Skyfall

As a teenager I was very much a 007 fan. Sean Connery was the impeccable blend of sophistication and macho man, and there were always great action scenes and beautiful women to seduce. Admittedly, I thought that the Bond image suffered under the likes of Roger Moore, Pierce Brosnan and others. Daniel Craig, however, has managed to bring back ruggedly sexy to 007.

This latest Bond film, Skyfall, gives 007 fans everything they have come to expect—fast-paced action, sex, humor, good vs. evil, a quality cast, and so many huge holes in the plot you could fly a blimp through it. But who cares about a believable plot when what you went there to see was action? And there is even something new, gay content. Gay content in a Bond Film? Yes!

They have now been making Bond films for fifty years, and the formula hasn’t changed until recently. There has been one interesting change since Daniel Craig has assumed the role of 007. It’s called a character arc.

A character arc is a fundament change the hero goes through over the course of the plot. A good example is Ebenezer Scrooge. He goes from being a bitter skinflint to being a happy and generous person. Until recently, James Bond never really changed in his films. He always started by being the overly capable agent who has a taste for women, danger, and a love of country, and he ended each movie the same way.

But with the three Daniel Craig movies, the audience gets to see 007 go through emotional changes. It makes Bond more believable, more human, and a more interesting character.  As a fan, I very much like this look into the soul of 007.

I rank this movie as a must see for 007 fans.