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SPY VS SPIES
Dec. 29th, 2015 10:27 pmThis will be the last of the movie reviews for 2015 – except for that one.
You know the one I mean. That one warrants a separate post, so unless we manage to squeeze in that Peanuts movie at the last minute, this is probably it for 2015.
Bridge Of Spies
Steven Spielberg’s mainly-true Cold War tale about how insurance lawyer James Donovan defended accused Russian spy Rudolf Abel and eventually negotiated a deal with the Russians and the East Germans to trade Abel for Gary Powers and college student Frederic Pryor.
Much has been made about the fact that the Coen Brothers have a writing credit, though I can’t say how much it adds to the original screenplay. In any case, while it’s not a typical Coens script, it’s pretty well written. And overall it’s an interesting slice of Cold War history that Spielberg uses to mirror the modern paranoia and questions over due process that America is grappling with today in regards to the War On Terror.
For the most part it works, even if Spielberg overplays his hand from time to time and relies on some occasional cheese (particularly the scene where Powers’ U2 plane is shot down). Some people will write it off as Oscar Bait just because Tom Hanks is in it, but there’s more to it than that.
SPECTRE
Daniel Craig returns for his last outing as James Bond, and with Skyfall completing the reboot that puts Bond, M, Q and Moneypenny in their respective positions on the board, this film runs with that set-up to introduce the classic eponymous Bond foe.
And it does so reasonably well. The problem is that Casino Royale and Skyfall set the bar pretty high, and SPECTRE doesn’t quite clear it. Part of the problem is that sometimes the script lapses into the kinds of OTT action scenes the reboot was supposed to be at least be smarter about. A couple of action sequences here are noticeably and pointlessly dumb. Also, it’s starting to feel like “Bond defies orders and goes rogue” is becoming a standard plot device for the reboot films.
On the plus side, Craig is still good, as is Christoph Waltz as This Year’s Villain. It’s also good that the writers are continuing with the notion that M and Moneypenney are more than just desk jockeys. And the “evil plot” really taps into modern paranoia about the pitfalls of mass surveillance, even if some of the technology bits aren’t that well thought out. Overall, it’s an above-average Bond film, but here’s hoping future Bond films spend more time messing with the formula rather than settling into one.
Shaken not stirred,,
This is dF
You know the one I mean. That one warrants a separate post, so unless we manage to squeeze in that Peanuts movie at the last minute, this is probably it for 2015.
Bridge Of Spies
Steven Spielberg’s mainly-true Cold War tale about how insurance lawyer James Donovan defended accused Russian spy Rudolf Abel and eventually negotiated a deal with the Russians and the East Germans to trade Abel for Gary Powers and college student Frederic Pryor.
Much has been made about the fact that the Coen Brothers have a writing credit, though I can’t say how much it adds to the original screenplay. In any case, while it’s not a typical Coens script, it’s pretty well written. And overall it’s an interesting slice of Cold War history that Spielberg uses to mirror the modern paranoia and questions over due process that America is grappling with today in regards to the War On Terror.
For the most part it works, even if Spielberg overplays his hand from time to time and relies on some occasional cheese (particularly the scene where Powers’ U2 plane is shot down). Some people will write it off as Oscar Bait just because Tom Hanks is in it, but there’s more to it than that.
SPECTRE
Daniel Craig returns for his last outing as James Bond, and with Skyfall completing the reboot that puts Bond, M, Q and Moneypenny in their respective positions on the board, this film runs with that set-up to introduce the classic eponymous Bond foe.
And it does so reasonably well. The problem is that Casino Royale and Skyfall set the bar pretty high, and SPECTRE doesn’t quite clear it. Part of the problem is that sometimes the script lapses into the kinds of OTT action scenes the reboot was supposed to be at least be smarter about. A couple of action sequences here are noticeably and pointlessly dumb. Also, it’s starting to feel like “Bond defies orders and goes rogue” is becoming a standard plot device for the reboot films.
On the plus side, Craig is still good, as is Christoph Waltz as This Year’s Villain. It’s also good that the writers are continuing with the notion that M and Moneypenney are more than just desk jockeys. And the “evil plot” really taps into modern paranoia about the pitfalls of mass surveillance, even if some of the technology bits aren’t that well thought out. Overall, it’s an above-average Bond film, but here’s hoping future Bond films spend more time messing with the formula rather than settling into one.
Shaken not stirred,,
This is dF
