"Skyfall" offered a lot, even if you don't particularly like Daniel Craig as Bond, or even if you grew up on the old-school Bond films. First and foremost it had a good story to tell. It finally felt that the Bond franchise managed to go fully beyond its formula without losing own unique style. No wonder Timothy Dalton suggested the Academy should finally award Bond with Oscar. Well, it seems they lost their only chance as "Spectre" feels like a total disappointment when compared to "Skyfall".
The plot is very thin, to say the least. As a matter of fact there is almost no plot at all. Bond is going after Blofeld, who as it turns out hates Bond because... his daddy liked him better when they were both kids... No, seriously! Here we deal again with Freudian mambo-jumbo, and in a simplest possible way! The story centers around Bond going after Blofeld and sadly lacks either drama or suspense, because every single person in the audience knows that the man Bond is looking for...is Blofeld, even Bond knows that. All this makes rather boring and too predictable, even as for a Bond picture.
The subplot with C-section overtaking M-section could be a life-rescuing injection for the film but due to a terrible miscasting it is not. Unfortunately Andrew Scott as C can't shake off his Moriarty image and simply lacks charisma as a nemesis for Ralph Fiennes' M. Come on, there should be an actor of some authority to face Ralph Fiennes. I imagine the likes of Damian Lewis or Idris Elba in that role.
Okay, back to the main story: while looking for Blofeld, Bond meets two girls, actually, one woman and one girl. Woman being Monica Belluci who does her usual thing looking aloof. She's about 10 minutes on screen and does completely nothing for the plot. In a nutshell: Bond looks at her, saves her and spends the night with her, and all this happens on the day of her husband's funeral, which makes her character totally unbelievable. I understand producers wanted Belucci to boost publicity, but why did she bother? Really... The girl - Lea Seydoux - is supposed to look vulnerable, but sorry, it doesn't work at all. She just looks cold and we never get to understand what motivates her very sudden change... one moment she dislikes and doesn't trust Bond, and the next one, after changing her dress for a dinner, she's happy, and smiling, and ready for anything Bond wants from her... which is a kiss. Sadly there is no chemistry between Craig and Seydoux (they don't even come close to the fantastic chemistry between Bond and Vesper Lynd in "Casino Royale"!).
There's usually a lot of moaning about old Bond films, especially those with Roger Moore as 007, but when you compare Bond's affair with, say, Melina Havelock (Carole Bouquet) in "For Your Eyes Only", or his debut affair with Solitaire in "Live and Let Die", it just hurts how bad Craig and Seydoux turn out. In my humble opinion there is no comparison at all. But the lowest point of the film (not mentioning risky decision to recycle scenes from previous Bond films - must have been fun for John Logan and Sam Mendes, but the audience may feel deceived) is the climax of the story, again lacking suspense and excitement. The torture scene, although based on a good premise, would do with some Hitchcockian editing and in the final sequence with Bond looking for Lea, he finds her way too easily.
Any advantages? Very nice photography by Hoyte Van Hoytema (beutifully shot Mexico) and good performance by Christoph Waltz, who portrays Blofeld not so much as a cold-hearted villain but rather as a psycho. Still it seems a wasted opportunity as there could be more psychological tension between Bond and Blofeld.
All in all "Spectre" is definitely the least entertaining entry in Craig-era Bond series.
The plot is very thin, to say the least. As a matter of fact there is almost no plot at all. Bond is going after Blofeld, who as it turns out hates Bond because... his daddy liked him better when they were both kids... No, seriously! Here we deal again with Freudian mambo-jumbo, and in a simplest possible way! The story centers around Bond going after Blofeld and sadly lacks either drama or suspense, because every single person in the audience knows that the man Bond is looking for...is Blofeld, even Bond knows that. All this makes rather boring and too predictable, even as for a Bond picture.
The subplot with C-section overtaking M-section could be a life-rescuing injection for the film but due to a terrible miscasting it is not. Unfortunately Andrew Scott as C can't shake off his Moriarty image and simply lacks charisma as a nemesis for Ralph Fiennes' M. Come on, there should be an actor of some authority to face Ralph Fiennes. I imagine the likes of Damian Lewis or Idris Elba in that role.
Okay, back to the main story: while looking for Blofeld, Bond meets two girls, actually, one woman and one girl. Woman being Monica Belluci who does her usual thing looking aloof. She's about 10 minutes on screen and does completely nothing for the plot. In a nutshell: Bond looks at her, saves her and spends the night with her, and all this happens on the day of her husband's funeral, which makes her character totally unbelievable. I understand producers wanted Belucci to boost publicity, but why did she bother? Really... The girl - Lea Seydoux - is supposed to look vulnerable, but sorry, it doesn't work at all. She just looks cold and we never get to understand what motivates her very sudden change... one moment she dislikes and doesn't trust Bond, and the next one, after changing her dress for a dinner, she's happy, and smiling, and ready for anything Bond wants from her... which is a kiss. Sadly there is no chemistry between Craig and Seydoux (they don't even come close to the fantastic chemistry between Bond and Vesper Lynd in "Casino Royale"!).
There's usually a lot of moaning about old Bond films, especially those with Roger Moore as 007, but when you compare Bond's affair with, say, Melina Havelock (Carole Bouquet) in "For Your Eyes Only", or his debut affair with Solitaire in "Live and Let Die", it just hurts how bad Craig and Seydoux turn out. In my humble opinion there is no comparison at all. But the lowest point of the film (not mentioning risky decision to recycle scenes from previous Bond films - must have been fun for John Logan and Sam Mendes, but the audience may feel deceived) is the climax of the story, again lacking suspense and excitement. The torture scene, although based on a good premise, would do with some Hitchcockian editing and in the final sequence with Bond looking for Lea, he finds her way too easily.
Any advantages? Very nice photography by Hoyte Van Hoytema (beutifully shot Mexico) and good performance by Christoph Waltz, who portrays Blofeld not so much as a cold-hearted villain but rather as a psycho. Still it seems a wasted opportunity as there could be more psychological tension between Bond and Blofeld.
All in all "Spectre" is definitely the least entertaining entry in Craig-era Bond series.