Skyfall - Review

One of the downsides of seeing as many movies as I often do is that it's taken some of the previous excitement I originally felt when going to see a new movie. Since I started this blog, I have often made it a point to see all the major releases but also found myself going out of my way to not-so-local theaters to see anything that I thought might be good, worthy, relevant, or important. As a result, going to the theater (while still an enjoyable experience, don't get me wrong) has become more "routine-like" most of the time. While there are some movies that do manage to get me hyped, it's becoming less-and-less frequent. Fortunately, if there's one series that always manages to bring back some of that previous movie-going excitement that I continually yearn for... it's James Bond. I'll just come out and say this, I have been a HUGE fan of this series ever since I was a kid! I love them all... or at least most of them, but even the few stinkers that occasionally come around haven't managed to decrease my absolute adoration for 007. Every time a new entry makes it's way into theaters, that giddy feeling of excitement and hype returns, and suddenly I'm as happy as a kid in a candy shop. This film, in particular, especially peaked my interest for two different reasons. First off, it's been over four years since 2008's Quantum of Solace and quite frankly that's a long time to go between 007 flicks. Secondly, Skyfall, the 23rd official Bond film and third to star Daniel Craig as the legendary spy, was directed by Sam Mendes, the Oscar winning filmmaker behind movies like Road To Perdition and American Beauty (which won for Best Picture in 2000). Does Skyfall live up, not only to it's hype, but also the legacy of this long-running series?

Skyfall opens with 007 in pursuit of a hard drive containing the secret identities of numerous MI6 agents. In the chase, Bond films himself on top of a moving train, fighting a henchman for the said drive, all while a fellow agent watches via a sniper rifle. Despite not having a clear shot, MI6 head M (once again played by Judi Dench) knowing full well that Bond could easily be killed, orders that the sniper take a shot at the henchmen. When the shot is taken, Bond is mistakenly hit. He falls from the train into the river below, and is declared Killed in Action despite actually surviving his fall. After months of staying off the radar, 007 returns to London after hearing of an attack on MI6 headquarters. M puts 007 back out in the field, informing him that the cyber terrorist that attacked MI6 may be a former agent with a vendetta against M and the British government. With his loyalty to M severely tested, the reluctant 007 nevertheless continues his search for the terrorist in the hopes of stopping him before he strikes again.

As much as I love this series, I have to admit that I have had some minor doubts about the direction the Daniel Craig films have been going. Don't get me wrong, I've actually liked the previous two flicks. Casino Royale was, by all accounts, pretty damn awesome while Quantum of Solace was flawed by still quite enjoyable. It also has nothing to do with Daniel Craig, whom is arguably the most memorable actor to play the character since Sean Connery (who still holds the title for best Bond) brought him to life in 1962. What concerned me was that there was this ever-present notion that the series would soon start giving way to diminishing returns and worse yet, that it was starting to lose focus of what's made the movies so awesome. I don't just mean the lack of gadgets, Q, Moneypenny, memorable henchmen, and campy villains (though they're definitely part of it), but rather that the realism-based direction the series was heading was ultimately turning the series into a line of generic run-of-the-mill action flicks while robbing the series out of the traits that made Bond... well, Bond. With all that said, I am happy to report that Skyfall has rediscovered that same degree of fun from classic 007 while still adding some of the more dramatic themes and character beats that made Casino Royale so effective. Hell, many have actually said that Skyfall might actually be the best film in the whole pantheon of 007. Personally... I'm not going to make that statement quite yet. I'll need to see it another time or two to properly rank it. Though if you are wondering, Goldfinger, The Spy Who Loved Me, and Goldeneye are my three personal faves. Nevertheless, Skyfall is a huge return to form, one of the better offerings of the series, and my personal favorite out of Craig's three films.

