This is a crash-bang Bond, high on action, low on quips. Under the direction of Marc Forster, the movie ladles out the adrenalin in a string of deafening episodes: car chases, plane wrecks, motor boat collisions. If it's got an engine, and runs on fuel, and can crash into another similarly powered vehicle, with Bond at the wheel, and preferably with a delicious female companion in the passenger seat - well, it goes in the movie.

There is so little dialogue and characterisation in this Bond: Forster and his writers Paul Haggis, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade clearly thought this sort of nonsense has to be cut out in favour of explosions. But set against this is the cool, cruel presence of Craig - his lips perpetually semi-pursed, as if savouring some new nastiness his opponents intend to dish out to him, and the nastiness he intends to dish out in return. This film, unlike the last, doesn't show him in his powder-blue swimming trunks (the least heterosexual image in 007 history), but it's a very physical performance. He's made the part his own, every inch the coolly ruthless agent-cum-killer, nursing a broken heart and coldly suppressed rage. If the Saville Row suit with the Beretta shoulder holster fits, wear it. And he's wearing it.

Quantum of Solace isn't as good as Casino Royale: the smart elegance of Craig's Bond debut has been toned down in favour of conventional action. But the man himself powers this movie; he carries the film: it's an indefinably difficult task for an actor. Craig measures up.

(Peter Bradshaw)

Bournesque or Bondian? Post your review of the follow up to Casino Royale, here.

One of the few things I managed to find and save from the KTBEU archive was my original review of QOS:

Quote:

