QUANTUM OF SOLACE

2008
Directed by Marc Forster
Written by Paul Haggis
Produced by Barbara Broccoli
MGM

Those who are esteemed fans of the new and improved Casino Royale are probably disappointed with the new, agonizing installment of Quantum of Solace. It has all the charm of Hannibal Lector working at Arby's with a plot so nauseating you might as well get some old CIA reports and drink ipecac while you read them. From what I've noticed most people have complained that this movie didn't live up to certain expectations, which are the wrong reasons for compliant in this case. I'll explain…

The majority of arguments that I've heard state that the filmmakers didn't reintroduce any of the old, classic aspects of the traditional Bond film such as Q or the gadgets, which is an overtly weak argument for debating the quality of the new Bond films.

Here's what was really wrong with Quantum of Solace: Everything else.

The story was probably one of the worst, if not the worst plot, in the history of Bond films and this is coming from a franchise that hid an evil organization with plans of world domination in a volcano. Bond is stuffed in action sequences (some of which are unmotivated) but when the action halts you find yourself stumbling through plot building reconnaissance scenes that lead you in three different directions. The road not traveled leads to General Medrano (Joaquin Cosio), the road preferred not traveled goes to Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric) and the one the audience becomes stranded in leads with James Bond (Daniel Craig) and Camille (Olga Kurlenko) trading awkward glances with fragments of conversation in the desert and an underground river. The story becomes so convoluted with stakes that nobody gives a fuck about. You have to realize the movie in a nutshell is about Bond trying to save the water supply of Bolivia... It raises questions.

People are still bitching "Why wasn't Q in it?" and I keep answering this question with another question: "What does it fucking matter?" The first one did quite well without him and the only reason people are annoyed is that it diverted from the normal quota of the traditional Bond film. If the series were a reboot to the character why would you keep the same repetitive formula? Aside from M and Bond, the Bond-girl was weakly developed into the story. She wasn't a key character, she didn't do anything important to the plot, she was just there as carry-on baggage... Much like all the other old-school Bond films minus actually fucking James Bond (which everyone was pissed about also). I was hoping they'd develop Felix into a more concrete character for the series, fat chance. Rene was picked up and suddenly killed off as though he served a better purpose to do so. None of the co-casting characters seems to matter much since we either see so little of them or they die off like side scrolling ducks at a carnival game.

Before I dwell into the agonizing backstory of this ingenious individual I'd like state for the record that this guy single-handedly has the worst name for any Bond-villain that has ever existed. Now as for his place in the movie… Dominic Green is the head of an environmental corporation, which is really a front for funding terrorist activities. Subtle. He is using his resources and power to steal the public water supply... of Bolivia... Are you. Fucking. Serious? By default he is one of the worst villains of any movie ever. That fatass General Medrano barely does anything and his criminal activities have little effect on the story and are mostly implied offscreen.

How did they go from Casino Royale to this? Not even the homage to Goldfinger was impressive. The only thing that is barely worth mentioning are the action sequences though they don't do much to save it from it's treachery. Unless you think useless action sequences mixed with a boring, implausible plot make Quantum of Solace a good movie then be my guest.