One thing I actually do applaud the Daniel Craig 007 films for doing is attempting to give Bond a dynamic character arc. While Bond has always been a fun character (and totally badass mind you), most movies in this series haven't exactly been strong in the way of theme and character development, though there have been exceptions (Goldfinger and On Her Majesty's Secret Service immediately come to mind). While the main plot for Skyfall doesn't immediately connect with it's predecessors in the same way that Quantum of Solace tied into Casino Royale, it nonetheless picks up on previous plot-points and themes, namely the mother/son-ish relationship between 007 and M. Bond questions his loyalty to M, as well as MI6, after M put him in harm's way and ordered him to make some sketchy decisions. His concerns are only exacerbated when he takes on the film's villain, Silva, a former agent-turned cyber terrorist with a (not entirely unjustified) vendetta against M. This particular story-arch ultimately drives the plot and culminates in a profoundly dramatic and suspenseful manner. I won't spoil exactly what happens, but I will say that it's hard not to be moved by how it all comes together. I will say that, aside for a handful of slow-ish scenes, the film moves at a good pace and rarely lets up. Add in some neat twists, solid exchanges between heroes and villains, interesting themes of modern vs old fashion tactics, and some legitimate character development, and you've got one of Bond's most memorable scripts.

Now we come to the cast, the area where Skyfall truly knocks it out of the park. This is Daniel Craig's third outing as 007, and while he's already had two strong performances under his belt, this time he really delivers. With a script that gives him the opportunity to truly explore the brooding and unstable psyche of Bond, Craig really puts his all into the role, giving way to his most memorable performance as the legendary spy. Judi Dench, who has become a pro at playing M after seven movies, once again delivers in the role. This particular film, however, gives her what is easily her meatiest role in a Bond film, resulting in some truly moving acting by Dench. The standout performer, however, has to be Javier Bardem as the villainous Silva. I am all but sure that Bardem will also go down as one of 007's most memorable foes. Taking inspiration from classic Bond enemies, Hannibal Lecter, and Heath Ledger's Joker, Bardem gives a memorably creepy, suspenseful, and moving performance as a man driven to villainy after suffering at the hands of MI6. There's been some early buzz about a possible Oscar nomination for Bardem (who previously won for No Country For Old Men), and unless the Academy is turned off by the fact that this is a 007 film, it's a definite possibility that he might be included on the ballot. As for the rest of the supporting cast, everyone is pretty solid. Ralph Fiennes has a small part as MI6 personnel Gareth Edwards yet still sells his role commendably. Q once again returns to the series (FINALLY!), only this time as a much younger character played by Ben Whishaw who is less of a gadget supplier and more of MI6's technological and security liason. I was originally a bit uncertain of this re-imagined portrayal of Q, but Whishaw sells the role, bringing all the classic Q traits, adding a bit of humor, and as an important figure in the plot. While Skyfall breaks slightly from tradition in that the Bond girl has considerable less screentime and impact on the plot, Naomie Harris nonetheless sells her role as Eve, who has a number of memorable scenes. All in all, Skyfall has a killer cast that never fails to impress.

With all that said, there's one more area on which a Bond film absolutely must deliver. That is, of course, the action. Sam Mendes has built a reputation in the industry primarily as a director of artsy dramas and character pieces. Prior to Skyfall, he had no action films in his filmography (that I know of anyways). Yet despite all that, he steps into Bond's world like an old pro, bringing some of the series' most exciting and flat-out amazing action sequences in recent memory. The opening scene in particular is arguably the best pre-title action sequence in the series, with an incredible chase and fight sequence. The finale is the other stand-out scene, with some white-knuckle suspense and one exciting payoff after another. The only thing that could have made them better would be if 007 had a few more gadgets to put to use this time around. With Q back in the series, I was hoping to see a little more on that front, and while he had a couple, there was nothing particular memorable. It's a minor gripe I admit, and I suppose they didn't want the tech to overshadow the main plot at hand. Maybe in the next film. Nitpicks aside, this is one hell of an action film, with one kick ass chase, fight, or shootout after another. If all you're expecting out of Skyfall is some well directed action, I can all but guarantee you will leave satisfied.

So that's Skyfall... and yeah it pretty much rocks! With the exception of a few minor nitpicks here and there, I can't think of too many things to complain about here. It's classic Bond action with a great cast and engaging script. Whether you're a Bond fan or not, this is a must see movie! Do not miss this one!

