What have they done to James Bond?
If you've never read any of the 007 novels, you should read at least one of the early books to get the true flavor of the special spy that English author Ian Fleming created. A few years ago, I decided to tackle all of the Bond books in the order in which they were released. I was delighted by the sly and dry humor (those Brits and their typical stiff upper quips), surprised by how violent the action was, and stunned by the racism expressed by many of the characters, including Bond. All of those beautiful and sexy women aside, Fleming clearly harbored some nostalgia for British colonialism.
The books became popular in the United States after it was learned that President John F. Kennedy was a fan of them. Today, it seems only natural that movies would follow. The official James Bond 007 series consists of those M-G-M movies produced by the team of Albert R. (Cubby) Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, starting with Sean Connery in "Dr. No" in 1962. The Bond films are now under the guidance of Broccoli's daughter Barbara.
Many Bond purists sneer at George Lazenby's portrayal of Bond, but let's give the guy a break. His single Bond picture came in the middle of Connery's superior turn as the spy. It seems Connery wanted to give up the part after "You Only Live Twice" (1967). Thus Lazenby was tossed into the mix with "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" in 1969, to be followed by the final Connery Bond, "Diamonds Are Forever" in 1971. Roger Moore, whose Bond I never warmed to, was next, followed by Timothy Dalton, then Pierce Brosnan, and now Daniel Craig, whose first outing, "Casino Royale," is a terrific movie.
What Connery's, and to some extent Moore's, Bond pictures did, was to remember the novels' wit and women, keep the villainy level high, and give the audience a few new gadgets over which to marvel. But, I do think Moore was a sillier Bond. Dalton was OK and his films aren't that bad. With Brosnan, the whole enterprise seemed more like satire -- the gadgets were over-the-top, the villains dull, and the actor's Bond, although handsome and earnest, was a bit too stiff and his humor was forced. His 007 epics seemed more like standard action thrillers. In fact, the best Brosnan Bond-style feature isn't even about James Bond. It's the remake of "The Thomas Crown Affair."
With "Casino Royale," the producing team went back to basics, giving Bond the edge he needed and the sexy women he wanted, although the wit wasn't at the right level. It wasn't Connery clever. The new 007 movie, "Quantum Of Solace," picks up literally hours after the previous film ends. Having been betrayed by Vesper, the woman he loved, 007 resists the temptation to turn his new mission into something personal. OK, I can handle a vengeful Bond, but with his boss M tsk-tsking everything, and a possible mole at the spy works, Bond's desires receive a setback.
The problem here is how it all plays out. The movie opens promisingly, although I wasn't that impressed with the car chase, which is more CGI slick than believable. I've driven on coastal roads in Italy with their hair-pin turns and cliff edges over the Mediterranean, and what we get has to be taken with a grain of sea salt. Next comes an interesting locale. We're at the Paleo horse races in the great piazza in Siena, Italy, which is followed by a foot chase around scaffolding erected for a restoration project. This leads us to a Mr. White, some double-dealing, and strong hints that an evil criminal organization (Quantum) will take us on a road to deeds that could be more nefarious than anyone imagined. I wish.
Alas, it turns out that the bad guy and Quantum have something wacky in mind. Forget dominating outer space, these guys want fresh drinking water, and they will take over third-word countries to control supplies of it. After a stop in Austria for a modern-dress version of the opera "Tosca," which seems to be in the movie only to have a shoot-out disrupt a modern-dress version of "Tosca," Bond, on the hunt for Quantum and going a little bit rogue, ends up in the desert region of Bolivia. He's on the trail of Dominic Greene, the king of all water. Yes, permission to laugh is granted.
Worse is the fact that Greene is played by a schlump of an actor named Mathieu Amalric. Nothing about him is impressive, not his looks (short and pudgy, but not in a good way), not his sloppy clothes (they look as if he picked them up from the floor), nor his acting (he has one expression -- quizzical). He resembles nothing more than a mouse about to steal some cheese, and he's about as frightening as a rain drop.
"Quantum Of Solace" fails in many ways, not the least of which is a bad storyline thanks to a misguided and uninteresting screenplay by Paul Haggis, Neal Purvis, and Robert Wade. They and German-born director Marc Forester (who has made stark dramas like "Monster's Ball" and light fantasies such as "Finding Neverland"), along with, I assume, Ms. Broccoli, have decided that actor Craig's dour demeanor in "Casino Royale" worked so well that this time around they would completely drain 007 of his delightfully jaundiced humor.
This is a huge mistake because Bond as a character is a fully evolved personality and his humor is part of his psyche. What we get here is an unfunny Bond. And somewhere along the line, it was decided to have Craig play him so stiffly that he drags everything down with his bleak narcissism. He's become a tight-ass. If Ingmar Bergman had made an action-adventure thriller, this would have been it.
There's also a problem with the women in the film. Olga Kurylenko is Camille, the lady who turns 007's head. She's ostensibly the Bond Girl, but I was more intrigued by Miss Strawberry Fields, a British operative who must order Bond to leave Bolivia. The actress playing Fields, Gemma Arterton, has everything Kurylenko doesn't: the right attitude, the right look, and the right acting talent. Arterton is so perfect a Bond-movie character that she makes you wish Connery might peek around a corner. Someone who does peek around the corner is Bond's old pal Mathis, played by Giancarlo Giannini. He's primarily here to give 007 another reason to get angry and to exhibit some seriously callous behavior. Would you toss your friend's body in a dumpster? What is this, "Hamlet.?"
All in all, "Quantum Of Solace," the 22nd entry in the official series, is a wasted effort. Its running time is surprisingly short. The sets are dull. Even the modern opera house lacks Germanic heft. And as for that weird hotel stuck smack in the middle of the Bolivian desert, where Mr. Greene faces off with Bond, well, it's about as imaginative a piece of architecture as your standard contemporary roadside motel. Something went seriously wrong along the road to this 007 caper. The action is basic, and there are no fun new spy gadgets. M (Judi Dench) has been turned into a brittle old crone.
As for the two dark-clothed, shadowy people who show up at the end -- one of whom claims to be a Canadian woman -- you've got every right to be bored, bewildered, and banking on the fact that she'll be linked to the next Bond movie. I sure hope it's better than this one, which ultimately lacks the true spirit of the 007 adventures.
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | November 18 2008 |