James Bond: 007 - Spectre - Part 10

[Golgo-13]

True, but the likes of Oddjob, Nik-Nak and Jaws weren't roles that required the actors to be well versed in Shakespeare either.

It worked in their case because the strong silent type was what they're character called for; they were henchmen.

Mr.Hinx really wasn't a henchman. He seemed more like a guy who saw an opportunity at the board meeting to climb the ladder, and he took it. I also don't think he directly reported to Blofeld because he was trying to kill Bond both during the car chase, and on the train, despite Blofeld wanting Bond alive.

This, coupled with the fact that Batista himself during interviews, described his character as intelligent, gentle, etc; characterizations i did not get from the film, makes his villain a complete let down.

 

[Zantera]

The most baffling part about Spectre is that a lot of characters felt underused (Waltz/Batista) and some roles that looked bigger in the trailer were just cameos really (Bellucci) yet the film was 2 ½ hours long. Surely it's the longest Bond-film to date? My first reaction coming out of it was "what did they spend the time on?"

 

[MadVillainy]

For me, Vesper and Tracy are easily the best Bond girls. They had character, layers. The roles required actual acting. It was like they wanted to do that with Lea, but just stopped writing the character.

I havent seen On Her Majesty's Secret Service so I can't comment on Tracy, but I agree about Vesper she was a great character.

 

[Golgo-13]

Belluci's character could have been played by any actress. they could have saved themselves the money by paying a lesser known woman.

 

[MadVillainy]

Belluci's character could have been played by any actress. they could have saved themselves the money by paying a lesser known woman.

Very true.

I also thought the whole seductions scene was very creepy. I guess that's par for the course with a lot of Bond films though. I havent seen a lot of the Bond films (I think Spectre makes it 8), but it still was very weird to me. Same with the Skyfall one

 

[Boy Scout]

I enjoyed it. I think my biggest issue with the film was the pacing. I don't think the movie needed to be as long as it was. I spent quite a bit of time hoping that things would move at a bit of a faster pace, despite enjoying most of what was happening on screen. There are definitely a few scenes that could've been trimmed, or cut entirely.

I also wouldn't say that I found the film engaging. Entertaining, yes. Interesting, yes. Engaging? Not quite. For whatever reason, I just wasn't able to get fully into it.

I also didn't buy the ending. At all. There is no way those two are in love.

Now, the positives: the cinematography was gorgeous. The actors were all good (even great). I thought the story was decent, and the action was well shot. Spectre is, overall, a good time at the movies, and I'd definitely see it again.

It's not as good as Skyfall (that film had a better, tighter story, in my opinion), but I'll give them the same grade: 7/10.

 

[Iceman]

It worked in their case because the strong silent type was what they're character called for; they were henchmen.

Mr.Hinx really wasn't a henchman. He seemed more like a guy who saw an opportunity at the board meeting to climb the ladder, and he took it. I also don't think he directly reported to Blofeld because he was trying to kill Bond both during the car chase, and on the train, despite Blofeld wanting Bond alive.

This, coupled with the fact that Batista himself during interviews, described his character as intelligent, gentle, etc; characterizations i did not get from the film, makes his villain a complete let down.

That's true. In that case the character needed lines (beyond '****') to convey to the GA that he was more than a Jaws. I mean he was cool as that kind of character even if he was meant to be more, but I don't know if Batista would be the guy if they wanted the character to have more complexity than menace.

 

[Warhammer]

Good actor, bad wrestler imo.

[YT]iCt-HUn0AAU[/YT]

 

[DarthSkywalker]

[YT]iCt-HUn0AAU[/YT]

 

[Golgo-13]

Very true.

I also thought the whole seductions scene was very creepy. I guess that's par for the course with a lot of Bond films though. I havent seen a lot of the Bond films (I think Spectre makes it 8), but it still was very weird to me. Same with the Skyfall one

Craig's Bond just isn't very convincing when it comes to seducing women. In CR where Solange get's in his car, the look he gives her, that i assume was supposed to be sexy, looks creepy as hell.

 

[Doctor Jones]

Here's what I realized what's wrong with Spectre: Them trying to return to a more "classic Bond era" that was made famous by Connery and Moore yet the classic elements, charm and fun from those era were specifically tailored to their personalities and time periods. They pulled things off just fine because they had their own identities. In Craig's case, I think this was a misstep. They were trying to do things from the previous era consciously, but Craig's Bond just does not fit into those as well. His own greatness and charm came from what he did as Bond and the world surrounding him and the time and it did just fine on their own because Craig and everybody established their own unique brand of Bond. Craig's Bond exceeds in the sudden dark, dry humor and him doing surprising things. Things like Craig's Bond in this film waving to Hinx just felt like a reproduction of Moore's Bond and didn't land because Craig doesn't suit that type of humor. It just felt like something one way that tried to be something else that it never intended or could be.

Craig is better suited for films like CR and Skyfall. Still enjoyable in their own right, but they fit Craig's sensibilities as an actor and what he brings to the role personally as 007. I'm not trying to pigeonhole him here, but I felt the fun elements clashed with the artistic style of Mendes and Craig's more gritty Bond. It felt like two different Bond films trying to be one single thing but Skyfall and CR really were the ideal Craig Bond films. His own classic Bond in a sense. In a way, they did indeed go backward in an unnecessary way because we already saw those Bond elements of their own time. Craig's Bond was always about moving forward with his own interpretation.

