Autumn Views...

Skyfall - 5 stars *****

Last night I went to see the new James Bond film with my dad. It was an 8.10pm showing and I was really tired, so I was hoping it was good enough to keep me awake until the end, which it definitely was!

The title sequence was amazing, the graphics were really gothic which is right up my street, and there was no shortage of  naked women silhouettes for the men (or women) out there. The only thing that grated on me slightly is the fact that Adele does the theme tune, but with her success this year, it came as no surprise really.

The story revolves around a hard drive that has been stolen, containing classified information about the secret agents working for MI6. At the beginning of Skyfall, James has a brawl on the top of a train with the man who has it, and is believed to be dead when another agent shoots him by mistake when aiming for the opposition. We later learn that this is not the case, when Bond returns to help after a terrorist explosion hits headquarters. The man behind the attack, Silva, has history with M, and James has to choose where his loyalty lies, as she is in bad books as it is down to her that the hard drive went missing in the first place. 

I really like Daniel Craig as James Bond - aside from the obvious - as he seems to have a fragility that other actors haven't portrayed as well, and there are points in every film that he has done where you genuinely think he is going to die. It is all very well James Bond seeming invincible back in the days of Sean Connery, as I find them to be vintage classics that aren't always meant to be entirely believable  Nowadays though with the high-tech advancements in special effects and stunts, it is clear that the movies are made to be credible, and obviously nobody is immortal! This 'volume' if you will, really plays upon Bond's relationship with M as well, and it was good to see a different side to the character that we all seem to be so familiar with.

The 'baddie' in this, played by Javier Bardem, is really well developed, as an audience member you somehow end up feeling sorry for his situation despite the havoc he is causing, and I think that is always the sign of a good villain, if you can work out why they have become the monsters they are. I was slightly disappointed with the Bond Girls in this though - there weren't many sex scenes at all, and only two love interests, the best of which (played by French actress Bérénice Marlohe) is killed off halfway through!

Overall, this was a bloody good Bond film, perhaps my personal favourite one with Craig in. I would recommend seeing it to anyone, even if you can only make a late showing - it will certainly keep you awake!