My Score: 4.5 out of 5!

Star Wars... By Disney

Well... I have to admit that Wednesday's bit of news took me (and I think everyone else) by surprise. In a 4 billion dollar deal, Lucasfilm was purchased by none other than the Walt Disney Corporation and in doing so, announced the development of yet ANOTHER Star Wars trilogy (Episode VII is due in 2015). In retrospect, it probably should not have come as such a shock, considering how Hollywood still continues to milk the hell out of every remotely nostalgic movie, series, property they can get their hands onto though various remakes, reboots, and re- whatever.

Still, I think there was a sense that Star Wars, being considered something like the Holy trilogy of movies (well, at least the original three anyways), was untouchable for this kind of thing. Oh sure, there were rumors floating around years ago that George Lucas actually did have a basic story idea for Episodes 7-9, but he made it clearly over and over that the series was strictly a 6 part series and he had no intention of continuing his saga. That, however, isn't the most surprising part. See, what I think caught me off guard was the announcement that Lucas had sold his studio to Disney, effectively giving them creative control of not only the movies, but pretty much any Star Wars (and any Lucasfilm property like Indiana Jones) related product. Up until now, Lucas has guarded his beloved franchise like it was one of his own children and has constantly balked at the requests and demands of 20th Century Fox (the series' previous distributor) for anything Star Wars related, including, among other things, his refusal to release the original, non-special edition, trilogy on Blu Ray. For a filmmaker who built a reputation on refusing to let his properties fall into the hands of major studios/corporations, this is something I would have never seen coming. I guess that goes to show that, in this industry, nothing is sacred.

With all that said, what does this exactly mean for the Star Wars series, filmmaking in general, and it's future. Is it a good thing? Is this a terrible thing? Has Lucas succumbed to the dark side or has he actually returned to the light? Let's weigh out the pros and cons shall we?

The Light Side of the Force

- Disney

If we're going to look at the main reason Disney bought Lucasfilm, I think it's safe to assume that it was all about the money. The primary reason Disney bought Marvel four years ago was that they wanted to expand their market with a more boy-aimed property merchandise to correspond to their girl-centered Disney Princess brand, and I assume that Disney purchased Lucasfilm for, more or less, the same reasons. While everyone, myself included, was afraid that Disney would screw up Marvel's name and characters, so far they've done okay. The first Marvel Studios film financed by Disney was The Avengers... and it kicked ass! With Star Wars, I would think they would treat the series, and it's legions of fans, with the respect and attention it deserves. While Disney is by no means above milking the hell out of it's beloved franchises and characters for a couple quick bucks (as evidence by the barrage of straight to video Disney sequels), their track record of showing respect for their high profile blockbusters and franchises is pretty good. Not to mention that this is a company that's constantly been at the forefront of pioneering animation, memorable storytelling, and responsible for putting Pixar on the map... so there's always that. Will they give Star Wars the proper attention and care? Probably... hopefully... but like I said, no property is sacred so anything is possible.

- Limited involvement from Lucas

What's ultimately got me interested about this whole deal is that this might actually give Star Wars the shot in the arm that it needs. While I actually have an enormous respect for Lucas (I'll get into more of that later), I have to admit that without him managing everything, this might lead to good things. The prequel trilogy, while huge blockbusters, obviously didn't strike as much of a chord with audiences as the previous three films. Some audiences liked them, many hated them, others are in the middle, and practically none have preferred the prequels over the original Personally, I think Episodes 1-3 are entertaining if still very flawed. As many have stated, the prequels (particularly 1 and 2) are visually dynamic and interestingly conceived films complete with some great action, memorable visuals, and compelling mythology held back by problematic screenwriting, horrendous dialogue, and flat performances. I'm not going to write about exactly what went wrong with them here, namely since it's actually a bit tricky to pinpoint how they turned out the way they did, though I'll give some of my thoughts regarding the subject later on. Ultimately, for one reason or another, Lucas' direction and writing seems to have done more harm than good. I hate to say that since, like I said, I have such a respect for the guy, but there's no denying that minimizing his involvement in any future films might be for the better. Even when looking at the original trilogy, while A New Hope is by all means excellent, one might wonder if Empire and Jedi would have turned out as well as they did if Lucas spent his time in the director's chair for those. He came up with the basic story and probably had more than a little creative input in the production, but ultimately left most of the key decisions in the hands of directions Irvin Kershner and Richard Marquand. So for any future flicks, this might be a good way to go.

