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Skyfall, Movie

Skyfall 2012

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As the Bond series turns 50, Daniel Craig returns for his third turn as 007, facing a new adversary played by a sinister, blonde Javier Bardem. Directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty). After a failed mission in Istanbul sees Bond shot and presumed killed, a file containing the identities of all undercover MI6 agents falls into unsafe hands. When the stolen intel leads to casualties and MI6 itself comes under attack, Bond reappears in London not fully recuperated but ready to track down those responsible. More

Bond’s mission takes him to Shanghai, Macau and a mysterious abandoned island - as well as boasting a heavy dose of London-based action. It also involves revisiting his past and that of M (Judi Dench), who harbours a personal connection to Javier Bardem’s villain. Q is played by Ben Wishaw, and Eve Moneypenny by Naomie Harris. This is the 23rd Bond movie. Hide

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308 votes / 55 comments The Talk

  • 84 %

    Want to See it

    What say you?

    • Andrew

      About frackon time.

    • Blair

      Bring it on

    • mark

      freken awesome bring it daniel craig

    • George

      About time

    • James

      oh new 007...looking forward it

    • Syms

      Heck yes!

    • Hoddy

      Daniel is the best bond so far.

    • Esta*

      hope this is better than the last.......

    • Andrew Morris

      Daniel Craig is a useless 007...should be Jason Strathem...at least teh acting would be more interesting

    • shiftbutton

      I like him as a 007, so suck it andy

    • Reed

      mean!!!!!!

    • dave

      daniel craig has no soul thats why he makes a good 007

    • empirical

      if he takes his clothes off I will go and see it

    • John

      Hell Yes, shaken not stirred.

    • MDR

      Hmmmm - this might be the first Bond movie I would be keen on seeing in years!

    • Benny

      I saw this one last night . i was AWSUM!

    • Darren

      This looks really cool, way better than the last one.

    • Richard

      Bond movies stoppped being good when they removed the silhoette girls from starting credits.

    • django

      unchained....melody

    • DJKwa

      The Bond movies are kept fresh not only by new Bond actors but also new directors. I can't wait for Mendes' iteration.

    • TootToot

      Well that was good. Seen it now.

    • Mr G

      Now that's more like it, Mr Bond!

    • Darryn

      No country for Bond men

    • James

      you know its good when javier bardem is the villain

    • Hoddy

      Hell yeah, nothing beats a good bond movie.

    • NahYeahNah

      I guess we know what all the Harry Potter actors are doing now

    • Hmmmmmmmm

      A blonde Javier Bardem is just scary. Good for a villian I suppose...

    • Fozbigdog

      I just peed a little

    • Bryce

      looks ... dare I use the word ... AWESOME

    • Brad

      Honestly... loved the last two but this looks like it's back to its cheesy worst... yet to be excited

    • Sal

      He could crack a smile...

    • Shaybe

      Looks fantastic. Havier will be a great bad guy!

    • meh

      already going stale... looks cheesy and predictable.

    • Rob

      Love the last two, so will see this in a sec

    • Hoddy

      Dam This looks good, Bond just gets better & better. Daniel Craig, Best bond yet.

    • 00Dave

      Ace!!!

    • PaulH

      can't wait!

    • Kraakers

      Bond is Back - hopefully still driving an AM.

    • Vivi

      Can't want to watch it

    • Viktor

      Bond is back! Can't wait ;)

    • Stuie

      Bond, James Bond - way to go!!

    • Bobdad

      Capital. Looks like Bond may be back to it's best again.

    • bryce

      looks completely & utterly fab

    • Ellie

      Cant wait! love James Bond Movies!! :D

    • dot

      saw premier in london, fantastic! must see it again

    • ice

      ptoifkftouift

    • Hannah

      I want to see it, well dah

    • connor

      i really want to it so badly it looks soooooooooooo good

    • luca

      it looks like crap

    • luca

      it looks like crap

    • gfhgf

      gfgfgf

    • Stu

      Want what the liberals will say......

    • Lee

      I'm gonna see it and if anyone tries to stop me I'll drive my car through the front door!

    • nichola

      this looks kewl

    • Isla

      I love it :)

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Flicks.co.nz Review

Rating:

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Matt Glasby Flicks Writer

After Casino Royale so stunningly re-set the template, and Quantum Of Solace so sleekly snapped it, new Bond director Sam Mendes (American Beauty) has an unenviable task. How to combine the classy (Oscar-standard actors, Bond's personal demons) with the camp (quips, girls, gadgets) for 007's 23rd outing? More

On the classy side is Craig, throwing himself into the fray like an angry, charismatic rugby ball; in the camp camp is Bardem's blonde, possibly bisexual, rogue M16 agent, who swoops in to threaten M (the ever-dignified Judy Dench) like a fabulous yellow dragon. One second we're worrying about Bond's physical deterioration, the next he's having two subway trains thrown at him. Though this tonal tug of war makes this the most fun Bond flick since about 1977, it's a far cry from the franchise's back-to-basics promise – imagine From Russia With Love retooled for Roger Moore.

