Quantum of Solace

[Josh Mauser]

So I was surprised to find no topic!


So, I'll start from beginning I suppose. I first heard the song in a music video about a week ago, and it really wasn't grabbing me at all. When put to the title sequence (which is back to live action and scantily clad female sillouhettes) it's a TINY bit better, but yeah, enough alt rockers in Bond themes. Time to get back to divas I say. The title sequence itself I thought was really well done, better than Casino Royale's (which wasn't bad, either).

The chase pre-title set in a feeling that stuck in the back of my mind the rest of the movie. I get that they're trying to get Bond to basics with this new style, but it's coming off really generic at some points.

Don't get me wrong, Die Another Day, I think, was the epitome of awful, but it did have all the Bond elements (Q Branch, Moneypenny, etc) even if they were completely blown out of proportion (even for a Bond movie). Quantum has M, and that's it. Were the others stripped out of the film due to necessity of style? I hope not, cause I liked them! I'm sorry, but without certain elements James Bond loses all of his identity and becomes some action guy knockoff. (The villian in Quantum is kind of bland and forgettable).

I WILL say, however, that the action they did have was pretty incredible. Besides maybe a Tony Jaa movie the punches and hits in this movie were the most bone-crunching I have seen in a long while (with little to no gore at all). Bond is still slick when it comes to action sequences. Oh yes, indeed.

So, overall, it was an intense action experience, but I really hope for the next movie James Bond returns with SOME sort of old school flare, even if it is subdued (which would be all right with me).

[jcaffoe]

I watched Casino Royale last week so I walked into this one thinking of it as a companion to that film. In that context, I think it's really successful. Casino Royale had a great first and second act, but was hampered as a whole by the chaotic third act. There just isn't enough time to take in everything that happens in the last forty minutes of the film, which is why I had to rely on repeat viewings to really get a solid grasp of the story. What Quantum of Solace does, in my mind, is take the great story begun in Casino Royale and give it a little breathing room.

The action is great, the pacing is fantastic, but this one really completes the arc for Daniel Craig's Bond, which is why I enjoyed it. I think subsequent films will be markedly better just due to having a complete character to work with.

So to anyone going to see it, make sure to watch Casino Royale first.

[Josh Mauser]

you know, I didn't bother to watch Casino Royale again before seeing this, so I have to admit that the plot ties between the two films were lost on me at first (even though I knew they said it was a direct sequel). It probably does add another layer to the viewing experience.

I think I'll give CR another look to see what questions I missed the answers to in Quantum.

[SonOfaRich]

I enjoyed the movie a lot, but I thought the action scenes were confusing as hell.

[Michael Firman]

I think I preferred Casino Royale, but this movie was still enjoyable and I'm quite fond of the new Bond.

However, Marc Forster let me down with his usage of that horrid shaky cam technique Rich was just talking about. I find it to be an incredibly lazy and counterproductive tool in filmmaking and hate how prevalent it is.

[SonOfaRich]

Yeah where did Marc Forster learn how to direct action scenes?

[dark77778]

http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=TMoJRLStD9c

Don't know if I've shown you guys this.

[Josh Mauser]

ha, yeah, I've seen that before somewhere, thought it was pretty good.

[otisframpton]

I enjoyed "Quantum". Not as much as "Casino", which I loved, but it was a nice coda to that film.

-Otis