Before Jason Bourne and Jack Ryan. Before Indiana Jones and Ethan Hunt, there was... Bond. James Bond. He was first and ultimate action hero and, to be honest, I never particularly liked him. He never really struck me as an actual, two-dimensional, character. His personality never changes, although his actors certainly did. Sure, there were minor differences in how these actors treated him, but his character arc, if there was one, remained the same.
I think Bond's popularity through the years came down to the fact that he never really was a character at all. Rather Bond was a symbol of a male fantasy. He always saved the world and defeated the bad guy. He always got the girl, either sexually or, if she turned out to be a 'femme fatale', both sexually and with a bullet. He always had a clever one-liner at the tip of his tongue. He got to participate in fantastic action scenes and shoot-em-ups. Let's face it - most of us guys wanted to BE James Bond, although we could care less about the character himself.
Neither were we ever concerned about his well-being. We all knew he would do all of those things mentioned above somehow. I never felt any real tension watching him, nor was I ever emotionally connected to Bond or his encounters. All this changed, for me, in 2006, with Daniel Craig in Casino Royale. Here was a Bond who didn't sleep with the female lead within the first few minutes of meeting her. Here was a Bond who had emotional connections with other characters, beyond mere physical ones. Here was a Bond who bled and was beaten up as often as he beat others up. Craig's Bond was a more human hero, if you will, although not yet perfected.
After the disappointment that was Quantum of Solace (a continuation of what I felt should have been one movie combined, but instead turned into a story that was stretched too thin in the end), I was apprehensive about Skyfall. Would Craig take Bond farther along the path that he began him on? Or would he take him back to his campy roots? The answer, as it turned out, is yes and yes.
Skyfall is, without a doubt, the most emotionally satisfying Bond adventure ever put to film. It takes James Bond to places we never thought he would go, such as exploring his past, specifically his childhood. James Bond himself is no longer just a man of action, but a man of fierce loyalty and devotion to his country - one could even say patriotism. I suppose he always was, but here those traits are emphasized even more so. Here, we actually care about Bond and what might happen to him and those around him.
We also get the obligatory 'Bond girl'. However, although he does bed two women through the course of the film, the main 'Bond girl' turns out to be "M" herself, who continues to be played to perfection by Judi Dench. The bond between them (get it?) is stronger here than ever and plays out more like the relationship between mother and son (he even quasi-affectionately calls her 'mum'). By the end, I felt that there had never been a woman Bond had loved more.
Of course, a Bond adventure is only as good as its villain and I had felt that, while the previous two Bonds had realistic villains, they were also rather boring. Here, we get an excellent villain in the terrorist, Silva, played by the frighteningly convincing Javier Bardem, who not only has realistic motives but is also most definitely insane. His scenes with Bond are very effective, even discomfiting, such as when Silva makes a pass at Bond (naturally, Bond responds with the funniest line in the film). He is a great villain because he strikes at the heart of what Bond cares about the most and he is deliciously evil about it.
However, I did say that the answer was both yes and yes and, while the film succeeds the most when it works with the character's strengths, it falters in its campier moments. The opening action sequence in particular, while entertaining, feels too unrealistic and out of place. Also, while Bond does have some great one-liners, a throwaway line after a character is killed is almost jarring in its coldness, although it is rather Bond-ish; it just feels more like something Bond would say after a villainous henchman, not an ally, is killed. The re-addition of a younger "Q" is a nice touch, though, and the always reliable Ralph Fiennes has a bit role as someone who may or may not be a bad guy.
All in all, then, Skyfall is a massive success that revitalizes the series and gives it new purpose. It takes a character we had grown to understand more in Casino Royale and expands upon that understanding, while still using the same tropes that we've come to expect in a Bond film. It even brings back a few things that were missing in CR, such as a few gadgets and characters (watch for Moneypenny). It's a worthy addition to the franchise as well as a strong, character-driven action film in its own right that definitely leaves the viewer shaken, if not stirred. I look forward to seeing what Daniel Craig does in his next Bond outing.
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