Change. Transition. While they seem to mean the same thing, the devil is in the details and for those that are being affected, they’re quite aware of which word is being used.
One fortunate consequence arising from Hollywood’s unfortunate lack of action movie creativity is the paradigm of the old-guard-action-hero and technologically-savvy-youth pair. Visible in previous films such as Live Free or Die Hard, this idea seems to result from Hollywood’s need to rehash old classic adventure series in lieu of viable new ones. Once an old “hero” like Bruce Willis is placed into the modern day police force or secret service, he naturally confronts a changed contemporary landscape. Wars are now fought digitally, not physically. Hence the technologically savvy youth, and the contrast between the symbolic physical decline of the hero and the digital power of the scrawny hacker.
But what happens when the villain being fought is both a man of declining physical prowess and a powerful hacker? You have Skyfall, the latest Bond film. Is this along the quality lines of Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace or Thunderball? Hit the jump to find out.
After miraculously surviving a who-knows-how-many-feet fall off a bridge into a spine-landed crash on water, and after a period of drunken debauchery on a Turkish beach, James Bond, once again played by Daniel Craig, returns to London red-eyed, exhausted and with shaking hands. Back at the M16 office, he will meet what the movie calls the “brave new world”—computer hacking, satellite analysis, and, yes, even YouTube. In an overtly symbolic scene, the young computer wiz Q hands Bond his finger-print-enabled gun at the National Galleries in front of Turner’s The Fighting Temeraire. A bit contradictorily, even though the secret service is now highly digitized, the M16 is also portrayed as outdated as the Prime Minister questions the use of real-life agents in the digital age. The film sets up both Bond and the M16, represented by M, as under threat from this new form of computerized power: on a figurative level, through outdatedness, and literally, from the technology-wielding villain.
With his shock of blond hair, dodgy dentistry and vengeful M fixation, Javier Bardem’s Silva is that rarest of creations: a cyber-terrorist who genuinely terrifies. But he also has a playful side; witness the literally thigh-rubbing glee he brings to one stand-out interrogation scene. Is Silva gay? Is he not? Who cares! He’s fantastic, easily one of the best Bond villains in ages, somehow both hammy and legit at the same time. Bardem’s Silva isn’t a cartoonish villain; he’s deeply troubled and mentally unhinged, but also quite smart and scheming. Like Heath Ledger’s take as Joker in The Dark Knight, Bardem’s performance is critical to this movie being so good.
The cinematography is another highlight of the film. Roger Deakins beautifully captures the constantly shifting social milieus. The opening motorcycle chase scene over the rooftops of an Istanbul market is outstanding, using the local topography to a brilliant effect. An espionage sequence in a Shanghai building of reflective neon lights and glass doors is another high point, as are the shots of the Scottish wasteland in the final showdown. All the different environments—from Istanbul to a Turkish beach to London to Shanghai to the open sea to Scotland—demonstrate the world arena on which spying now takes place. By the end, however, I couldn’t help but be a bit overwhelmed by all these beautifully shot settings. It was on the borderline of being too much of a good thing.
The final stand for the Bond of old is there. This is where the intent of the film reveals itself. It’s not your average Bond film. It’s a tribute to the old Bond and a heralding of the new. Just as M crafts the Bond character’s obituary, Skyfall itself is sort of the obituary for the old franchise. It seems to be heralding in a new age of Bond. Letting audiences know that after 50 years of Bond as is, Bond as new has arrived. The ending sets in motion new roles and new life in this century for the characters audiences have come to know and to love, including new actors in them.
For all its intimations of mortality and harping on obsolescence, Skyfall is more often than not a hoot, Craig having the confidence at last to lace his Bond’s killer instinct with a bone-dry wit and wry nonchalance. The scene where he contemplates utilizing one of the series’ oldest and most famous gizmos is a perfectly judged grace note, while an appearance from Albert Finney near the end of the picture exudes warmth and good humor. It all adds up to the Bond adventure we’ve been waiting for: a flawlessly assembled thrill ride with a cast to die for and a nakedly emotional undertow.