Things you liked that others disliked (and vice versa)

MilleniumForce

So yeah, stuff in SP you liked that most others disliked, and stuff you disliked that most others liked.

Stuff I liked, most others didn't:

- Writing's on the Wall

- Monica Belluci's limited screen time - hear me out. If she had stayed with Bond longer, it would have been not only pointless for her to still be with him, but it would have dragged the story down and would have been an awkward transition from her to Lea.

- The villain being Bond's adoptive brother. Now, I wish it wasn't Blofeld, but I think it's a nice idea that Bond's adoptive brother was so psychotic he set up an organisation to get revenge and make his life a misery.

- The London finale. A lot of people said it was underwhelming, or that bond had 'super human' strength, but I really liked the finale. M vs C and Bond finding Madelaine being parallel was fantastic, and it gave M stuff to do. I also liked how Mi6 had been decorated like a fun house style thing for Bond and I loved the fact the building was completely destroyed.

- M facing off with C. I'm glad Bond didn't finish C, it made him a unique villain. For once, it was like two separate storylines taking place; Bond didn't really do anything with C, it was very much M taking him down and foiling his plan.

I didn't really dislike anything others liked, so I'll leave it at that.

chrisisall

I don't know what to say here... I pretty much liked everything but Sam's vocals.

Gassy Man

It's interesting -- most of the vitriol directed at it has been made by American rather than British critics. For the most part, I was pretty satisfied with Spectre, and more so than with Skyfall. So, some of the things I've seen may be confined more to this side of the Atlantic.

Writing's on the Wall: It certainly wasn't the best Bond theme, but it wasn't the worst. At least Sam Smith can hold a note. The man is a singer. I can't say that for Sheryl Crow or Shirley Manson, for instance. And while the theme lacks the upbeat quality that the film proper may have deserved, it's at least thematically meaningful.

Humor: It was relatively mild. The idea that we had some sort of all-out Moore-ish return to camp and insipidity is hyperbole. The humor in Spectre, for the most part, was closer to the Connery era than the Moore one.

Length: Some people perennially complain that Bond films are too long. Every single time a Bond film comes out. It makes no sense to me. It's like complaining that McDonalds serves hamburgers. Yet, complain they do. I like a longer film, so long as it is entertaining. Spectre entertained me.

Sweep: I can't believe it, but I've actually seen some people complain that Spectre just had too many locations, as though somehow filming in the English countryside or on a sound stage would have been a better alternative. If there's anything about this to criticize, it's that the Bond films no longer make the locations so much a part of the films, as though they are like another character to get to know. We get some brief establishing shots and then cut to some unimpressive interior. Gone are the days of From Russia with Love or Thunderball.

Now, the primary criticism I have about Spectre is the thin writing. It definitely was unimpressive in this regard. In particular, the bit about Blofeld and Bond being foster brothers was unnecessary, contrived to the point of being comical as well as comic book. There are other issues. Kleinman's animation was, once again, largely irrelevant to anything except pointing out the obvious. Mendes' direction was competent but hardly more. He's not the cinematic genius he or others think he is. But, again, these are pretty minor compared to the enjoyment I got out of the film. A better script would help. But I still had a good time.

chrisisall

Since I agree with most all of the above I will say you are objectively correct.
)

Gassy Man

chrisisall wrote:

Since I agree with most all of the above I will say you are objectively correct.
)

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Barbel

Gassy Man wrote:

Some people perennially complain that Bond films are too long. Every single time a Bond film comes out. It makes no sense to me. It's like complaining that McDonalds serves hamburgers. Yet, complain they do.

{[] So some people claim to have an empirical formula for exactly how long a Bond film should be! )

Gassy Man

Barbel wrote:

Gassy Man wrote:

Some people perennially complain that Bond films are too long. Every single time a Bond film comes out. It makes no sense to me. It's like complaining that McDonalds serves hamburgers. Yet, complain they do.

{[] So some people claim to have an empirical formula for exactly how long a Bond film should be! )

{[]

chrisisall

Barbel wrote:

{[] So some people claim to have an empirical formula for exactly how long a Bond film should be! )

x squared times PI inverted + y - the square root of 1 = the answer.
Four hours (with intermission).

blueman

Like GM, I found SP to be much more satisfying than SF, felt more like a good old fashioned Bond film (leaning towards the Connery side) than anything since TND (leaning towards the Moore-ish). And that's not a bad thing at all. Also thought the more Bond-centric moments (the face off with the mouse) worked far better for me than all the navel-gazing in SF or the tortuous Silva plotting, which struck me as just more Purvis and Wade Oprah-style crap circa TWINE. I thought the Blofeld reveal would bother me more, for the same reason, but oddly it didn't perhaps cuz it wasn't so damned belabored, it came and went. I still prefer QOS for my Craig Bond fix, but SP isn't far behind.

Humor: nicely done and a welcome relief after the dour SF. Landing on the sofa = classic Bond.

The Women: I thought both Bellucci and Seydoux each had the right amount of screen time + back story. Any more and I would've been back in SF territory, I fear. A Bond movie is about Bond.

The Ending: worked for me just fine, even the split action with M and C as noted above. Such an odd film for me, I kept expecting Mendes to lose me time and again, and even at this late point in the film he didn't. Kudos.

Craig: thought he looked better here than in SF (the hair?). He had a nice swagger missing from most of the previous film, SP left me wanting another go 'round with him in the role (and I hate old Bond).

The Music: wait, does anyone like the Newman score? It's lazy crap. Don't mind the Sam Smith song though.

The Fights: waaaaay better than SF, thanks Mendes for having a learning curve.

Agent Purple

The man is a singer. I can't say that for Sheryl Crow or Shirley Manson, for instance.

On Sheryl Crow, I think she's a talented singer. It's just that the title sequence song for TND doesn't showcase her skill very well. I quite like "All I Wanna Do" and her cover of "The First Cut is the Deepest".

As for Shirley Manson, as a fan of Garbage I have to disagree a lot with you here. I think she's a terrific vocalist and did a solid job with the TWINE title sequence song.

But of course, musical taste is subjective, as is movie taste.

I don't know if you like any 90's rock, come to think of it.