Skyfall - Guest Review

Skyfall - 143min - PG13
by C. L. Cadwallader

I love James Bond movies. I watched "For Your Eyes Only" at least a dozen times on HBO when I was a kid. It hooked me on Bond and I've stayed hooked. I am not ashamed to say that I can find something to like about every single Bond movie from "Dr. No" forward. I like Connery, Lazenby, Moore, Brosnan. I even like Timothy Dalton.

Above all these movies and actors that I have enjoyed, Daniel Craig's performance as Bond in 2006's "Casino Royale" ranks #1 in my book. "Skyfall" is Craig's third turn at Bond, and he continues his portrayal of a harder, more visceral secret agent for the 21st Century -- more reliant on basic bullets and brains than snazzy devices from Q and witty repartee. Here we see a Bond who is far from invulnerable. He's suave and tough of course he rocks a tuxedo like no one else, but if you cut him, he bleeds. "Skyfall" goes out of its way to show us Bond as a person -- someone with a past who exists in a dangerously real world. I give it a green light as an exciting and entertaining continuation of a series I hope to continue seeing for decades to come.

In the traditional Bond cold-open "Skyfall" shows us Bond and his young female protégé chasing a lost computer hard drive through Istanbul. The chase ends when Bond is shot and presumed killed by friendly fire. Bond returns to action when an attack takes out MI-6 headquarters. His quest to find those responsible leads him to Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem), a former MI-6 agent with a serious axe to grind against M (Judi Dench). In the meantime, M has problems of her own, in the form of MP Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes) who thinks she no longer has what it takes to run a 21st Century intelligence operation.

Every performance in this movie is top-shelf. Daniel Craig is as smooth and tough as ever. Judi Dench is terrific as a woman born to be tough, but with just the right touch of sentiment and humor. Javier Bardem is creepy, brilliant and diabolical like the Bond villains of old. And how can you go wrong with actors like Ralph Feinnes and Albert Finney supporting roles?

If there was one thing to criticize about this movie, it would be the 143 minute running time. The third act drags on a bit while we set up for the inevitable final confrontation. Once we got to that fight though, I forgot about checking my watch (and breathing at times) and went along for an action-packed ride worthy of any Bond film.

Long live Bond. When is 24 coming out?

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 – 130 min – PG-13

The Harry Potter franchise comes to an end and it is a spectacular send off. This movie does a stupendous job of tying up the story of Mr. Potter and his friends. The good wizards stand against Voldermort and his Death Eaters in this battle royale of good versus evil. The second half of the final book was my favorite part so I was looking forward to this movie. I loved the climatic landscapes of this movie and the way the story comes alive and makes the magic seem real. It was with bittersweet sadness that I enjoyed watching this movie knowing that there are no more stories coming. Oddly, I did not feel this way when reading the books. I think as I am more of a movie person than a book person I have a stronger connection with the movies. I give this movie a green light. I truly enjoyed myself while watching the film. Take the last trip into Hogwarts and get set to watch a movie franchise close its doors with a bang.

Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) are on the lamb when we pick up this film, we see them on their pursuit of horcruxes and speeding toward a final confrontation with Lord Voldermort (Ralph Fiennes). The final battle brings the entire cast back together again in the climax of this film. They spared no expenses in bringing us the visualizations and effects of the magic in a full on wizard war. The one character that I find myself thinking on the most is Professor Severus Snape (Alan Rickman) . Out of all of the characters I think that his development throughout the story and the final film has been one of the best. He comes off as a truly despicable character and we see a contrasting side of him in this film. I feel the most sorrow for him mostly in the way that he is so misunderstood; still unlikable, but at least we understand why. Alan Rickman is a master performer and has been a favorite of mine from the time I watched him in The January Man. Another unsung character that I really liked is the heroic Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis). I would be remiss in not mentioning Maggie Smith in her role as Professor McGonagall. She showed her strength as an actress and I was moved by her performance. There were several parts where I knew what was going to happen but seeing them come alive on screen was still a rush.

David Yates has does a great job in making this film the crown jewel of the series. He is familiar with the characters and it shows in the quality of this film. The cast has worked together for several years and they are comfortable with the characters they play. I was completely taken in by the majesty of the final battles and the story elements. I think he did a great job of intertwining the special effects and the drama of the final film. It was well balanced and entertaining. It’s a challenge to balance the elements of a film so that not one overrides the other. He does a wonderful job of making sure that each complements each other.

Warning Spoilers!! No Muggles allowed!!Wizards click here to see them.

Some of the most moving parts for me were the heroic speeches. The first one was McGonagall bringing up the defenses and calls the statues alive and starts to shield the school. I also enjoyed Neville’s speech about Harry being alive in all of us, and his decapitation of the snake. Man, really great stuff.

The entire Room of Requirement scene and its ramifications were exquisite. In the middle of the flight for their lives from the flames Harry makes a heroic choice and risks his life to saves Malfoy (Tom Felton). That good deed in turn saves his life in the forest when Malofy’s mother (Helen McCorory) reports Harry Potter is dead but knows that he is alive and her boy is safe. This is a great story element.

I loved the part where they break into Gringotts and Hermione saves the day. I tell you without her they would not have gotten as far as they did. I loved her trying to be vile and evil as Bellatrix (Helena Bonham Carter) this is a testament of Helena Bonham Carter’s skill she was playing someone else playing her. And if you think about it, she had to think of how Emma Watson was going to play Herminie playing Bellatrix. It’s kind of mind bending when you think about it.

The last question I have for you today is what is the next book series that is going to make a mega millions franchise? I know that I Am Number 4 was trying to get a start but ended up not doing as well as they wanted. What book series should they do next?