Quantum of Solace

Quantum of Solace is what you would expect from a Bond movie; action, adventure, cheesy villains, horrible dialogue. Coming after the very solid Casino Royale, however, it is a disappointment. While Casino Royale is by no means my favorite Bond film, it is definitely close to the top 5. Quantum of Solace by comparison belongs with other mediocre editions such as The World Is Not Enough or Moonraker. I picked these two because, like Quantum, their plots are all over the place.

Quantum of Solace's main problem is that it is insanely uneven. This seems to be due to the director Marc Forster's desire to turn Bond into Jason Bourne. The action sequences are frenetically cut for no other reason than to disorient the audience. Shaky cameras and fast cutting fit Paul Greengrass' style in The Bourne Supremacy & The Bourne Ultimatum. Here the cutting removes any spatial awareness the viewer has of the action that is taking place. This gets old fast and consequently much of the action is just boring.

Without solid action we are forced to pay more attention to the story, which is abysmal. To make matters worse the writers have seen fit to throw in some preachy current event related dialogue that is nothing but heavy handed political jabs. I was also amazed how little sex there is in this movie. Bond has a chaste relationship with Olga Kurylenko, what is the world coming to? 2.5/5

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