Mendes certainly brings the spectacle: a silly, CG-enhanced motorbike chase across the roofs of Istanbul gets things off to a very Brosnan-y start, the coral-inspired credit sequence is beautiful, and a neon-flecked fistfight every bit as awesome as the trailer suggests. But it's the (comparatively) smaller moments Mendes excels in, such as Bond trading quips with new Q Ben Wishaw or Bardem's soul-baring mission statement.

“Age is no guarantee of efficiency,” says Q. “And youth is no guarantee of innovation,” replies 007 in what turns out to be the film's key exchange. But who needs innovations such as computer-generated lizards (yes, really) with performers as efficient, and characters as ageless, as these? Hide

The People's Reviews

Rating:

14 ratings and 13 reviews

All reviews (13)

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I hate Bond movies!!

Mike-Regan A-Lister (?)

Until I saw this one - Daniel Craig IS James Bond, the true heir to Sean Connery. I've avoided previous Bond efforts until now. I was blown away with Skyfall - it's a rollicking good yarn with an excellent balance of action, contemplation and humour (word association test "M" - "B*tch" !) A really gritty and almost believable film - a long, long way from the Roger Moore/ Timothy Dalton/Pierce Brosnan days.
Best. Bond. Ever.

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Maybe 3.5 stars?

queenbee007 A-Lister (?)

Just saw this on Vmax screen. It has its action and comedy moments but I didnt come out of the theatre buzzing or even smiling. It was just OK. I could stretch to a 3.5 star rating, but my slight disappointment after all the 007-hype got the better of me.

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  • Spoiler much? ;)

    !!!

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Speechless

DnA Flicks Superstar (?)

A notch down on the last two bond flicks but top notch still.

***** I can't believe they rode motorcycles across rooftops (without helmets). LEGEND.
***** Fight sequences and lighting.
***** Action sequences
**** The story
** The move back to more cartoony bad men.
****** Introduction of the new M. (Yep 6 stars)
Rogue agent and movie bad guy Javier Bardem tries to bring a little bit of crazy to the bad guy role but this borders on weird, old (with a few twists) and just not quite getting to where I think it could have gone. A good example of bad crazy would be Heath Ledger as the joker.

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Back to Basics

Dan-Thompson B-Grader (?)

Long time Bond fans will love the nods to the past, whilst those new to the films can just sit back and enjoy a fantastic movie. A brilliant, intelligent film with a great cast and a cracking script. Loved it!

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  • Bond Lover

    I agree, it did feel Batman like and Less Bond Villan however great movie never the less

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Bond does GQ and Bardem does Batman.

filmlover Flicks Superstar (?)

Everyone loves this Bond! It is certainly thoroughly enjoyable. The spectacular action and locations provide jawdropping moments. Craig looks picture perfect even when he's supposed to be on the ropes. But is it just me or does Javier Bardem slide campily into a Batman villain a little too much? Liked the absence of gratuitous sex scenes but felt sad at the end when we lost a much loved character. All in all well worth the price.

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Bourne Again Bond

adamatdramatrain Flicks Superstar (?)

Your favourite Bond, like your favourite Doctor Who, is often based more on nostalgia than actual quality. If you grew up with Roger Moore, you might excuse the cheesy one-liners, improbable plots and pantomime villains, and your hazy memories of childhood might lead you to forget Moore's one-note performance that was more eyebrow than highbrow...

The fact is, I've always loved Connery's 'From Russia With Love' and 'Diamonds are Forever,' although my first cinema outings were to see Moore's fun, if fantastical, 'Live and Let Die' and 'The Man With The Golden Gun.'

But let's agree to set aside treasured childhood memories and view the Bond movies as spy thrillers rather than kiddy comedies. Because if we agree to that then it's quite possible that the twenty-third Bond movie, marking fifty years of the franchise, just delivered the most adult, thrilling and certainly best looking Bond - ever.

'Skyfall' is directed by Sam Mendes, who brings along Roger Deakins, his cinematographer on 'Revolutionary Road' and 'Jarhead,' and the result is a Bond that looks sensational. The scene in which Bond stalks an assassin against the neon glow of digital signs in a Shanghai skyscraper are reminiscent of Ridley Scott's 'Blade Runner.' A regular Cohen Brothers collaborator, Deakins is on top form, shooting silhouettes throughout 'Skyfall' - from the opening chase to the bleak drama of the Scottish settings at the film's end.

There are quibbles of course. A scene in which Bond battles CGI Komodo Dragons in a pit and then lets loose a 'Lion King' quip is reminiscent of Roger Moore leaping over crocodiles in 'Live and Let Die'... which is probably intentional - as is a nice reference the Aston Martin's ejector seat in 'Goldfinger.' The only major quibble is that Javier Bardem's villain, Silver, doesn't turn up until the seventieth minute - but when he does, the underlying homoerotic tension between his twisted ex-agent and Bond is electric.

Ben Wishaw is a welcome addition to the team as Bond's Quartermaster, Q, as is Ralph Feinnes as M's boss, Mallory. But the stand out is Dame Judi Dench. No spoliers here. Suffice it to say, she finally gets to strut her stuff and show off her dramatic chops in a Bond movie - and it pays off. The first two-thirds of the movie are great in a Bond-action-way - but it's the final third, which sets this Bond apart from all the others.

