Quantum of Solace

Usually, when I do these reviews, I think  of something snappy to say about the film when I'm in the cinema (The Other Boleyn Girl, Iron Man), or perhaps even before I go and see it (There Will Be Blood). With this lastest Bond outing, I couldn't come up with much. Mostly because all that can be said about Craig's taciturn, tough Bond has already been written but also because this is an inherently satisfying film.

Like its hero it's tough and uncompromising, economical and sometimes brutal.  The action starts fairly soon after Casino Royale left off. Bond has Mr. White, the supposed betrayer of Vesper Lynd, in the boot (trunk, Americans) of his Aston Martin DBS and is steaming through the Italian Lakes being shot at by guys in Alfa Romeos. After interrogating the man for a little bit, Bond and M learn of a previously unheard of super-organisation behind world business and government. Fuelled by rage, Bond chases the bad guys through Haiti, Bolivia, one stand out scene in an Austrian opera house and back to Bolivia again. Some spoilers within.

The beating heart of this movie is Craig. He gives Bond a complexity missing from any previous incarnation, at turns desperate, rageful and vulnerable. First and foremost he's out for revenge against the guys who betrayed his love, but also revenge against her memory; it torments him throughout the film. It's a credit to both Craig and the writers that Bond, although its bubbling under the surafce, never absolutely looses it. Not even when his old mate Mathis is killed, or Agent Fields is killed by being drowned and covered in oil, a great Goldfinger reference and a startling visual image. When M suspends him you think the man might be about to actually explode as he heads downstairs in a lift (elevator, Americans). It's amazing stuff.

The film is also well directed. Forster keeps things tight, this film has the shortest run-time of any Bond, whereas Casino had the longest. Bond persues his enemies like some British, dusty Terminator across continents and through a procession of well edited action scenes, especially the previously mentioned opera bit and the flame fuelled finale. Without this direction (and Craig's performance) this movie might have stumbled but Forster controls things with reserved aplomb.

The rest of the cast are, for the most part, very good. Judi Dench especially tackles the part of M (now newly vunerable) with assurance. Matthieu Amalric as villain Dominic Greene and Giancarlo Giannini, returning as Mathis, are also very solid, although Felix Leiter is woefully sidelined even though he has his own demons to fight. This episode's Bond Girls continue Eva Green's good work, although Gemma Arterton's Agent (Strawberry) Fields is a bit too prep school.  The problem many people have with this film and with Craig's work as Bond in general is its Bournification.

I must admit, despite being British, that I do prefer Matt Damon's complex superagent but Bond could not continue in the same vein and be taken seriously. If you had kept Bond the same it would have kept being entertaining but mediocre. Bond is also a different character to Bourne, damaged in different ways, and these new films explore his character in a depth not seen before.  Quantum of Solace is a taught, superior slab of entertainment cinema. On one level light and simple but endlessly more complex under the surface. You may not think so as the final credits begin to roll, but it stays with you, mainly thanks to the completely satisfying nature of the performances and direction. 8/10