Having read so many negative and disappointed reactions to the film for two weeks before being able to go see it myself, my expectations were certainly lowered. I knew that the song would be horrible, that the opening chases in Italy would be nauseating and Bourne-like, that Bond would not bed the main female character, etc. However, in my eyes QOS unfolded as an engaging cinematic experience and a top-5 Bond film, only bettered by Connery’s first two and Lazenby’s and Craig’s first ones. I don’t mind that so many critics and fans wanted to see a more formulaic adventure with the gadgets and babes, but in my view there is a lot of misunderstanding of Quantum of Solace. I liked how the pre-title sequence starts with a dramatic zoom straight into the action, establishing the tone for the rest of the film – to the point and not wasting any seconds. Considering the difficulties they had in shooting the car chase, the quick editing and finish was tolerable in this case. Now the song and titles… my least favourite part. There’s nothing new to say about the awful Another Way to Die, but the titles were a step below Kleinman’s work on GE and CR. The minimalism of MK12’s work was refreshing at first but got dull quick. Nonetheless, not a serious gripe. On to the notorious action scenes… Bradley’s hand was obvious in the Bond-Mitchell chase and it screamed not just of Bourne, but also as an unsuccessful attempt to replicate the effect of the Madagascar construction site action in CR. The Bond-Slate fight was a refreshingly shorter rip-off of the Bourne-Desh fight in The Bourne Ultimatum. The Haiti boat chase was again excessively subject to the whim of hyper editing team. As the film progressed, the action got better. Many worthy compliments have been said about the opera sequence, and I found it to be one of the most stunning and memorable scenes in the Bond series. I’m glad that Forster included just the right amount of the actual Tosca performance to make me want to be there. The moment Bond and Greene’s eyes met in the foyer had me on the edge of my seat! Unlike many others, I enjoyed the retro DC-3 sequence, which reminded me more of Octopussy's climax than the aerial action scenes in the last few films. Once Bond and Camille returned to La Paz, Bond’s brilliant escape from the wraths of MI6 was just good old class, demonstrating Bond’s cat-like agility. Perla de las Dunas was a surprisingly traditional climax, with Bond intending to thwart the villain’s plans and destroy his lair. In typical Craig fashion, Bond got his job done quickly (at least on screen), not making QOS drag on like the finales of so many Bond movies. With all that action aside, the reason I believe QOS is a landmark Bond adventure is because it succeeds in fully developing Bond’s character in a way that Fleming avoided doing after writing CR and Brocolli & Saltzman avoided doing after OHMSS. Bond is not on some personal mission of revenge in QOS, like the critics claim. How can he avenge Vesper if he can’t forgive her? Bond is a torn man who finds solace in his duty. Breaking necks is his output. But he becomes loyal and instinctive enough to now see the big picture (in contrast to his behaviour in CR) and go out of his way to do his job. Bond’s shortlived friendship with Mathis and his bonding with Camille go a long way in clearing his eyes. The Bond that steps out of Yusef’s apartment in Kazan is a freed man – at least that’s how I see it. It was closure that needed to happen after CR – even at the expense of a more developed plot. Speaking of plot, it’s far from perfect, especially in the first hour. The Camille-Slate-geologist-Greene subplot was confusing at first and handled clumsily. From Bregenz, the story picks up nicely. Greene’s quest to control Bolivia’s water supply is underwhelming of course when compared to almost all the previous villain’s plots. One thing to keep in mind though is that Greene’s plan is just an ounce of what Quantum can be capable of doing. I actually found the shift from bland terrorism to ecology and coup d’etats refreshing. I wouldn’t call QOS an anti-climate change awareness movie, but has a relevant political subtext, in that it’s naïve to trust the intentions of preaching philanthropists. I admired the nod to Chinatown and other 1970s political thrillers that Forster talked about. The scene when Bond and Camille walk through a rural Bolivian town and board the bus alluded to Babel rather than TSWLM, especially with Arnold’s score mimicking Santaollala. Of the Bond films, I agree that QOS resembles LTK the most. The mix of retro and modern was handled excellently by Forster. I’ll throw in here my appreciation of the art direction, set design, and locations – from the medieval Sienna to the uber-cool Bregenz opera to the haunting Bolivian desert… there is style and spirit in these places. It’s a shame countries had to double for others, but that’s typical. Following Casino Royale, QOS gathers another fine cast. M, Leiter, and Mathis all manage to have expanded roles in a tighter film. Judi Dench gets a lot of screentime, with her M in the midst of a delicate balancing act between Bond and bureaucracy. The Leiter-Beam duo of contrasting CIA agents was an unusually sensible element for the Bond world, presenting the CIA in a way no Bond film has before. Giancarlo Giannini’s Mathis emerged as a true friend of Bond – his absence will be missed. Another character I wish there was more of was Dominic Greene. Mathieu Amalric stole so many scenes with his eyes and had some of the film's best lines. Like in Casino Royale, I didn’t really care for the minor villains/henchmen: Mitchell, Slate, General Medrano, Elvis, Yusef, etc. Mr. White was criminally underused though, and I hope for good reason (a return in Bond 23?). As for the ladies (other than M), Strawberry Fields was nothing more than cute while she lasted. Nor was she as cringe-worthy as I predicted. The beautiful Olga Kurylenko… well, I couldn’t help but care for Camille throughout the film. Bond needed her as much as she needed him to fulfill their goals, but what develops is a bond, not a one-night stand. Their kiss was one of the most poignant moments in the last few films. Camille won’t go down as one of the most memorable Bond girls, but she was one of his better allies. Finally, Daniel Craig himself is the driving force of QOS. Although his Casino Royale performance was more enjoyable because of the meatier script, he looks more natural as Bond in this one. I already mentioned his cat-like stealth, but in addition Craig captivates with his energy. This is ironic though because Bond is at his most dour and brutal in QOS. In the end, humanity prevails within him. With the respect he treats M with in the last scene, it’s clear that Bond has come full circle. In fact, he "never left." Quantum of Solace: 8.5/10 The good: The main cast (Craig, Dench, Kurylenko, Giannini, Amalric, Wright), Forster’s style and sensibility, Schaefer’s photography, Tosca, Gassner’s production design, Arnold’s score, Quantum, any humour that there was The bad: The song, the editing, the use of the “Bourne team” (e.g. Bradley), underdeveloped plot/script in first half, underdeveloped/bland characters (Fields, Medrano, Elvis, Slate, etc.)

That was in November '08. My views haven't changed too much, but after a couple of additional viewings, I now rank it in the 10-11 range rather than in the top 5.

Vile trash. Worse than ANTICHRIST and GIALLO.

Bloody hell

I've read fans call Die Another Day the worst Bond film ever. They either don't know Bond or have yet to see Quantum Of Boredom.
Easily the worst Bond film of the series. Not only does it have a midget builder running around claiming to be Bond. But the story, the threat to the World. The Bolivian water supply. WOW!
After stopping an atomic bomb exploding in Fort Knox, stopping SPECTRE hold the world to ransom on various occasions, foiling all the villainous plots over nearly fifty years, the best that they can come up with is the bloody Bolivian water supply. What a joke.
Apart from seeing Gemma Arterton covered in liquid (the wrong time I hasten to add), this film is a waste of time.

I don't agree with the sentiment of DAD being the worst Bond film ever. But I don't think QOS is either. I award that title (or dishonor) to TWINE.

I like QOS overall, flaws and all. I rank it in the middle.

The plot makes no sense. Jumps from A to F. The stakes are low. The villains are bland. The twists are pointless and melodramatic. The films thematic message is a complete rehash of what we were supposed to be done with in Casino Royale.