- Han Shoots First Again

With Disney calling the shots at Lucasfilm, I can't help but wonder what that might mean for the previous films. Lucas has constantly denied fans requests for a DVD/Blu Ray release of an unaltered non-special edition Star Wars trilogy. Disney, on the other hand, has a reputation for being a money-grubbing company that would do just about anything for a profit. Normally, that's a bad thing, but if there's one company that would quickly bow down to the demands of audiences (if there's a profit to be made), it's Disney. So for all the fans who have clamored to see a Blu Ray with Han shooting first, Sebastian Shaw as Anakin's ghost, or a version of Jedi without Vader shouting "NOOOOO!" when killing Emperor Palpatine might finally get their wish.

The Dark Side of the Force

- Disney
Yeah I know that I just spent the last section talking about how Disney owning Lucasfilm might be a good thing, but I do have to admit that, like the force, there's a dark side to this deal as well. Lucas has, more or less, lived up to his reputation as a filmmaker who stays true to his vision and refused to sell out to those higher up. Yes, I admit that Star Wars is basically the definition a pop culture/merchandise phenomenon, and it certainly has made Lucas more money than most people can only dream of seeing. Regardless, Lucas has always taken control of his creations, stood by them, and often refused to let anyone else run them. While I don't necessarily agree with the changes he made to the original trilogy, his refusal to release the non-special edition trilogy on blu-ray, and some of the directorial decisions he made in the prequels, the fact that he's stood by his work, apologized to no one, and taken control of nearly everything is something that I can respect. By selling his properties to Disney... that's pretty much the very definition of a corporate sellout. Listen, I'm not anti-corporation or big business or anything like that, but to see a once-dedicated anti-sellout visionary like Lucas just hand off his possessions to the most corporate of corporations is kind of a bummer. Still, I guess Lucas did it for the right reasons. He wasn't just out to make money (he has plenty of it) as he's going to be donating most of the 4 billion dollars to charity. On top of that, Lucas is just done, he's been working with these properties for nearly 40 years and he's had enough and probably just felt that it was time to hand them off. So yeah, while the sell is not the end of the world, it's still a bit of a bummer... but it's one I can still mostly get behind.

- It's over... let it rest.

While this deal might just be crazy enough to work, one can't help but think of the bad that might come out of this. Someone asked me today if it would even be possible to make another good Star Wars movie. My answer, of course it's possible. You can make a good movie out of anything, and if the expanded Star Wars universe has taught us anything, it's that there are still plenty of good stories to be told. Ultimately, there's no way in telling what the film will be like until we see a trailer, a clip, or at the very least a plot synopsis. There's just that notion that up until now, the series was officially labeled as finished, done, completed... ie no more. I think most fans were just fine with that, myself included. Nobody asked for anymore movies and even those involved at Lucasfilm were seemingly content with that. So, my question is... why? The obvious answer is money, but surely there's cash to be made in the various Star Wars merchandise, toys, comics, novels, video games, cartoons... or maybe those long rumored live action TV shows that have been in development for years, eh Disney, *hint hint, nudge nudge, wink wink*. There's just this nagging voice in my head that keeps saying that by making more films, they're just beating a dead horse. Shouldn't we lay this series to rest and let it be??? Yeah, probably, but that's clearly not happening.

- Lack of creativity and whatnot...

