"Skyfall" Takes Bond Back to Basics

The James Bond franchise turns fifty this year, and with "Skyfall," the twenty-third Bond film, our intrepid secret agent hero appears to be in familiar territory. All the usual elements of the recent Bond films are here, from the opening chase scene to the kinetic fight sequences to the snazzy technological surveillance equipment giving us a play-by-play of all the action. However, one of the major themes of "Skyfall" is sussing out what really makes a James Bond film a James Bond film, what sets it apart from the "Bourne" and "Mission: Impossible" spy franchises, and why Bond is still relevant to the modern world.

Daniel Craig is back for the third time in the role of James Bond, whose fitness for duty and advancing age are questioned from all sides after a failed mission. However, the head of MI6, M (Judi Dench), faces a crisis over stolen sensitive information that may bring down MI6 itself, and she sends Bond back into the field along with a female partner, Eve (Naomie Harris), to track down those responsible. "Skyfall" also marks the return of the franchise's beloved gadget man Q (Ben Wishaw), younger and geekier, but still perpetually exasperated by 007's recklessness. Ralph Fiennes and Albert Finney also appear in important roles, but providing the details would spoil some of the fun, I think, and I'll leave it to the viewer to discover how they're involved.

As with all Bond movies, there's the femme fatale, in this case the lovely Severine (Bérénice Lim Marlohe) who Bond encounters in Macao, and a new Bond villain, Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem), a hacker and former intelligence agent with a serious grudge against MI6. As a sign of the times, Silva is eccentric, overly familiar, and the first male villain to engage in threatening, yet unmistakably flirtatious banter with Bond. Bardem is fantastic in the part, one of the major highlights of "Skyfall," as he treads the line between campy and menacing. This is the one of the only Bond villains I can remember with some actual psychological complexity, and who proves to be legitimately frightening.

As Bond and M revisit the past, the film returns to the franchise's roots. At one point our heroes are forced to fall back on more old-fashioned tactics, resulting in some of the most massive spectacle and the most intimate moments of drama any Bond film has ever presented. The latter scenes are more impressive and daring than the former. After all, we know that the Bond filmmakers rarely fail to deliver new pulse-pounding stunts and unique feats of vehicular destruction. However, did you ever think you'd ever see a James Bond film that actually deals with the fact that Bond had a childhood and a life before MI6? "Casino Royale" may have been the official reboot of the Bond series, but "Skyfall" goes farther in redefining the modern Bond as a character.

So it should be no surprise that this is Daniel Craig's best outing as James Bond. He spends much of the movie off-balance, recovering from a severe trauma and doing some serious soul-searching about his place in the MI6 organization. Bond has been called old and obsolete before in previous films, but the blows have more lasting impact this time, especially as his only defender, M, also finds her position in jeopardy. Judi Dench has brought so much to the Bond series in this role, and here she finally gets to dig a little deeper into the character, and reveal a little more substance.

I suspect that we have director Sam Mendes to thank for this more introspective take on James Bond. Mendes would seem to be an odd choice to direct a Bond film, but those familiar with his work will remember that he helmed the stunning "Road to Perdition," a period action film with similarly gorgeous, stylized visuals. After the busyness of so many recent spy thrillers, I liked Mendes uncluttered frames and how you can actually see what's going on during the fight scenes. As with all the Daniel Craig era Bond films, there's no shakeycam, limited CGI, and great use of the locations. "Skyfall" starts in Turkey, and then rushes off to Shanghai and Macau, sets a major chase sequence in the London Underground, and then heads to Scotland for the big finale.

What I think I appreciate the most about "Skyfall" is that while it follows the old formula, uses all the old characters, and should please any fan of the Bond series, it's also a film that takes significant risks and makes some real changes to James Bond as we know him. The franchise is never going to be quite the same again, and I think that's a good thing. Future Bond films may be familiar, but perhaps they will no longer be quite as predictable.
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