Also saw the new James bond movie Skyfall. And is it just me, or is it becoming a progressively worse and worse gig to be a Bond girl? I just vaguely remember the Pierce Brosnan ones (showing my age, these were the ones I first saw in theaters), and while they were heavy on the camp and riddled with silly gadgetry by the end, they were also the ones with strong female characters that didn't just not think/sleep with Bond/get killed off ASAP. Yes, Xenia Onatopp was campy, but she was also a threat. And yes he was saving a lovely Russian but at least she was also some kind of scientist.
Daniel Craig's nu-Bond established Vesper Lynd as the be-all, end-all of women in Bond's world, killed her off, and decided that no other female gets to be the badass she was. Give me Honey Ryder or Pussy Galore and I will snigger at the name and then be ok with them. These new ones just kind of make me mopey.
New hipster Q, however, is adorable.
Also, INSANELY GORGEOUS sets. The ruined island where the bad guy hides out? Chase scenes through Turkish markets? Bond's ancestral family home in Scotland? Good gravy. The whole thing was clearly shot with a loving eye and I enjoyed looking at every minute of it. Woof. Apparently they built the whole manor from scratch, which is also fun.
Also, Albert Finney! Bond's arc is pretty good, they spend a lot of time establishing him as aging and losing his knack and his interaction with the excellent Javier Bardem (it's another American movie, he must be playing a creepy bad guy) is so well done. And the car, sweet sassy molassey, the car. I don't want to spoil anything, so I will just say the first car scene makes the movie for me. Bond movies need a sense of humor if they're gonna fly. Daniel Craig is a good Bond but I think sometimes he gets a hair too serious.
And speaking of beautifully shot movies, we also rented Jiro Dreams Of Sushi, and it is also a visual feast. There isn't really a plot or much development of any kind, it's just this guy, he is a top sushi chef, and he talks about food, and his acolytes talk about food. Yes, he has acolytes. But man, talk about a pretty movie.
And more hipster Q. Happy long weekend, Americans! And happy Saturday, Canadians!
2 comments:
Okay, I know she slept with Bond and he didn't even know her name until he came back from the dead, but I liked Eve Moneypenny (Naomie Harris). She drove well and could shoot (you know, except for that killing 007 bit). Unfortunately, all the cool stuff she did training for the movie didn't make it into the movie. But I liked the fact that she wasn't a victim unlike Vesper who really was one. There was no real reason for Vesper to kill herself, that part really pissed me off. And how about the noname girl in Quantum, who was out for revenge, she didn't even sleep with Bond. There was even mutual respect there. I liked Skyfall I think it was a huge improvement over Quantum which I was disappointed in.
Ah, there was cool training for Moneypenny? I was just kind of sad that they made her sassy and in the beginning they kind of make it look like she's going to be a badass like Bond and then it's kind of a letdown, oh she's not cut out to be an agent so we'll make her a secretary to the new dude instead. It was just the secretary factor that disappointed me.
Also, I forgot that Camille doesn't sleep with him in QOS. So basically I was just cranky about M and Severine. Because Severine was such a nothing character but they added the weird backstory about how she was abused/made a sex slave before he sleeps with her, and M, M was Judi Dench dammit!
I did like it way more than QOS and am glad Moneypenny will be a recurring character, I just liked the idea of her as a badass female agent more than a sassy secretary.
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