 

[Loki882]

To be fair, a lot of the "Bond seductions" that are meant to be sexy come across as kind of creepy, or sometimes really creepy, once you rewatch them. Craig is hardly unique in this regard.

 

[Tacit Ronin]

I thought Craig was pretty comfortable playing the more over the top Bond. It's the wishy washy script that let him down. You don't make a so called traditional Bond and then make his arch nemesis his foster brother. Bond isn't Batman. His past is largely irrelevant. He is defined by the present. His enemies are defined by opposing political ideologies. Not some Freudian ****.

 

[Boy Scout]

I thought Craig did a really good job with the comedy, personally.

 

[Loki882]

As for Bautista, the thing is that he's already proven that he's good for more than just "silent muscle." Do something fun with him. Like he's this brutal, ruthless guy who will kill you dead at the drop of a hat. But he's also got a certain dark sense of humor (since Bautista has good comedic timing) or something like that. Basically give him more than ONE work of dialogue.

I do agree that he had presence and was intimidating, but they could have done more with him. Waltz, him, and Bellucci were all underused honestly, despite all of the pre-release hype surrounding them.

 

[Tacit Ronin]

Craig's Bond just isn't very convincing when it comes to seducing women.

I disagree. His seduction of Solange in CR and Gemma in QOS were very convincing. Not to mention they felt genuine. It's his seduction of Severine and Bellucci in Skyfall and Spectre that come off as creepy, but I pin that more on the way they are directed. It's like Mendes is trying to bring back Bond's mode of advances from the Connery and Moore films. But without the shield of nostalgia, it comes off as they really are. Creepy.

 

[Loki882]

Also this is 2015, not the 1960's or 70's. The way that Connery (and to a lesser degree Moore) did it just does look creepy and awkward in today's context.

 

[Visceral]

I thought Craig was pretty comfortable playing the more over the top Bond. It's the wishy washy script that let him down. You don't make a so called traditional Bond and then make his arch nemesis his foster brother. Bond isn't Batman. His past is largely irrelevant. He is defined by the present. His enemies are defined by opposing political ideologies. Not some Freudian ****.

This. This goes for almost all of this reboot crap. I mean leave his name John Harrison. If it's a good villain a past connection doesn't do anything

 

[The Shape]

Yeah, Craig is actually a funny dude and he was fine with all of the comedic moments in the film.

The way some people talk, though, you'd think this film was attempting to be an over-the-top comedic romp, when in actuality, there are but a few moments like that. The audience I saw the film with seemed to react well to each of them.

 

[Visceral]

I disagree. His seduction of Solange in CR and Gemma in QOS were very convincing. Not to mention they felt genuine. It's his seduction of Severine and Bellucci in Skyfall and Spectre that come off as creepy, but I pin that more on the way they are directed. It's like Mendes is trying to bring back Bond's mode of advances from the Connery and Moore films. But without the shield of nostalgia, it comes off as they really are. Creepy.

I agree with you again. there's even a break down of the Solange one on youtube. There was an actual science to it.

 

[Tacit Ronin]

As much as I liked Skyfall, I think Mendes' direction was wrong here. Take the meeting scene. It's a very old school, Connery-esque scene.I mean it has a guy killing another dude nonchalantly to promote himself and nobody says anything. It's silly as hell. Yet Mendes shoots it with seriousness, complete with very dark cinematography like you would see in a Godfather film. That scene should've had a more cheeky, self aware atmosphere. If you write a silly scene, the direction should be aware of the silliness.

I think the film would've been a lot better served directed by someone like Matthew Vaughn.

 

[Doctor Jones]

Yeah, Craig is actually a funny dude and he was fine with all of the comedic moments in the film.

The way some people talk, though, you'd think this film was attempting to be an over-the-top comedic romp, when in actuality, there are but a few moments like that. The audience I saw the film with seemed to react well to each of them.

I didn't think that at all, it's just some of those smaller moments like the wave and the whole bit with the car chase and the old man, it just felt like something transplanted from the Moore era that just didn't work with Craig. It felt like Mendes just said, "This is something like what Moore did, think of that." Instead of it trying to be its own thing and work outward organically to Craig's strengths as an actor as Bond.

 

[Octoberist]

I wish Hinx was a gentlemen thug. Like anytime he kills somebody he'll say 'my apologies', or whatever, in a polite manner.

 

[pr0xyt0xin]

I'm a big fan of this movie.

Craig is still the reigning champ when it comes to Bond films imo. And Lea Seydoux is probably my all time favorite bond girl. Love Christoph Waltz so truly that all adds up to a really great flick imo.

That being said, if Skyfall garnered all the "Too Dark Knight" criticisms, I could definitely see people drawing the connection between Spectre and Winter Soldier. Food for thought.

Final note. This movie did what NuTrek SHOULD have done with Khan. Saved him for a much later sequel instead of playing their biggest, baddest, best hand up front. Just sayin.

 

[ThePhantasm]

I wish Hinx was a gentlemen thug. Like anytime he kills somebody he'll say 'my apologies', or whatever, in a polite manner.

*stab*
oh so sorry
*stab*
don't worry i'll clean it up
*stab*
please just take a seat
*stab*
you look like you could use a lie down
*stab*