Thursday, March 28, 2024

Op-Ed: Recapping Daniel Craig’s Tenure as James Bond

While we wait, wait, and wait for some for the perpetual release date of No Time to Die, let’s look back and the highs and lows of Daniel Craig’s tenure as the man himself 007 James Bond.

Casino Royale Tour - Rome And Italy Tourist Service

Casino Royale

After achieving his license to kill, 007 pursues Mads Mikkelsen (Hannibal) with help from MI6 accountant Eva Green (Penny Dreadful) and CIA agent Jeffrey Wright (Westworld) in the 2006 debut of our blonde Bond, and I have a love/hate relationship with this updated adaptation of Ian Fleming’s first novel thanks to high stakes Texas Hold ‘Em, dated technology, and intrusive Sony product placement. While the on form Judi Dench (Mrs. Brown) returning as M goes unexplained against 007’s fountain of youth and the absence of Q and Moneypenny is understandable, all the things that make Bond, well, Bond aren’t here. Try hard action and the bulked up Craig replace the over the top lifestyle, British innuendo, and outrageous gadgets, and the lack of 007 theme music dampens chases more Bourne than Bond. Airport sequences are superb, and the train conversation with Vesper Lynd deliciously pegs Bond so right, cutting to this reboot’s roots with excellent characterizations. However promising Madagascar intrigue, Montenegro card games, sweet vehicle escapades, and suspenseful fight scenes go downhill thanks to an almost comical torture scene, deus ex machina escapes, and tacked on Venice charm with obvious fates in the last half hour. Casino Royale had the unenviable position of saving a forty year old franchise while luring a jaded modern generation anew. If this was an anonymous action movie about any other spy making mistakes and learning the ropes of his profession, I’d love everything here. It’s one of the more entertaining Bond pictures appealing to fans looking for something fresh and casual audiences alike, yet it’s often too far from what makes Bond Bond for me.

Quantum of Solace | Netflix

Quantum of Solace

Although I was eager to give Daniel Craig’s second 007 picture a chance, this depressing entry strays even further from the franchise hallmarks as James Bond tracks environmental schemes to Bolivia and beyond alongside the tormented Olga Kurylenko (Centurion), a wasted Gemma Arterton (Byzantium) as Strawberry Fields, and drudgery that won’t let anybody shine. Felix Leiter also exits too soon, and the reset between our new Bond and the vintage M creates confusion and distrust. We don’t know on whom we can rely as Bond becomes unlikable, flying by the seat of his pants with no Brit wit, dry humor, or winking subtleties. 007 gets beat up a lot, contrary to his suave past and laying the heavy action for action’s sake on thick. Once again, intricate and complex set pieces don’t have triumphant Bond cues to make them really cool, and the main titles, theme song, and hi-tech MI6 interfaces are sweet but now very dated. Quantum of Solace does have several visual and action proud points thanks to delightful less than pretty sides of Italy, Panama, and Chile with multiple chases by foot, car, boat, and plane. Unfortunately, geeky villains, uninteresting politics, and boring social commentaries take themselves too serious, hampering what could have been an intriguing introduction to the Quantum organization with environmentalism MacGuffins, obvious symbolism, and ridiculously over done deaths. Despite a short run time and some fine action, this feeling long and loud headache never strives for more than brooding blandness.

Skyfall' takes James Bond to new territory

Skyfall

It’s easy to eat harsh words about Daniel Craig’s first two installments because this third 2012 outing finally gets it right! 007 is presumed dead – unfit and recuperating with wine and women until cyber threats and physical attacks on the Intelligence Service itself force Bond to confront his orphaned Scottish roots in explosive fashion. Humor, sexuality, and returning characters add much needed brevity as glib and charismatic Craig dons the tuxedo with a combination of slick Connery and tongue in cheek Moore. Fast-paced excitement and swift wit accentuate the meaty topics and unfolding character dramas, making us wonder why the franchise ever did the gritty, angry reboot thing. Judi Dench has the finest turn as M yet, and Ralph Fiennes (The English Patient) begrudgingly embodies the bureaucratic red tape. Naomie Harris (Moonlight) as Moneypenny is both believable as a sassy field agent and intimate with the fireworks innuendo while Ben Whishaw’s (Paddington) nerdy Q adds cranky, reverse generational banter to the 50th anniversary subtle. Computer intricacies keep the technology contemporary, yet the gadgets aren’t steeped in the fantastic or product placement. London locales, crowded subway scenes, and intense tunnel action are violent, juicy, and dangerous – pushing the PG-13 rating with revealing babes and nail-biting deaths. For some, the homemade siege may be an overlong out-of-place turn for 007, but we’re unsure how Bond will save the day thanks to intense voiceovers, one-step behind trails, and potential agent on the inside twists. This charming, spirited step in the right direction reins in all the brooding, a reset with room to maneuver. I held my breath, laughed, cried, and happily sighed.

James Bond: What happened in Spectre - Radio Times

Spectre

The seemingly obsolete 00 program is eliminated and Bond goes rogue with doctor Lea Seydoux (Blue is the Warmest Colour) on the trail of shadowy Christoph Waltz (Inglorious Basterds) as Ernst Stavro Blofeld and his mysterious Spectre organization in this derivative 2015 twenty-fourth Eon outing. Skeleton disguises, parades, and extended tracking shot trickery escalate with helicopter perils and building disasters as sunkissed interiors and golden patinas accent international locales. Changing of the guard plot points and parallel dossiers lead to underground lairs, secret passages, and surveillance while mirrors layer Bond’s duality – good and bad, for his country and apart from it. Craig is up to snuff with wry quips, however, the ‘going through the motions’ pace is not up to par. Abundant CGI, digital grading, and omnipresent cyan schemes permeate chases proceeding from A to B just because they should, and the predictable torture, escape, rinse, repeat gets redundant fast. Unnecessary girls, superfluous set pieces, corruption, and uneven villains compound the awkward attempt to both connect Spectre to Quantum of Solace yet retcon such ties with broad storytelling and heavy-handed scripting. MI6 takes care of the business at home without the globe trotting Bond, leaving us to wonder why M, Q, and Moneypenny don’t have a streaming series between Bond films. Here the charming ensemble is both overused and undercooked as Blofeld conveniently tells all his secrets and the titular subterfuge rushes toward an Austin Powers “Daddy Wasn’t There” resolution. Despite great individual character moments, action scenes, and Bondian treats, Spectre wastes time waiting for something that never happens, making for frustrating repeat viewings while we hold out for No Time to Die. 

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