Throw in the pretentious direction, the godawful title song, the crappy editing, MK12s work on this in general - it's a pompous film impressed with its own mediocrity.

Two scenes almost directly rip off The Bourne Supremacy (confronting Vesper's boyfriend and the Canadian agent; Bond fighting Slate in Haiti) - and I'm sure there are more that I'm not familiar with (I haven't seen Ultimatum).

I think it says something that the people who support this film point out Bond's characterisation as "feral" - a wild animal given a gun and permission to kill - something that is completely at odds with the character as written by Fleming and every screenwriter even up to the Brosnan era.

It's also preposterous for Bond to be staring at a picture of Vesper all drunk and teary eyed (let alone carrying arond an oversized photo of her to begin with...). It also doesn't help that the romance was unconvincing to begin with.

And then you get the added preposterousness of this 40 year old military vet being a subordinate cry baby with no sense of self-control, order or hierarchy. That'd still be a stretch with a 28 year old.

The only part where the film really works for a sustained period is from the arrival in Bolivia to the end of Greene's party, and even then it's nothing to write home about.

The cinematography is nice to look at when it stays away from the actors faces, though. And Arnold is his least obnoxious.

I'd rate it as the worst before The World Is Not Enough, but Giancarlo Giannini is single handedly better than anything in that piece of trash.

I enjoyed Quantum of Solace for the sheer rawness and brutality of it. The fast pace meant things were said once and left. None of the "now this cord is only weight-tested for one person" which means you can bet the farm the plot will require two people to use it for some death-defying escape. The female lead wasn't anywhere near as annoying as in Casino Royale, which made a refreshing change.

The song sucked, but still managed to not be quite as bad as Madonna - which wins Worst Bond Theme Ever award hands down in my opinion.

Actually, I probably prefer this to Casino Royale.

It's not my favourite Bond film, but it's up there in the top 5, I suppose.

Sloppy seconds for me.

For me, this is what FYEO could have. It's got two interconnecting stories that are very relevant and engaging and shot well. Maybe I can commiserate more than most because of the drought that Victoria (Australia) has finally emerged from. I've read comments on the internet though saying that Bond is going out for revenge, and that what does Bolivia's water supply have to do with England? Firstly the main plot of Quantum of Solace is for James Bond to find, just that - his quantum of solace. During this, he uncovers the plot that threatens the Bolivian water supply, which gives him a reason to try and destabilise Quantum. Secondly, Bond doesn't opt for revenge - he just wants answers. He is framed constantly, throughout the film. He is made to appear, rogue, but he isn't.

Which leads me to my next point. I find that Marc Forster understood the character of OO7 more than anybody else since John Glen, and if not him, Hunt and Young. Campbell's characterisation of Bond in CR was a reckless thug, and that's not who he is. The are many Flemingesque moments in this film which is always welcome. The scene where Bond contemplates murder-suicide at Perla De Las Dunas is taken almost directly from Fleming's Moonraker, and one could deduce that Camille is loosely based on Gala. There is an attraction between the two (as depicted when Bond initally meets Camille - "over drinks?"; "I didn't know geologists were so... so..."), but essentially, she's there for her own reason, and once her job's done, that's it. And I find that Camille plays it well. Other Flemingesque moments include Bond's indulgence of the martinis on the plane and his chauvinism is revisted (treatment of Fields).

The characters are diverse and interesting. Dominic Greene is fantastically slimey and villainous. His unnatural eyes harkens back to the more subtle disabilities such as Stromberg's webbed hands and Largo's eye patch. He also utters my favourite line in the film ("how much do you know about Bond, Camille, because he is rather a tragic case. He's MI6, they say he's difficult to control. Nice way of saying that: everything he touches seems to, wither and die!"). His agitated stillness (at Tosca; meeting with Medrano at Perla De Las Dunas) aids in stabilising his very fervently ambitious nature. Medrano is also an interesting villain. He likes to think of himself as a stronger person, but is actually a very weak one, with his targets mainly women.

I've been known to point out the 60s/retro which adds to my liking of the film:
Sets - very Ken Adam-ish (i know you don't agree Largo)
Cinematography - I find it to be an extention of what was established in Thunderball and On Her Majesty's Secret Service, with the quick cuts and shaky cam. It's also very vibrant; similar to DN and TB beach/docks scenes
Costumes/Hair - Both Fields and Camille look like they've been taken directly from so the 60s films. Arterton also said she modelled her look on Tracy and Pussy - her two favourite Bond girls. Camille's orange top/beige skirt harkens back to Helga Brandt's outfit in YOLT.
Arnold's score adds more distinctiveness than before, with a more culturally flavoured soundtrack.