Review: Spectre

Spectre

   James Bond is back.  James Bond will always be back.

   Spectre reunites basically the entire creative team behind 2012's Skyfall.  The only notable exception is Cinematographer Roger Deakins, and believe me, if you remember how beautiful Skyfall was - you'll notice.

   The cinematography is not as good (but, honestly, when you follow Roger Deakins, how could it be?), the movie moved very slowly at times, and the action wasn't the best in the franchise, even though it was distinctly more inventive than the action in Skyfall.  In terms of style and technique, it's a complete Skyfall rehash with Hoyte Van Hoytema (he did the cinematography for Interstellar) instead of Roger Deakins.

   I have to add that there were one or two scenes that I thought were genuinely horrible for pacing.  I found myself wondering what was going on more than once, not because I got lost but because something looked like it would happen and then it would happen . . . sixty seconds later.  It was really strange.

   And one more negative thing.  Don't let John Logan anywhere near any more Bond scripts, please!  His randomly dramatic/thematic dialogue belongs on the stage in Chicago NOT in a Bond film.

   I am happy to say that aside from being too slow and the fact that Sam Mendes is definitely not an action director the movie is quite good.  Where Skyfall brought Q and Moneypenny into the new Bond world, Spectre brings in yet others.  As far as specifics I will only say the obvious: Dave Bautista makes a glorious classic Bond henchman.

   I'm finding it hard to review this film because of all the spoiler-sensitive stuff.  At least in the trailers you saw the evil lair of the bad guy.  It's those classic Bond elements brought into Daniel Craig's Bond world that provided much of the joy of Spectre.

   Opposite Daniel Craig this time around we have Christoph Waltz as Hans Oberhauser.  All I will say here is that Waltz is exactly the natural fit for a Bond villain that you think he is.

   I have always felt that a good measure of a movie is how soon you want to see it again.  From this review you may not believe that I liked Spectre but I would like to see it again soon.

      Big Shot Critic

P.S. I totally did not write reviews for The Martian or The Intern.  Oops.