The one thing, save the action, I was a little unsure of was the placement of the famed gun barrel opening in this film. Casino Royale represented the first of the Bond films that didn't start with the gun barrel opening (they used it at the end of the pre-title sequence), and this time out they opted not to do it (or play the Bond theme) until just before the end credits roll. I'm not upset with this change, I honestly don't know how I feel about it.
It's one thing to constantly reinvent your franchise in light of other films and changes in society and world, it's something completely different to abandon what the franchise has always been. A 70 million dollar U.S. box office take and huge numbers around the world indicate that people like Bond. Certainly updates have to be made to the franchise on a regular basis in order to ensure that 007 remains as popular as he is, but those updates need to be weighed against the idea of what the franchise is.
I don't believe that Quantum of Solace has radically altered the formula either in its action sequences or in its changes to the gun barrel opening and theme song. I just think that those areas represent aspects of the franchise that both the producers and the audience need to look at in the next installment.
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Article comments
1 - Ros UK
I am a huge Bond fan and have seen all JB films over the years. I particularly like Daniel Craig's take on the role, and I like what and where they are going with the franchise.
I think your article is very fair and I agree with most comments, but particularly your views on the hand held fast cut action scenes.It makes for hard watching, as I remember the first time I saw a Bourne movie I was totally confused. They are OK to a certain extent if you are prepared to see the film a few times, as I have, to see things you have missed!I read the weekly QOS production diary as it was being filmed for 6 months, and feel a little disappointed about how quickly each action scene seemed to zip by after all the trouble they went to filming them,(eg. 14 wrecked Astons!) I just wanted to see more. But it has got me returning to the cinema!! Clever marketing I suppose!!
The film definitely gets better the more you see it - the action, the dialogue,the music,the scenery, and of course Daniel Craig!