The overdue James Bond movie, “Skyfall,” begins with nothing short of a high action pursuit that involves moving trains and the roof tops of Instanbul. Bond, played by Daniel Craig, attempts to snatch a hard drive containing a list of secret agents stationed all over the world. The target audience aging from 19 to 60 years old was impressed as the film went on frequently relating back to the first Bond movies that streamed into the main themes of “old fashion vs. new technology.”
Craig, in his third 007 movie, was not quite himself while showing a frequent vulnerable side that had not been portrayed since his first movie, “Casino Royale” longing for Vesper Lynd (Eva Green). Judi Dench, starring as the stern and fearless M, was also lacking her usual confident presence. Oscar winner Javier Bardem clinched the creepy and swift role of Raoul Silva, a former operating agent for MI6, perfectly. When encountering Bond for the first time, Bardem successfully made die-hard Bond fans squirm as he felt Bond’s leg and flashed him a quirky smile, seeming as though he was coming on to him.
“Skyfall” has a significantly different theme then the past gut-wrenching suspenseful Bond films. The movie strings back to the first James Bond movies in instances such as bringing back the old BMW, which accumulated gasping “ahs” from older members. Every turn of events somehow related back to either Bond or M’s past. It seemed as though the movie was coming full circle, relating back to the first movies featuring 007’s adventures that were captured on the big screen in the early 1960s.
Craig, 44, was significantly older than in the 2008 film “Quantum of the Solace.” Knowing this, it was shudder inducing when Bond was shot in the beginning accidently by a fellow agent, and was assumed dead. After watching the everlasting credits accompanied by Adele’s new single, “Skyfall,” Bond strangely turned up in rough condition, which affected his shooting throughout the movie. This appealed to the theme of “he can’t bounce back like he is use to.”
The enemies had a different mindset of evil in this movie from the past. Technology was taking over, much as it is today, which provided them with new ways to beat the British secret service by hacking into their systems. Oddly enough the “old fashion” theme stepped in again after returning to Bonds childhood house in Skyfall and facing off with M’s old enemy.
It was refreshing to watch Skyfall take on a new meaning and theme rather than Bond being an invincible man who rejected his conscious when killing someone. Seeing Bond’s vulnerable side brings him to life and made the viewers feel even more connected to his feelings of being outsmarted and outnumbered. The Sam Mendes directed movie completes the unexpected full circle that embraced Craig and Dench’s age, and makes the audience fall in love once more with the witty agent, James Bond.