The name’s Skyfall…and it’s being hailed as the best-ever James Bond movie.Celebrating the 50th anniversary of his licence to thrill, 007 is back with a resounding bang.
The film has been greeted with universal acclaim by critics from Baz Bamigboye and Matthew Bond (no relation) on the Daily Mail and Mail On Sunday respectively, to The Times, the Daily Telegraph and respected Hollywood Reporter.Skyfall opens in the UK on October 26 and in the U.S. on November 9. It is directed by Britain’s Sam Mendes who won a best director Oscar in 2000 for American Beauty.The Bond films have amassed $5.1 billion at the worldwide box office since Dr No with 007 Sean Connery hit our screens in 1962, according to The-Numbers.com, which tracks performances.
After the disappointment of Quantum Of Solace in 2008, compared with Daniel Craig’s first outing as Bond in the superb Casino Royale, Skyfall has the lot.There’s the frighteningly creepy villain in Javier Bardem to great acting from Craig and the better-than-ever action sequences.And if that wasn’t enough, multi-award winning Adele performs the chart-hit film song.
Judi Dench returns in the role of M along with co-stars Ralph Fiennes and Ben Whishaw, while Naomie Harris and Berenice Marlohe became the latest Bond girls.t opens with a bravura kick-ass pre-credits sequence that could win a best short all-action Oscar all by its beautiful self if such an award existed, says Bamigboye.He gave the film five stars and quoted Bond historian Graham Rye as saying the film is ‘up there in the top five of all the 23 films made in the world’s most famous film franchise.’
Bamigboye lauds the film.’I plan to see Skyfall a few more times before the year’s out. Nothing can beat a landmark, classic James Bond picture.They don’t come around all that often.’The Mail On Sunday’s Matthew Bond says Bond devotees are ‘in for a treat’. Of Craig’s performance he wrote:’It’s a million miles from Roger Moore’s 007 or Pierce Brosnan’s come to that, with Craig delivering the sort of reputation-enhancing performance that shows casino Royale was not a one-off.
‘Times critic Kate Muir wrote:
‘Skyfall is a great British bulldog of a movie. From the moment the orchestral sound of Adele belts out, sending a nostalgic shiver down the audience’s collective spine, we know this will be a triumphant return to classic Bond.’
Hollywood Reporter critic Todd McCarthy gushed:
‘Gripping while still brandishing a droll undercurrent of humor, this beautifully made film will certainly be embraced as one of the best Bonds by loyal fans worldwide and leaves you wanting the next one to turn up sooner than four years from now.
‘Ultimately, there is a very conscious, even articulated effort to balance the old and new, the traditional and the modern in Skyfall — stylistically, dramatically and thematically.’
SugarScape says :
‘This is actually one of the more emotional Bond films that we’ve seen – there’s no master plan to destroy the world or a laser beam threatening to blow up the moon, but the plot focuses on revenge and personal vendettas – which makes for a fair few tear-jerking moments.’
The Guardian gave the movie just three stars, but says:
‘Craig, as ever, makes for a splendidly authoritative Bond, even when he’s suffering a crisis of faith and scowling at his reflection inside dirty mirrors.’Audaciously, Skyfall’s most sexually charged moment comes as Silva [Barden] runs his fingers across Bond’s bare chest, then reaches down to part his legs.’What’s your regulation training for this?’ Silva teases him. ‘What makes you think it’s my first time?” 007 shoots back – a tacit reminder that he went to Eton after all.’
Skyfall, the third Bond film starring Craig in the role of the martini-swilling, womanizing secret agent, gets a thumbs up from Variety’s Peter Debruge. He wrote:
‘It’s taken 23 films and 50 years to get Bond’s backstory, but the wait was worth it.’Reviewer Robbie Collin of the Telegraph said director Sam Mendes’ Bond was comparable to Christopher Nolan’s darker, grittier Batman from the Dark Knight franchise.‘Mendes is unafraid to let the quieter dramatic moments breathe … and ace cinematographer Roger Deakins makes the wildly ambitious action sequences the most beautiful in Bond’s 50-year career.’
British GQ magazine tweeted: ‘Just seen #skyfall. Daniel Craig is magnificent – you will not be disappointed.’Graham Rye of Double-O-Seven magazine said the film was so good because producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli had assembled what he called a ‘dream team’ from director to cinematographer.He said: ‘I think that sometimes directors are hired who don’t understand Bond.’Well, in Sam Mendes you have a man who understands what makes Bond tick and Wilson and Broccoli have got a fantastic team to work with him from actors who are at the top of their game.’ – Dailymail