No villain in a hollowed-out volcano that explodes. No dastardly plan to hold the world to ransom. This time it's strictly personal and the film's Scottish-set conclusion oozes a brutal bleakness reminiscent of classic British gangster movies, from 'Get Carter' to 'The Long Good Friday.'

If 'Casino Royale' succeeded in reinventing Bond for the new millennium, and 'Quantum of Solace' succeeded as one of the worst Bond films of recent memory, then 'Skyfall' succeeds as both a stand-alone drama and one of the best entries into the series - if not THE best. Sam Mendes' triumph as a director is in ensuring a great tale, well told, that retains all the Bond elements, including humour and action set pieces, adding oodles of drama and character. But for me, Mendes' main contribution to Bond is to bring Deakins' in as cinematographer - because this Bond looks a-mazing.

As the young Q says to Bond, disappointed to be given just a gun and a radio: 'Were you expecting an exploding pen? We don't really go for that anymore." Instead of gadgets and gimmicks we get character and classic Bond action set-pieces. This Bond is well aware that the franchise is a staggering fifty-years-old. Craig's Bond suffers the aches and pains, scars and ravages of age. As Q points out to 007: "Age is no guarantee of efficiency." However, experience - in the form of Mendes' direction, Deakins' cinematography and a script and acting grounded in reality - make this Bond, for me at least, the most satisfying outing for Fleming's superspy since 1963's 'From Russia With Love.'



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  • GoonerD

    Totally agree, I've got to watch it again in case I missed something

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Never Ceases to Amaze Me

Aidan1 Flicks Superstar (?)

This movie is fantastic and all the Bond films have been great since The World Is Not Enough although i did not think they should have killed off Judi Denchs M.

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A notch below expectations

teamfrill Wannabe (?)

Nowhere near as good as expected, with implausible scenes and as the guys I was with said 'not even a bit of side boob'.

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Rollicking yarn - bit lightweight though

Weds_Loafers Flicks Superstar (?)

Six of us saw "Skyfall" and unanimously agreed that Daniel Craig's best Bond movie to date remains "Casino Royale". We all felt the plot was lacking something as it wasn't really clear what the villain (extremely well played by Javier Bardem) wanted to achieve - embarrassment of MI6; exposure of their agents; getting rid of M and/or Bond? Some great action sequences and the whole movie is supported by that wonderful sense of understated British humour. Felt more like an adaptation of a comic book rather than something slightly more literary. Despite these comments, we all enjoyed it immensely but our average score is 3.5. (range 2.5 - 4)

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M agnificent

iamMax Wannabe (?)

Shock horror, my first bond movie.
And quite frankly, it is one of the best movies I have ever seen.

The story line is a lot about M, and the ending is somewhat predictable, but the movie and storyline is very well thought out, and immediately I was welcomed into the world of bond, with the opening scene of fighting, Mendes doesn't waste any time.

It is hard to classify this movie as one genre, as it is a cocktail of a variety of genres.
Adventure, Comedy, Romance, Action - in my view, all I could want from a film, what's even better is that the comedy is witty, and reminded me of Sherlock, a great tv series.

This film is brilliant, and I recommend that everyone should see it. The acting of Judi Dench and Daniel Craig was incredible, and an all round 5 stars.

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Modern Bond

GrahamP Flicks Superstar (?)

James Bond has evolved into a slick modern production,without the gadgets of the earlier days.It has a great story which is made up from the present and the past.Enjoyed it.

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Press Reviews

Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)

Triumphantly reinvents 007 in one of the best Bonds ever. This is a full-blooded, joyous, intelligent celebration of a beloved cultural icon, with Daniel Craig taking full possession of a role he previously played unconvincingly. Full review.

Empire (UK)

'Skyfall' is pretty much all you could want from a 21st Century Bond: cool but not camp, respectful of tradition but up to the moment, serious in its thrills and relatively complex in its characters but with the sense of fun that hasn't always been evident lately. Full review.

New York Daily News

Though a notch below 'Royale', 'Skyfall' follows that reboot's lead, making a now 50-year-old icon as cool as when he began. Full review.

Total Film (UK)

The Daniel Craig era comes of age with a ballsy Bond that takes brave chances and bold risks. Guess what? Turns out you can teach an old dog new tricks. Full review.

Variety (USA)

Putting the "intelligence" in MI6, 'Skyfall' reps a smart, savvy and incredibly satisfying addition to the 007 oeuvre, one that places Judi Dench's M at the centre of the action. Full review.

Guardian (UK)

From the opening in Istanbul to the final siege shootout in the Scottish Highlands, this film is a supremely enjoyable and even sentimental spectacle, giving us an attractively human (though never humane) Bond. Full review.

Hollywood Reporter

Feels more seriously connected to real-world concerns than any previous entry, despite the usual outlandish action scenes... Full review.

Los Angeles Times

A thrilling new chapter in a franchise that by all rights should have been gasping for air - which really makes [Mendes] the hero of this saga. Full review.