Film Review: QUANTUM OF SOLACE (2008) – Revisited

Director: Marc Forster
Writers: Neal Purvis, Robert Wade & Paul Haggis (screenplay): Ian Fleming (novel)
Running time: 106 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 12

Genre: Action/Adventure/Thriller
UK Release date: 31^st October 2008

Watched on DVD Sunday 14^th October 2012.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I watched ‘Casino Royale’ just recently and found it a really great way to reboot the Bond franchise. This is the second time I’ve seen ‘Quantum of Solace’ and I have to say I didn’t enjoy it quite as much this time around. That’s not to say that it’s bad, far from it, I still think it’s a pretty good film; maybe not as good as I did on first viewing is all. It helps if you have seen ‘Casino Royale’ to understand why Bond is behaving the way he is, but I don’t think it’s essential, there are enough references for you to figure it out. Here’s a brief summary before I give you my thoughts.

We begin with a car chase, a great way to start many an action thriller. Guns blazing, the bad guys eventually get their comeuppance; I don’t think I’m giving anything away there! Bond drives to Siena where M is waiting to question the prisoner he has in his boot (trunk if you’re in the US). There’s a double cross and this is where the action starts… I won’t go into too much detail about the plot, partly because it’s quite complicated and partly because I don’t want to give away any spoilers. But very briefly, good guys, Bond, M…etc. against mysterious bad guys who we don’t even find out the name of until almost the end. Don’t worry, I won’t say it… Oh, and there’s a girl with revenge on her mind involved, and I reckon that’s about all I can tell you.

Great performance from Daniel Craig (as ever) as Bond and Olga Kurylenko as Camille. Judi Dench was brilliant, isn’t she always, as M and I thought Mathieu Amalric was adequate as Dominic Greene, the chief bad guy. Honourable mentions to Gemma Arterton as Strawberry Fields, Giancarlo Giannini as Rene Mathis and Jeffrey Wright as Felix Leiter.

Production wise, I couldn’t fault it, shot very well both on location and at Pinewood with, as usual, an excellent soundtrack. On the down side, the fight sequences did remind me of the ‘Jason Bourne’ films a little bit too much, I expected something a little more original. Over all, just what we’ve come to expect from a modern Bond movie, it just lacked a little humour to lighten it up a bit, apart from that, pretty enjoyable… if a little over complicated.

SteelMonster’s verdict: RECOMMENDED

My score: 7.4/10

IMDb Score: 6.8/10 (based on 165,595 votes at the time of going to press).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0830515/

MetaScore: 58/100: (Based on 38 critic reviews provided by Metacritic.com at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 65/100 (based on 246 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 62/100 ‘Liked it’ (based on 385,925 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/quantum_of_solace/

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http://facebook.com/andy.steel3

FAVOURITE QUOTES:
M: It'd be a pretty cold bastard who didn't want revenge for the death of someone he loved.

Mr. White: The first thing you should know about us is... we have people everywhere.

James Bond: How long have I got?
Felix Leiter: Thirty seconds.
James Bond: That doesn't give us a lot of time...

M: Who the hell is this organisation Bond? How can they be everywhere and we know nothing about them!

Camille: You lost somebody?
James Bond: I did.
Camille: You catch who ever did it?
James Bond: No, not yet.
Camille: Tell me when you do, I'd like to know how it feels...

James Bond: [Interrupting the opera house conversation] Can I offer an opinion? I really think you people should find a better place to meet.

Camille: So, what's your interest in Greene?
James Bond: Among other things, he tried to kill a friend of mine.
Camille: A woman?
James Bond: Yes. But it's not what you think.
Camille: Your mother?
James Bond: She likes to think so.

Camille: How much did he want?
James Bond: He wanted you but I left the car as collateral. He'll get much more when he sells us out.

LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Official Site: http://www.007.com/
Trailer:

Film Review: HITMAN (2007)

Director: Xavier Gens
Running time: 89 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

Genre: Action/Thriller
UK Release date: 30th November 2007

Watched on Sky+ Saturday 25th June 2011.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I have seen this film before, but it’s one of those films that isn’t exactly memorable whilst at the same time it’s not exactly rubbish either. It’s kind of hard to explain really, but I think it’s a lot better than some ‘scores’ you’ll see on the internet might suggest. It’s based on a video game and as such, like many others of its type, it suffers from trying to be too much like the game. I thought it was actually quite good in patches, it just failed to deliver at the crucial moments. Here’s a brief summary before I give you more of my thoughts.

Our Hitman, Agent 47, was brought up from an early age to be a Hitman. He is hired to assassinate a Russian politician, Mikhail Belicoff, and he carries out his instructions to the letter. Imagine his surprise when the same politician appears live on TV the very next day. Add to this the fact that he is being pursued by an Interpol Officer, Mike Whittier and the Russian Secret police are also getting involved. He discovers the politician has a lover, Nika Boronina, who he kidnaps, hoping to get more information from her. He finds himself drawn to her in ways he’s not used to. A hit is put out on Agent 47 and people from his own employers, ‘The Organization’ are now also after him. It’s time to strike back and this is where I leave it. I don’t want to find a mysterious bald man sitting in my armchair when I get home one stormy evening.

As I said at the beginning, this film suffers from trying to be a little too much like a video game. There is quite an over-complicated plot that really doesn’t have a strong narrative which doesn’t help matters. Performance wise, I thought Timothy Olyphant did a decent job as Agent 47, he certainly had the look. Dougray Scott was adequate without really breaking a sweat as Mike Whittier and Olga Kurylenko did a decent job as Nika Boronina. Also worthy of note were; Robert Knepper, sporting a natty Russian accent, as Yuri Marklov, Ulrich Thomsen as Mikhail Belicoff, Henry Ian Cusick as his brother, Udre Belicoff and Michael Offei as Jenkins.

Unfortunately this film did have a bit of the look and feel of a ‘Jason Bourne’ film… and we have already seen at least one of those. The fight scenes were all very well done and there were some spectacular explosions to keep the kids happy (that’s a joke by the way). An over-complicated plot didn’t help matters, but at the end of the day I did find it entertaining, if not very memorable (and I’ve seen it twice!). Over all, recommended, but for just one viewing.

My Score: 5.7/10

LINKS:
(RT=Rotten Tomatoes)
IMDb Page: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0465494/
RT Page: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hitman/
Trailer: