Spectre (2015) Review

Why in this time of austerity are Q Department using Aston Martins for their agents? It’s unnecessary, decadent and borderline offensive.

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I watched Spectre, the new Tom Ford advertisement starring Daniel Craig Bond, wishing I had more of an appreciation of James Bond films.

I’ve seen every one since Goldeneye, but none of the ‘classic Bonds’. My knowledge of anything Bond pre-Brosnan comes from watching I’m Alan Partridge.

With only a passing knowledge of the history of Bond I felt like I wasn’t enjoying Spectre as much as I could have. The revelation of Waltz being Blofeld didn’t have the impact upon me that it should have.

I’m still unsure whether I’m supposed to know that Daniel Craig Bond has encountered Blofeld before or if this is just a reference to whichever old Bond film Blofeld was in. But that’s my fault, not Spectre’s.

In conjunction with Skyfall before it Spectre makes Bond feel more relevant than the previous outings. They both have a consistent tone and Spectre feels like a natural continuation of Daniel Craig Bond’s story.

There are the usual Bond tropes with the usual ironic nod of the modern films. The car, the gadget, the manipulative seduction of a grieving widow who has just witnessed two murders. Could anyone, man or woman, resist someone’s sexual advances having JUST witnessed that person kill two people? I’m not saying the sex wasn’t consensual but the implication was there.

These are all expected, and fine. But I would like to see more of Daniel Craig Bond submitting his expense forms. Why in this time of austerity are Q Department using Aston Martins for their agents? It’s unnecessary, decadent and borderline offensive. I’m certain a 1.9 diesel VW Golf could still shoot flames on to the bonnet of a pursuing Jaguar CX-75, if properly adapted.

Especially when said Jag is driven by a former wrestler who can only be one more shock away from heart failure.

But no, Daniel Craig Bond smashes a DB10 to bits. After being asked by a colleague not to. A colleague he later asks to disobey direct orders and risk his career for him. A colleague he convinces to do this on the convincing argument of, ‘trust me’. I’m not sure I’d be mentioning trust after handing the still smouldering Aston Martin key fob back.

So the backbone of the story is that the 00 program is archaic and obsolete in the age of continuous digital surveillance. Which is a valid concern. Is having drunken, unbalanced middle-aged men running around the world killing people and having sex indiscriminately the most effective way of ensuring global safety? M thinks so. He believes as much as his agents have a License to Kill, they also have a License NOT to Kill. Just the decision you want in the hands of borderline psychopaths who show no emotion or empathy.

However, surveillance here is shown as unequivocally bad. State sanctioned murder less so.

And of course, C the head of the new surveillance intelligence program is headed by a bad guy. Which was obvious from the outset as C is played by the guy that plays Moriarty in Sherlock. The BEST villain performance ever.

Having said that, the most disturbing revelation that Spectre led to for me was a website where like-minded individuals congregate to discuss the clothes and accessories used in Bond films. Harmless, you might say. I thought so too. Until I saw the photos of these wanna-Bonds posing with plastic guns. That’s grown men wearing £300 turtleneck sweaters holding children’s toys. Proving definitively, the clothes do NOT make the man.

If you go into Spectre expecting a modern take on classic Bond you won’t be disappointed. A solid action film with some nods to the pat and its eye on the future.

And whatever you want in a movie ending you’ll be happy. Spectre has about five of them.