Shawn's Quantum of Solace Review

2008 Movie #126 - Quantum of Solace

I’m actually not all that familiar with the world of Bond. I’ve seen all of the Bronsnan ones (only 2 of which I enjoyed really) and Casino Royale, which I thought was fantastic, as did most people. I hadn’t seen any of the old ones until the past week or so and am just now starting to get into this movie series. I can definitely see how the series has changed with the new Daniel Craig installments. A lot of people are divided and either like the new Bond or hate him and miss the old gadgety Bond. Personally I think both of them have their positives and negatives but for now, I’m definitely enjoying the direction the Bond movies are taking.

This movie has received a lot of backlash, I’m sure because most people were expecting something at the same level of quality of Casino Royale. We certainly don’t get that, but this one is damn good. It’s also pretty cool that it’s a direct sequel, starting mere minutes after Casino Royale would have ended. It’s the first time a Bond movie has ever done this and it’s interesting to have a storyline that continues through multiple movies.

Another thing I keep hearing is that many people are saying this one is too much like a Bourne movie. I can see where they’re coming from that. The look and style of the movie does share some similarities with the Bourne movies. It’s never distracting though and the similarities aren’t too overwhelming so it never takes away from the movie.

The action is very good, if not maybe a bit much. The first 30 minutes of the movie are essentially non-stop action. It’s all entertaining but part of what made Casino Royale so great was it’s story. The story in this one doesn’t even really start until after that first half hour and while it’s adequate, it’s never that compelling and many times only serves to string together action scenes. There seems to be more action sequences in this one than any of the other Bond’s I’ve seen. What makes it even more intense is how short the movie is. It’s only around 100 minutes which for a Bond movie is very short. It does move very very quickly but I wouldn’t have minded an extra 10 minutes or so that was devoted to fleshing out the story and characters a little more.

I really liked the movie, while at the same time I get the backlash surrounding it. It’s not Casino Royale but it’s a damn good watch, no denying that.

***1/2 /5