Daniel Craig returns for his third installment in the new Bond series, and the brute's been smoothed out a bit. Humor makes a welcome return to the franchise, and they've toned down the shakiness of the action scenes. The filmmakers strike a balance between the epileptic style of the first two Craig films and the more polished style of the films preceding them. The film is very playful, with some
almost Pierce-ian banter and cute nods to past films. At first I was slightly apprehensive about delving into Bond's past, but the execution was tasteful. Javier Bardem's villain was amazing--he really knocked it out of the park. Both Bond girls were attractive, but I didn't think they added much. I'd say the music was the weakest link: John Barry's music is so iconic and distinctive to the franchise, I don't know why the producers don't want to own it. Instead we have a kind of middle ground generic Bond soundtrack with brief homages into Barry-esque sound. Great film. Best of the Daniel Craig films so far. Go see it.
8/10
PS: For God's sake, put the goddamn gunbarrel sequence at the beginning of the film.
PPS: The title animation was pretty good. I thought Adele's theme was good as well until the chants came in. What is it with chanting in pop music these days?
