FTH Film Review: Spectre

November 8, 2015 Author: John Amenta

James Bond returns for his 24th big screen adventure, Spectre. Given the high number of installments in the franchise, the odds would dictate that the quality of these films would have to fluctuate. This is true, for every Goldfinger, there has been a Moonraker. The good news for Bond fans across the globe is that even though Spectre may not rank in the top five films in the series, it is a solid entry.

Bond (Daniel Craig) returns to action shortly after the events of Skyfall. The new M (Ralph Fiennes) is being pressured by his superiors to shut down the Double 0 program, in favor of drones and heavier use of surveillance equipment. The opening sequence is as per usual a fantastic action scene, this time taking place in Mexico City during the Day of the Dead festival. Bond thwarts a terrorist plot, but causes mass destruction in the process, and has quite an adventure on a helicopter. Not helping matters is that Bond was not on a sanctioned mission but acting rogue, causing M’s plight to keep MI6 alive greater difficulty. Bond learns of a criminal illuminati known as SPECTRE, led by a mysterious man from his past, Franz Oberhauser (Christoph Waltz). As our hero digs deeper into this group’s history, we learn that they have been around for some time, and orchestrated the events of the past three films in the series. Along the ride to the final credits, we get ample action scenes, beautiful women and globetrotting from Rome to Morocco.

Craig puts in another steel faced performance, playing Bond like an explosion waiting to happen. Whether it be in a love scene or an intense fight , he conveys a sense of danger that has been present since his first scene in Casino Royale, nearly ten years ago. There are a ton of throwbacks to early films in this installment, but I won’t spoil any here, as that would steal the fun. Certain comments Craig has made recently allude to this being possibly his last go as 007, and that would be a shame. As opposed to prior films, the four featuring Craig have benefitted from having story elements running through them, which in turn has shown us development in the character like we haven’t seen in many years.

Bond super fan or casual viewer alike will have a good time checking Spectre out. It contains all of the ingredients for a fun night out at the movies. If you enjoyed this review and want to see more, keep checking on the FTH site.

3.5  Stars of 5

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