BambooLounge

As some one who saw On Her Majesty's Secret Service for the first time yesterday before seeing Skyfall, I definitely agree. In fact, I think people will appreciate Skyfall a lot more if they watch a couple of older Bonds beforehand. I watched You Only Live Twice too right before leaving to see Skyfall and just getti in that Bond mindset and dealing with those films' pacing made it easier to sit through Skyfall and judge the film in context.

I think the biggest obstacle for Bond films in general is pacing. The best move fluidly between the action set pieces and the dramatic bits whereas the worst feel like they are simply killing time between set pieces. Skyfall nailed the pacing thanks to good acting. Every second Bardem was on screen was equally, if not more, entertaining than any of the set pieces.

Only knock on the film for me was things got a little too Bale Batman-y during the final act Home Alone: Lost in Scotland.

PopcornTreeCt

The pacing was really interesting almost like it was two movies. We have the beginning and part of the middle that is all about Bond dying, returning, training and then finally going to Shanghai and Macau.

Then Bardem shows up and the movie is all about him. You really can't take your eyes off him.

It sorted reminded of Casino Royale. We all remember Eva Green's performance but it's a long while before she finally shows up.

Shannon Nutt

Well, here's a personal DARK KNIGHT comparison: the last movie I saw more than once opening weekend until seeing SKYFALL twice this weekend.

I will say Silva gives me more of a SILENCE OF THE LAMBS vibe than a DARK KNIGHT vibe, but either comparison is a flattering one. I'm willing to bet he has about 20 minutes of screentime in the entire movie, yet he's easily one of the best Bond villians ever.

For a frame of reference, before SKYFALL, my favorite Bond and favorite Bond movie were Timothy Dalton's THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS. That all changed this weekend.

wm lopez

How about when the teal appears when the movie wasn't like that. Yesterday on AMC they showed THE POSIDEN ADVENTURE in HD and there was teal were there was once blue. Blue eyes turned to teal and so on.
Have the old 60's, 70's and 80's Bond movies on blue-ray changed in look?

Supermallet

This is a Skyfall reviews thread, not a discussion of color timing on old films. Make a new thread (or find the existing orange and teal thread) to continue that particular discussion.

dex14

What kind of contract do you think they locked Fiennes into?

Supermallet

Fiennes probably has to do three days of work per film. He'll do it for a while, I imagine.

Osiris3657

I saw it yesterday and I'm still trying to sort out how I feel about Skyfall. My initial reaction as I was walking out the theater was "this was good but nothing special" but the more I think about it the more I like it.
I thought that outside of Casino Royale (which I find unquestionably better than Skyfall) it was the most well made Bond film. Gorgeously shot, very professionally directed. But something was missing. The action lacked energy and excitement. The pace was too slow for a 2 1/2 hour film.
I did like the story though, how personal it was. I felt like you got to know Bond on a new level.
I didn't care for the villain. I thought Bardem was great but I was bored with the character.
I also thought Eve was a forgettable Bond girl.
So in conclusion I thought it had an interesting script, great cinematography, and first class acting, but the action was lacking in energy, too slow paced, and some forgettable characters.

I do think it's a film that I will enjoy more with repeat viewings.

Grade: B-

DaveyJoe

There were two moments in this film where the soundtrack made my friend and I think Batman was about to show up.

wm lopez

They should have gotten Timothy Dalton for that part.

BambooLounge

Forgot to mention this in my initial post, but one thing I like about the way Skyfall left the Bond franchise is that it basically brings things back to where the old Bonds where in terms of story and personnel.

I'm hoping this will be the end of winking allusions to pre-Craig Bond films, which was something that I grew tired of in Skyfall. I felt like the ultra-obvious sexual double entendres and audience winks from the older Bonds had been replaced with ultra-obvious winks to the audience about the older Bonds ("we go back in time" and it's the car and Scotland... a Connery wink). Those moments annoyingly pull me out of the Bond universe. Like in the beginning of On Her Majesty's Secret Service when Lazenby breaks the fourth wall to mention "the other guy." I am not looking for chronological continuity or anything, but I like that each film is a part of this loose universe. No need to be so self-referential, there have been more than enough Bond homages, rip offs, and parodies that stand alone outside the Bond franchise universe.

GatorDeb

Same thought crossed my mind as he was running on , wonder what shoes he's wearing

Supermallet

No, Fiennes is perfect. But they should have gotten Connery to play the Albert Finney role.

jdslater1

I thought I read a rumor that basically said they tried to.

jdslater1

That building does actually have glass that colour.

Supermallet

Wouldn't surprise me. He has retired, and I doubt a cameo like that would have been enough to entice him back out.

Supermallet

Effin' Deakins, using the building's original colors! What a jerk!

Solid Snake

Have you guys read up on the construction of that place? Fascinating shit.

PenguinJoe

I like the end when it essentially became Home Alone.

jdslater1

Then again, if some people thought the return of the Astin Martin was out of place and made no sense just think what they would of thought of Connery turning up as Groundskeeper Willy!

Solid Snake

The Astin Martin seems to be a Bond thing. Beyond the films. He had an AM in one of the books. Dunno if it kept coming up though. Either way....it's inherently Bond. Not that weird.

Troy Stiffler

Only more deadly. If you liked that, check out Last House on the Left (old one or remake - both are good).

jdslater1

I know that but, Q gave him a very small gun and a radio receiver while in a garage elsewhere in London was a 60 year old car with machine guns and a ejector seat.
Doesn't make a lot of sense does it. Why would he have that car?

Anyways, I know why it's there. It's so we have a smile on our faces for a few minutes.

FRwL

Waitaminute waitaminute! As long as we're talking positively about the colors it's allowed!

Troy Stiffler

Do you work as a colorist? I think about 80% of your posts in this forum are about color timing.

As I understand, it's become common, because it masks out a lot of problems during shooting. You no longer have to get in those shots during the perfect time of the day. They change a lot of the values, and then use the "tint" to tie things together. So it's making this more convenient. You no longer need to worry about getting in all of your shots when the sun and shadows change a little. You just fix it up in post. You can get shots in at 11AM and 3PM, and make tie them together. Then you have time for getting other things right - like eating catered food. That's the realest answer I can give you.

I posted this because Roger Deakins IS really awesome. Why is he so great? Because his movies are really pretty. Of course, other factors go into making a movie look pretty (direction, production design). But Deakins executes.

2012 Skyfall
2010 True Grit (director of photography)
2009 A Serious Man (director of photography)
2008 Revolutionary Road (director of photography)
2007 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (director of photography)
2007 No Country for Old Men (director of photography)
2005 Jarhead (director of photography)
2004 The Village (director of photography)
2004 The Ladykillers (director of photography)
2001 A Beautiful Mind (director of photography)
2001 The Man Who Wasn't There
2000 O Brother, Where Art Thou? (director of photography)
1998 The Big Lebowski
1997 Kundun
1996 Courage Under Fire
1996 Fargo (director of photography)
1994 The Shawshank Redemption (director of photography)
1994 The Hudsucker Proxy (director of photography)
1992 Thunderheart (director of photography)
1991 Barton Fink (director of photography)
1986 Sid and Nancy