I enjoyed Skyfall but I admit to having been bored at times. Why? A couple of reasons:
- Lack of emotional investment. I don’t really care about Bond’s backstory. Nor do I really care about his boss’s pending retirement. (That said, Judi Dench is terrific in this film.)
- Exotic locations. I’m getting tired of seeing Dubai, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and other glittering glass and steel megalopolises as action backgrounds. Unless you’re really doing something different (like, say, Tom Cruise hanging on the outside of a skyscraper or Batman getting yanked up into the air by a passing airplane) don’t bother. Spend your money on something more original.
- Fancy gambling joints. They all look alike after a while. Also, the lizard-bites-man routine just can’t be taken seriously! (My favorite cinema gambling joint was in Casablanca.)
- Keyboards and computers. I’m tired of fanciful 3-D displays and immediate unimpeded access to all forms of video remote surveillance. I didn’t believe it’s 50 years ago and don’t believe it now, London’s traffic cameras notwithstanding.
- Evil bureaucrats. People arguing back and forth in public governmental hearings is something I don’t want to go to see more of in the movies. I already live in Washington DC, okay?
- Too much suspension of disbelief. I’ll forgive a lot of fantasy but riding across a terracotta roof on a motorcycle without dislodging any tiles?
Still, it was not a complete bust. The chases were exciting, the bad guy is world class, and the ultimate confrontation was extremely well-crafted. But I admit to not looking forward to another 50 years of James Bond.
Review copyright (c) 2012 by Dennis D. McDonald
