[6]
Daniel Craig’s sophomore outing as James Bond doesn’t measure up to the high standard set by Casino Royale, but it’s still a worthy entry in the franchise. Quantum of Solace picks up directly where Casino Royale left off, with Bond still grieving (in his own way) the loss of would-be girlfriend Vesper and on the hunt for the man who signed her death warrant. M (Judi Dench) worries she still can’t trust Bond, but after an assassination attempt on her life from a secretive organization, she sends him off to root the baddies out. His investigation leads to a green technology developer (Mathieu Amalric) working with a Bolivian general (Joaquin Cosio) to monopolize water supplies. Bond teams up with a woman (Olga Kurylenko) who has a vendetta against the general, and also relies on aid from welcome returning characters Mathis (Giancarlo Giannini) and Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) to thwart the conspirators.
Quantum of Solace features a lot of action in its first half, culminating in a final act that’s anti-climactic in comparison. Highlights include a battle behind the scenes of an opera production of Puccini’s Tosca and an escape from a crashing cargo plane. Director Marc Forster (Monster’s Ball, Finding Neverland) isn’t as successful with action choreography as other directors in the series, but he mines solid performances from his cast and lends the film a polished aesthetic. The best thing about Quantum of Solace is the way it continues the character arcs established by Bond and M in the previous film, deepening their relationship in the process. What mars the film more than anything is the dizzying, chaotic film editing by Matt Chesse and Richard Pearson, particularly during action scenes. Never before or since has film editing so jarringly pulled me out of a movie. There are times I have to look away from the screen before a headache sets in.
With Gemma Arterton, David Harbour, Jesper Christensen, another solid score by David Arnold, and a relatively weak title track performed by Jack White and Alicia Keys.