Action and adventure
PRINCIPAL
CAST MEMBERS
Daniel Craig: James Bond, agent 007
Judi Dench: his boss, M, head of M.I.6
Naomie Harris: field agent Eve Moneypenny
Ralph Fiennes: Gareth Mallory, Chairman of the Intelligence
and Security Committee
Ben Whisaw: Q, the M.I.6 quartermaster
Bérénice Marlohe: Sévérine
Javier Bardem: Raoul Silva, former MI6 agent
Helen McCrory: Claire Dowar, chairwoman of the public
inquiry
REVIEW
The action sequences are nothing short of spectacular with
some of the “traditional” elements clearly in evidence (think fruit stands)
which pretty well sums up this latest version of the series: a mix of the old
and the new.
Beautiful locations which are a trademark of the series include
Istanbul, London, Shanghai, Macau and the Scottish Highlands. The beautiful
girls (another Bond staple) are there as well. The acting is uniformly good
with less tongue-in-cheek than in some earlier editions. To me, this is the
best Bond yet in part because of the strong cast along with the work of Sam
Mendes as Director and Roger Deakins in charge of cinematography.
Although a tad long at 2 hours and 23 minutes, there are
very few slow spots that could be left on the editing floor.
CLASSIFICATION

for intense violent sequences throughout, some sexuality,
language and smoking.
FOR
NITPICKERS ONLY
- Bond
gets hit on the right shoulder but later when he attempts to extract the bullet
it’s now in his left shoulder.
- During
the assessment of his shooting skills, Bond fires off 8 or 9 rounds but
when he checks the target there are twice as many bullet holes in it.
- The
night security man in Macau was shot approaching the ground floor door not
at the top of the escalator where Bond walks around him.
- Bone
describes the dress worn by Bérénice as backless but it is not: the back
of the dress is a sheer fabric encrusted with sparkles.
- Silva
says he survived the cyanide capsule which is patently impossible given
the deadly nature of the substance.
- When
the tube train plunges off the tracks the interior lights remain lit; once
the train leaves the rails that carry the electricity the train would have
been in darkness.
- When
M is being questioned by the panel her watch shows it to be 3:37 but it is
3:00 according to the clock on the wall and moments later on Bond’s watch
we see it to be 3:50.
- Big
Ben shows it to be 5:30 when Eve gets to the rooftop but seen over Bond’s
shoulder it is almost 6:00 o’clock.
- When
Bond falls through the ice we can see it is only 2” thick. Thin ice like
that cannot support the weight of a grown man. Ice of at least 4” thick is
safe to walk on; 3” or less … keep off!
P.S.
Although there are a number of songs and books that have remained popular for years, this is the 50th year of the franchise which is a remarkable achievement in cinema.
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