One inevitability of human nature is that we will intrinsically call upon experiences from our past in order to assess a present situation. This is usually a good thing, an ancient fail safe built into each one of us, but sometimes this double edged sword can work against us.
In Skyfall, I found myself comparing it not only to its predecessors of the more recent generation but also its predecessors from earlier generations. The movie opens with the usual chase scene that we have become accustom to in the newest generation of 007 films. The usual elements, car chase, police get involved, but this time there is a train! Despite my best efforts to appreciate this new element of the opening scene, I must still defer to Quantum of Solace as the best opening chase scene for this latest generation of Bond films.
Another new twist on the common Bond elements is the main villain, Silva played wonderfully by Javier Bardem. Taking more of a Joker-esk persona then most classic Bond villains, Silva is more of a madman then a power hungry millionaire that we usually find throughout the 007 series. Also being a former agent makes him a much more formidable match for out man Bond.
The final aspect of the Daniel Craig era of 007 that I would like to talk about it the human side of Bond. Somewhat lost during the transition generations of Bond, aka Pierce Brosnan, is the humanistic aspect of Bond, the knowing when to pull the trigger and when not to. The getting hit by bullets and bleeding, hurting, facing depression, drinking and popping pills, all the really things that we would expect a secret agent to actually have to deal with; not just hot women and expensive cars! I appreciate the direction that the 007 franchise is taking and hope that they keep the bar high like they did with Skyfall. Go see it and make sure you have your surround sound on and LOUD!
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