“Quantum of Solace” Review

Apr 2, 2009 by Nathan Smith

Film Review

“Quantum of Solace”

Daniel Craig is back for his second outing as the infamous “007″ in the latest James Bond film, “Quantum of Solace,” marking the twenty-second James Bond film since the franchise started with “Dr. No” back in 1962. However, this is the very first film in the series that is a direct sequel to its predecessor, the highly acclaimed “Casino Royale,” which was a re-imagining of the series that took us back to the feeling of Bond’s early days as 007.

Quantum of Solace begins with a hectic car chase that takes place mere minutes after the  ending scenes of “Casino Royale.” Bond, still mourning the loss of his love interest, Vesper Lynd, is on a mission of revenge. What starts out as the questioning of returning villain Mr. White (Jesper Christensen) about a shady international network turns into an assassination attempt on the life of Bond’s MI6 handler, “M” (Judi Dench). All evidence of the assasination attempt leads back to a wealthy environmentalist named Dominic Greene, played by Mathieu Amalric. In typical Bond fashion, these events lead Bond and his feisty new companion Camille (Olga Kurylenko) towards uncovering and stopping whatever diabolical scheme Greene has planned.

Casino Royale introduced a sleeker and grittier Bond, and “Quantum of Solace” continues this trend. Action sequences are filmed in quick cuts and follow the raw and intense style similar to other modern action-thrillers, such as the “Bourne” trilogy. While many of these sequences are praise-worthy, the problem lies in the fact that there are far too many of them, far too often. “Quantum” is filled with almost every type of chase sequence you could think of: chases on foot, car chases, boat chases—and yes, there is even an airplane chase. Amidst all this are of course, many gun shoot-outs.

James Bond movies have always been action oriented, but having a shorter run-time of only 106 minutes, there is hardly room left for anything else. Director Marc Forester has made many great films in his career, such as “Stranger than Fiction” and “Finding Neverland,” but he’s left out almost everything that made “Casino Royale” such a revelation in the franchise.

The plot of “Quantum” turns into something that is needlessly complicated and that in the end, the audience doesn’t even care about. Worse off, the environmentalist’s scheme is virtually pushed aside in favour of the story of Bond’s quest for revenge. Bond is hateful and angry. He wants revenge for the death of Vesper, and leaves a trail of bodies in his search for answers.

Daniel Craig still plays a great Bond, possibly the best since Sean Connery, but he’s much less interesting and dynamic this time around. So too is the new Bond-girl Camille; Olga Kurylenko plays the part well, but she becomes a wasted talent because she isn’t given much to work with. Coupled with all this is the fact that Amalric’s Dominic Greene just isn’t a very menacing or interesting villain.

While “Casino Royale” showed us how great Bond films can be, “Quantum” falls back into the loop of mediocrity that had plagued the franchise in some of the recent releases. The action scenes are well executed, but that is all the film has to offer. Craig’s 007 and the series’ new tone are still welcomed changes to the franchise, but this is not the sequel fans were anticipating.

Verdict: **

(Out of a possible ****)