Spectre is classic Bond. It’s got all the stuff you’ve come to expect from a 007 movie: the babes, the bad guys, the gadgets, the cool cars, the exotic locales, the fist fights, the gun fights and things that go boom, and of course, the martinis – shaken, not stirred.
There’s a certain comfort in the familiarity, but also a bit of boredom in what’s come to be a ‘standard’ two-and-a-half-hour running time.
There’s nothing particularly fresh and new in the latest installment of the franchise with brooding hottie Daniel Craig at the helm. He still looks good in and out of well-tailored suits, and he can still send hearts aflutter as he battles whoever might be threatening the inner-workings of the British spy agency MI6 and the security of the world at large. He can still count on Moneypenny and Q to help him out of a jam. And he’s still the embodiment of smart, sarcastic, cynical and suave.
The gist of the plot is this: A cryptic message from the past (hint: Judi Dench’s ‘M’ died in Skyfall but her memory lives on) sends Bond on a rogue mission to Mexico City, where he blows up half the place before the lengthy opening credits (with Sam Smith singing ‘The Writing’s on the Wall’) even roll. He travels to Rome, uncovers the existence of a sinister organization known as Spectre, and sets off on a mission to destroy the group, with the help of Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux), the beautiful daughter of an assassin. Meanwhile, back in London, the new head of the Centre for National Security (Andrew Scott) seems inclined to dismantle MI6, led by the embattled M (Ralph Fiennes). That part of the plot feels rather similar to the most recent Mission Impossible movie, which is actually a much better action spy flick than Spectre (for those who haven’t hitched a ride on the ‘I just don’t like Tom Cruise’ bandwagon). Ultimately, Spectre isn’t as good as Skyfall, but it’s still good, solid Bond. Christoph Waltz makes a good, creepy villain. And despite Daniel Craig’s coy remarks about his own future as Bond, the franchise will surely live on… and on… and on…