Quantum of Solace

It has been said several times during the 49 years since Ian Fleming's character James Bond first appeared to moviegoers: "we are entering a new era of Bond!". This for a timeless-seeming character. The secret agent been played by several actors, some Brits, some Scots. With each personnel change, critics and fans note a change in the tone of the series. When Roger Moore packed the Walther PPK for the first time, fans were already denouncing the more cheeky attitude espoused. Nonetheless, the films themselves have retained a formula that, despite technology and the international political climate, stick to a tried and true mission. "Bondian" is a genre unto itself. The films never got all arty or pretentious or tried to make important statements about anything. Thank God. We have enough auteurs who try to splash grim reality upon the screen. Sometimes we just need some old fashioned escapism.

If James Bond was ever molded to be some sort of crusader, the series would truly go south. Sure, he's a "good guy", fighting for queen and (several) country, dispatching the megalomaniacs who dare to covet gems or nothing short of world domination. But, he's primarily a carnal, mostly unrepentant cad who does everything to excess. he acts out the way many men wish they could. The films since 1961's DR. NO have varied quite wildly in quality. I plan to do an entry solely devoted to this most enduring of film charcters and franchises later on. With 2008's QUANTUM OF SOLACE, the press was again stating that, yes, a new era was dawning. That Daniel Craig's second go-round as 007 was a seismic shift toward Jason Bourne territory. Super charged action! Intense fisticuffs! Survival of impossible scrapes! All presented with ADD editing. "James Bond is not an action hero!" saith Roger Ebert. Um, well, actually, have you watched the films all these years, Rog? Even the Sean Connery entries had their share of wild chases. I agree that ressemblances to Fleming's original writings are often harder to discern with each film, but Bond, for all his fondness for dry wit and sophistication, fancies mayhem almost as much as women and martinis. Perhaps more?

However, this film takes that idea to a perhaps unfortunate apex. Note the opening scene. A frantic car chase along mountain roads. We recognize Bond, but have nary a clue who the other blokes chasing and at shooting at him are. We will learn that 007 is transporting a representative of the Quantum agency, which will figure largely into the plot. But you might ask, not knowing this ahead of time, does it matter? Several Bonds open with a teaser that is unrelated to the main storyline. The problem with QUANTUM's is that it is indeed edited with extreme distraction, so much so it is hard to follow what the hell is happening. The ruckus continues after the opening credits: a museum fight is almost laughable in its physicality and the hyperactive camera capturing it. These early scenes do seem tailored for the Bourne audience (2nd unit director Dan Bradley worked on those films, in fact). I was concerned that the entire 106 minutes (shorter than the usual running time) would be just wall to wall action. I crave such cinematic red meat as much as the next guy, but in order for it to be effective, there needs to be some investment in the characters and (maybe) the story. It helps to actually care about or at least feel something towards the principals, but that's just me. 

The Quantum organization is a conglomerate we learned of in the previous CASINO ROYALE. They're interested in commodities that can bring third and free worlds alike to their knees: oil and water. Both will play heavily into this story. We learn that Bond's former lover was offed by Quantum, and he's hot for vengeance. A personal vendetta can muddy one's directive. Also thirsty for revenge is Camille (Olga Kurylenko), who tracks a Bolivian general named Medrano (Joaquin Cosio) who slaghtered her family years before. Medrano is looking to overthrow the current government in Bolivia with the help of Dominic Greene (Matthieu Amalric)a slimy bad guy who masquerades as an environmentalist. He even heads an organization called Greene Planet as part of the ruse. But he's on Quantum's dole (as well as in cahoots with some CIA guys) and has an agenda. He's also Camille's former lover. Just your typical Bondian calculus. Every one of these films have convoluted plots that are too exhausting to recount detail for detail. Items are pulled from headlines, characters are composites of current figureheads (Sarkozy figures largely in this one). Back during the Cold War, Bond films had mirror images of Kruschevs and Gorbechevs, etc. etc. So, QUANTUM OF SOLACE is old hat. "New era"? Not at its core. There are some differences: Bond does not bed the main female (but does snog an MI6 sent to retrieve him. Her name? Strawberry Fields of course!) and the editing, as mentioned, is caffeinated. Very Bournian. Perfect for viewers who can't stand shots that last longer than a second. I would love to see them squirm during WERCMEISTER HARMONIES! 

But these films always had spectacular stunt work. I saw nothing in this film I hadn't seen in earlier Bonds. Just a bit more sped up, is all. Craig continues to carve out a definitive interpretation. After a friend dies in his arms, Bond cavalierly throws the body into a dumpster. "Is that the way you treat your friends?" asks Camille incredulously. Bond just shrugs as replies, "He wouldn't care." THAT's Ian Fleming's Bond from the lit. If other elements aren't, well, producers Barbara Broccolli and Michael G. Wilson are just catering to the zeitgeist. The ante for action and effects always rises. I would love to see a truly old school Bond movie, though, with less CGI and more humour. Too bad director Marc Foster, who does deliver some good scenes (I liked the opera shootout, sans dialogue), rather just mounts things like a technician. The casting of Dame Judy Dench as M, though, was a masterstroke. She delivers another solid performance. Less caustic than before, maybe less icy, but no less steel reinforced. If you can ignore all the noise of QUANTUM OF SOLACE, she and Craig are the real reasons this adventure is worth taking.