It should come as no surprise to anyone who knows me well that I am a huge fan of James Bond. Indeed, it would be surprising if I were not, given my mix of English, Italian, and American influences growing up, and my tastes as an adult. It is also no secret that I consider Daniel Craig to be the best James Bond since, well, Sean Connery. And that I consider Skyfall to be possibly the best (or second best) James Bond movie. Sam Mendes, who had directed Skyfall, was directing Spectre. The scriptwriting team was the same as the team that had written Skyfall. I was looking forward to being amazed.
Alas, I was disappointed.
Spectre felt dismal by comparison to the highlights of Daniel Craig’s tenure as Bond: Casino Royale and Skyfall. It feels bad even compared to Quantum of Solace, a statement which I had hoped I would never have to make. As I left the cinema I found myself wondering how it was possible for the team that had crafted Skyfall to have failed so badly here. While Spectre is by no means the worst Bond movie ever, it nevertheless stinks of mediocrity and poor judgment.
The Good
The opening sequence. The cinematographer and director should be lauded for this visual spectacle. It is amazing.
The return of the white dinner jacket to the Bond franchise after a fairly long hiatus. If I recall rightly Pierce Brosnan never wore a white dinner jacket even when in environments where white dinner jackets would be considered acceptable attire for a gentleman. Worn correctly—see Sean Connery, Roger Moore, and also (iconically) Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca—it can be an elegant warm weather alternative to the traditional black or midnight blue.
The Bad
The acting. Dear Lord, the acting. Or lack, thereof. Daniel Craig seems to be phoning in his lines. This is certainly consistent with the fact that he wanted to stop being Bond, but one would have hoped that he would have tried to go out on a high note.
The lack of chemistry among the cast.
The criminally underused villain: casting Christopher Waltz in this role and then keeping him off-screen for most of the movie was ridiculous.
The meandering plot with numerous disjointed elements that never coalesced into a story. There never seemed to be a sense of urgency or direction to this movie. It was as if the scriptwriters had several possible stories to tell, and, not being able to decide which story to select, opted to throw together elements from each without much regard for how they fit together. The viewer never really felt any reason to care about what Bond or the villain was doing.
The attempt to tie everything that happened in the last three films to one shadowy villain.
The attempt to cram what seems like a dozen characters into the movie leaves most of them with too little screen time. It feels chaotic. The viewer has little time to become invested in any of these characters.
The grosgrain silk facings on Bond’s white dinner jacket. A white dinner jacket is traditionally self-facing. I am surprised that Tom Ford would make this mistake: silk or satin facings on a white dinner jacket are in poor taste and run counter to the understated elegance of the dinner jacket.
The Lust
The Aston Martin DB10 is a magnificent vehicle, and was apparently tailored for this film. It, unfortunately, does not last long, like most Bond vehicles.
Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux) in an evening gown. While Madeleine Swann’s light green evening gown cannot hold a candle to the purple gown Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) wore in Casino Royale, we will take what we can get.