Cue that James Bond Theme! The 24th installment in the 007 canon, Spectre, has been released on DVD and Blu-ray this week. 24 Bond films, can you believe it?
Spectre marks the official return of evil organization SPECTRE, which stands for Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion. The organization has been lurking in the shadows since Casino Royale, but thanks to the studio re-acquiring the rights, Bond and company can finally utter its real name (and resurrect a notorious villain).
Spectre starts off strong with a traditional, exciting opening sequence. Bond is sent careening through the air in an out of control helicopter during the Day of the Dead festivities in Mexico City. It's some real edge-of-your seat stuff. Sam Smith's contributed theme "Written on the Wall", while emotional and vulnerable, is a little "eh" to me. It feels like an Adele re-hash.
Daniel Craig, into his fourth 007 outing, is still full of youth and can pack a serious punch. He's the most physical Bond there has ever been. The infamous Bond Girls are played by Léa Seydoux and Monica Bellucci. Léa is the main love interest, and she can handle herself. Monica, the oldest woman to play a Bond Girl, is seriously under-used. She's merely a sacrificial lamb, without the sacrifice. The villain is (unsurprisingly) expertly played by Christoph Waltz, but he feels under-used as well. The evil plot is a little murky, and he just gnaws on the scenery instead of chewing it.
Interlinking the past three Craig films together, Spectre tries to bring the viewer an overall resolution to the Craig-era, but it only manages to feel like a set-up to something much bigger. Bond just can't drive off into the sunset and never pull another trigger. He's tried it before in On Her Majesty's Secret Service (even married!), and obviously that did not turn out well (e.g. the bullet hole above).
Overall, Spectre is still a strong addition to the Bond universe and well worth a watch. Spectre is available now at the Franklin County Library!
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