Quantum: shaken or stirred

By Joe Dwyer     11/20/08 6:00pm

Quantum of SolaceBond is finally back in his 22nd film, Quantum of Solace, which landed in theaters last Friday. Picking up an hour after the events of Casino Royale ended, it grabs the audience by the face and doesn't let them go until the credits roll.From the opening car chase to the final showdown, it's clear that this is not your grandpappy's Bond. Gone is the campiness of the Sean Connery/Roger Moore era, and also absent are Q and his fantastic spy gadgets, which had been a staple of the series.

Rather, Quantum of Solace marks another shift in the evolution of the Bond franchise, ditching the kitschy tongue-in-cheek feel of the older movies in favor of a more grounded, realistic approach. There are no fights above shark pools, and there aren't any ridiculous ski slope chases, either. At times, Quantum of Solace feels dangerously close to becoming just another Bourne film, but by retaining the series' signature dry wit and unmistakable style, the movie reminds audiences that they are still watching Bond and not some antisocial amnesiac. It's almost hard to believe the film is directed by Marc Forster, whose previous works include Finding Neverland and The Kite Runner.

Daniel Craig (Casino Royale) reprises his role as Bond, hell-bent on finding the people who blackmailed Vesper Lynd into betraying him at the end of the previous film, while Judi Dench (Notes on a Scandal) returns once again as M, and Mathieu Amalric (De la guerre) stars as antagonist Dominic Greene.

---

---

In keeping with the film's realistic approach, Greene doesn't possess any unique qualities that mark him as a villain. While Oddjob had a lethal hat trick in Goldfinger and Jaws could bite through metal in The Spy Who Loved Me, Greene is by contrast a quiet and unremarkable businessman working through the mysterious Quantum organization to steal an entire country's water supply. He relies on his contacts, connections and checkbook instead of a rogue's gallery of henchmen in order to get the job done. While this results in a much less memorable villain, Greene fits well within the realistic framework the film establishes and is entirely plausible by today's standards.

The plot is more action-oriented than Craig's last outing as Bond, when a high-stakes card game served as the centerpiece of the film, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Each adrenaline-pumping chase or escape is immensely satisfying to watch as Craig brings a gritty physicality to the role that was missing from the previous films. He shows that Bond is human, that he bleeds and that he can't always escape a fistfight with his hairdo intact and without a scratch.

The cinematography is spectacular, as well. Bond films are known for their diverse and exotic locations, and Quantum of Solace doesn't disappoint. The film globe-trots from the Mediterranean to Haiti and the Bolivian desert to Russia, and the camera effectively captures the unique beauty of each locale. And rather than taking the in-your-face approach to every fistfight and gun battle in the movie, several scenes are edited artistically, such as one in which Bond's suspenseful escape is intercut with a performance of Puccini's Tosca for a big dramatic payoff.

Longtime Bond fans might view the new direction of Quantum of Solace as a deal-breaker, but audiences need to realize that the time when it was cool for Duran Duran and Tina Turner to perform the opening themes to the movies has long since passed. This is a new Bond for a new generation - but don't worry, he still takes his martinis shaken, not stirred.

---