I already mentioned the oft-mentioned criticism concerning Hollywood and filmmaking today, that the industry has run out of ideas and that they're resorting to cranking out all the reboots, remakes, sequels, prequels, and spin-offs they can get their hands out in order to score some box office cash from the residual goodwill of the series' fans. While there are plenty of remakes and sequels that have surprisingly turned out to be quite good, I admit that it's more than a bit annoying to see so many movies remade and repackaged for modern audiences who don't like old movies (which is unbelievably sad). With Star Wars though, it's not just annoying, it actually saddens me a bit. For starters, Star Wars itself is pretty much the prime example of un-originality done right. The movies heavily borrow influence from sources like B-movie serials (namely Flash Gordon), Kurosawa Samurai flicks, spaghetti westerns, and epic fantasy... yet when combined they form something truly original and creative. If more films were to follow this formula as opposed to simply repackaging old sources, I doubt Hollywood would be in such a rut.

You see, the original Star Wars, in addition to being one of the best, is one of the most important films of all time. When it was released in 1977, Hollywood was in the midst of a creative renaissance and was giving unheard of amounts of creative freedom to untested up-and-coming directors, Lucas included, to make bizarre and incredibly ambitious personal auteur projects. Star Wars was such a strange project that even most of Lucas' film-school buddies (including Steven Spielberg Brian De Palma, and Francis Ford Coppola) didn't get it. When the film was finally released, not only did it push the boundaries of special effects, storytelling, and scope, but it fundamentally changed the business of how movies were made. Star Wars, along with Jaws released 2 years earlier, were such immense box office hits that they created the notion of the summer blockbuster, and it's formula is still going strong today. Even more than that, was ultimately what led to the production of the film.

I mentioned earlier that I'm not exactly sure what led to the prequels becoming so lackluster compared to it's predecessors but I know exactly what made the first Star Wars so successful... effort and vision! When George Lucas pitched Star Wars to 20th Century Fox, the project was so out there and ambitious, that it barely got green-lit by the studio. Production was a disaster, as filming was being plagued by bad weather, malfunctioning props, unsuitable special effects, and a cast who had lost faith in the project. Lucas, being committed to his vision poured his heart and soul into the project, determined to finish the movie and still deliver a quality flick. Through hell and high water, the movie was finished, and turned out to be a bigger success than anyone, especially Lucas, could have predicted. As an aspiring filmmaker myself, this is something I can appreciate and admire. The story of an ambitious young filmmaker, tackling a radical idea, doing what he loves, pushing the boundaries of a medium, and coming out successful after going through hell to get there is inspiring. Say what you will about George Lucas, but what he did to get his movie into theaters is something all nerds need to appreciate. Sure, the Star Wars prequels and Indiana Jones 4 didn't quite live up to the standards set by their predecessors, but what Lucas did to achieve his dreams and see his vision to the end is inspirational. This is what's missing in films today folks... George Lucas-like vision and dedication. In an industry plagued by remakes, reboots, sequels, and whatnot, we need another visionary like George Lucas to get us out of this rut. I'm talking about one who has a unique outlook on film, someone who adores the medium, where's it's been, and knows how to move it in the direction of where it's future can lead. While I'm sure those who end up directing the new Star Wars film will be perfectly serviceable filmmakers (and hopefully a fan of the series), I find it hard to believe that another Star Wars sequel will do anything to move this medium forward or deliver anything truly creative and/or different like the originals did (though anything is possible). We need studios green-lighting fresh and interesting ideas as opposed to reboots. More than that, we need the visionary filmmakers to sign onto them and make them a reality... only then will we be out of this originality rut.

Finishing Up
Okay, so despite all the pros and cons of what this deal means, how do I feel overall? Honestly, consider me cautiously optimistic. All my gripes and complains about selling out and unoriginal thinking are there, but I can't silence that stupid little nerd that lives in my brain constantly shouting "YAY!!! THREE MORE STAR WARS MOVIES!!!" So yeah, despite my concerns... I'm excited. There's a lot of potential with Disney calling the shots, and with the right team maybe, JUST MAYBE, we'll have three great films to look forward to. So Disney and whoever else will be working on the new films, all I can say is "May The Force Be With You."