Sadly, Skyfall doesn’t quite live up to the mark of its predecessors. It’s not that it’s bad as such, it’s just not quite right. The characterisation and storyline are the biggest issues as the film has taken Bond and its villain in new, ill fitting directions.
Daniel Craig’s performance as bond is as impeccable as ever, delivering the action scenes just as well as smarter dialogue, but Skyfall’s attempt to get under the surface of the MI6 Commander with psych evaluations, his childhood backstory and ancestral home takes more away than it adds. It all gets a bit Home Alone too in the end with Judy Dench scrambling on the floor to set down broken glass and Micro-Machines to keep the baddies at bay.
Equally, Javier Bardem is class as M’s blast from the past, one time secret agent bad guy, Raoul Silva, but the 20 years too late personal revenge storyline doesn’t fit well in a Bond film. It’s too contrived and not smart enough to make the film great.
Berenice Marlohe’s Serevine is very well acted, giving great weighting to the build-up to Javier Bardem’s unveiling as the film’s protagonist. However, her fear is so convincing that you might actually be a bit disappointed by Silva, who is admittedly psychopathic, but not as scary as she makes out.
Though Skyfall is entertaining with some great action and slick dialogue, it didn’t quite get it right. Bond’s childhood has never really been an issue before, so it’s hard to see why it’s such a big deal in the latest film. It’s like the writers took the essence of James Bond and threw in a little Kevin McAlester without wondering why the mystery had never been dealt with before.
Skyfall review: 3/5
