Quantum of Solace

I went to see the new James Bond film last night, and came away with mixed feelings. It's a fairly decent film, which runs at a fast pace, and is highly entertaining. I've heard it compared to the Bourne films, and it's true, this is probably the least "Bond-like" film ever made. The physical violence is fast and brutal, with Bond killing several times in the first 10 minutes of the film, showing no emotion as he goes. That's actually true to Ian Fleming's books - in which the Bond character is much darker and more brutal than the tongue-in-cheek paff served up by the likes of Roger Moore. In my (humble) opinion, Timothy Dalton was the best Bond to date, being the closest to the character in the books. Anyway, I'll run through the main parts of the film:

The plot

It's not a long film, but the plot twists, turns, and writhes like a snake. All utterly over-the-top, and unnecessary. The film is an immediate continuation from the previous Casino Royale film, and its main themes are Bond's need for revenge against the killers of Vespa (his lover), and the possible existence of a shady society bent on world domination (aka "Quantum"). The action constantly jumps from one country to another, characters come and go without more than a second glance, the true motives of Quantum are only touched on briefly, and it doesn't end satisfactorily - there's plenty of lose ends left untied. The film has three writers (Paul Haggis, Neil Purvis and Robert Wade), and it suffers as a result - too much input, too much confusion.

The gadgets

VERY low on the ground in this film. No laser-cutting watches or wrist-mounted dart guns. Just a swish mobile phone which sends photos of criminal suspects straight to MI6 headquarters at the touch of a button. The computer systems on display at HQ are really impressive, and probably aren't that far off being real, from what I've seen of Microsoft's fledgling touch-screen operating system. The trademark Aston Martin Bond car is thrashed (and shot) to pieces in the opening scene of the film, and isn't seen again - instead we're treated to a new Ford Ka, some Range Rovers, and a new Ford 4x4. There's no part for John Cleese's "Q", sadly.

The women

Two of them - one is a rather morbid ex-Bolivian secret service agent bent on revenge, the other is just a small cameo role for the gorgeous Gemma Arterton, which is really a waste of her acting talents.

The bad guys

No crappy henchmen in this film, gladly (shuddering at the thought of "Mr Kill" from Die Another Day). Mathieu Amalric puts in a very good performance as Dominic Greene, the central force for evil in the film, while Joaquin Cosio is convincing as an ex-dictator seeking to overthrow the Bolivian government.

As a stand-alone film it's a pretty good effort, but as part of the Bond franchise it leaves me wondering what direction they're heading in. There are several totally unnecessary action sequences, done just for the sake of blowing something up, or making the audience pay attention. That's not Bond - they need to look back at the first half of Casino Royale, and figure out how to capture more of that quiet intensity and brooding malice that set the film apart from the others.

Rating: 3 out of 5

My blog has wings - 4 readers and counting

In an incredible development, I appear to have four regular readers. *Gulp!* I'd better start blogging something of worth... I'll start with a rant at the BBC. I turn on my TV in the morning, to find out what (if anything) has happened since I last turned it on. The answer? The Strictly Come Dancing result from last night. WTF?!!! Since when did utter paff like this become "news"? At what point did we as a nation consider that a bunch of B-list celebrities doing pretty shabby dance routines should become an object of serious discussion? In my humble opinion, it's all part of the "Karaoke Culture" which now dominates the mainstream in the UK. Witness the popularity of utter drivel such as the X-Factor, and the so-called "careers" which the so-called "stars" can go on and enjoy. This week's number one? It's Shaun, from X-Factor! Will he still be around in a year's time?... no! Will you be embarrassed by having his CD in your collection? Absolutely!! So why do these people get anywhere? It's a mystery to me. Answers on a postcard - or in the comments box.

In other news, my friend Jen has given a bad review to "Oki-nami", a new Japanese restaurant in Brighton, owned by Mr Fatboy Slim himself. It appears to be a hell-hole serving re-constituted puke, masquerading as Japanese food, but that's just her opinion - I haven't been yet (and don't intend to go). I'll just mention that Pompoko (on Church Road, opposite the Brighton Dome) is still my favourite lunchtime destination. For £3.90 they do a Tofu dish with rice, all drizzled in honey and ginger, with mixed vegetables. On my last count I got 33 pieces of Tofu - probably more that you get in an entire supermarket packet - making it outstanding value for money, and very nutritious too. With such fierce competition, I can't see Fatboy's new venture lasting very long.