Skyfall verdict!

This evening was the opening night in the UK of the new installment of the James Bond franchise "Skyfall", so naturally I had to go see it. And boy, was it worth the £6 ticket.

For those who need a reminder, here's the trailer for the highly anticipated return of 007. 

CAUTION - POSSIBLE SPOILERS AFTER THE TRAILER, DO NOT READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM!

I had been waiting for this film to come out for FOUR years, ever since it had been announced. I stuck by and waited during the financial trouble and whatnot with the production company but at last, it was here. I think everyone else in the cinema felt the same as me - when the adverts finally finished and the opening appeared, there was literally a buzz around the place. Some critics had labelled this the "best Bond ever" - I tell you what, it was certainly that!

Firstly the leading man Daniel Craig (swoon). We all know he received a lot of criticism when he first got the role, but he has turned out to be a fantastic Bond. His performance in this film was outstanding, particularly at the beginning of the film. We see a Bond bored, almost fed up of life as a MI6 operative yet he is there. He portrays as almost deluded by being a spy, acting a little rusty at the start but then comes along the grittiness and the stellar action, and it truly is wonderful acting. It's as if he was made for this role almost, he really was that good. He also injected a lot of wit and humor into the role, just typical British 'banter'. Look out for his relationship with the new "Q" (Ben Whishaw) and also remarks about a rather distasteful Bulldog ornament. But Craig also shows an emotive and more personal side of Bond, particularly in the latter part of the film and that really stole the part for me - wonderful acted and if I say so myself, he can easily be the best Bond actor, not far of Sean Connery.

Then there's the villain - Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem). He is a fantastic villain; one with humor yet all of the ruthlessness you'd expect from a Bond villain. It's not all blowing up buildings and shooting people with this villain however; it's more to do with cyber terrorism and I liked that. But what really fascinated me was the relationship between Silva and Bond's boss "M" - played by the wonderful Judi Dench. Dench's character was brash in this film, more so than others - particularly when barking at Bond and her operatives. What I liked about this relationship which made it pretty much the core of the film - it wasn't so much Bond chasing the villain. It was more the villain chasing M, and it was a very interesting twist and different to other Bond films. The film becomes quite personal - with this developing relationship between the antagonist and one of the main characters, but also with the ending. We find out more about Bond's past and also what Skyfall really is. How important M's relationship with 007 is also shown, mostly towards the end of the film and I loved the little exchanges between Dench and Craig. The ending I found was incredible, and really is not expected; it'll have you gasping your seat! Fantastic acting all round!

What really did impress me though was how cleverly written the plot is - Quantum of Solace severely lacked in this in my opinion, with the writer's strike at the time of filming. This time however, they got it right and it really struck me (and I think the majority of the audience) how everything is tied together at the end of the film and truly how wonderful it is written. Even the new agent introduced "Eve" (Naomie Harris) is cleverly resolved by the end of the film, leaving everyone who knows past Bonds to go "ahhhh right!" Absolutely brilliant script and very well directed by British Sam Mendes; why he hasn't directed a Bond movie, I shall never know. It brings out the grittiness of a Bond movie and all the action you'd expect, yet it has the emotive and personal side; I think that is what makes the film, along with being just so British. Together with the wonderful performances from all of the cast, it really is a cracking film.  

Is it the best Bond film ever? In my opinion, yes. It's certainly the best outing from Daniel Craig yet, just shaving Casino Royale and I think it really is a fantastic film, one of the best this year. Go now... yes NOW to your local cinema and see it! I know I'll be seeing it again for sure. 

Keep a look out for my follow up blog - where I'll be answering the question on everyone's lips; is Daniel Craig potentially the best Bond ever?