I thought DAD was entertaining enough for me because my expectation don't force James Bond to adhere to a pure realistic/gritty foundation. I'm willing to forgive some unbelievable stuntwork just because it's part of the pacakge that comes with the franchise.
The Good:
The premise was somewhere we've never seen Bond having to go through. But he did sort of re-acclimate himself a bit too quickly.
The villains had some grit to them. The extent they went to become who they were was mind-boggling if you thought about it. Their big bad weapon was big and bad. How much of it is actually possible remains an exercise for the viewer.
The stunts were just plain fun to watch, sure, there's some throw-back 1960's stunt work going on, but it gave it a retro feel to the stunts. And I've never seen some of the stuff that was in this film, and the second unit pulled off most of it well enough. There's quite a few OMG stunts, and there's a few implausible stunts that you either buy or don't.
The opening credits footage was good in that it progressed the plot along at the same time.
James Bond got his mojo back in this film. I'm pretty sure his middle name must be "Randy".
Q was great and exasperated as always. He still comes up with the nifty toys.
Moneypenny's money shot was priceless.
The Okay:
Halle Berry's Jinx doesn't come across as a sharp secret agent type, and I would not go see her in a "Jinx" movie because there's just not enough to work with. Her role in this film as written stumbled to give her some credentials to make her believable as Jinx.
M was more crotchety than ever before.
Miranda Frost was aptly named. I think she got short-shrifted in some character development bits.
The Bad:
Madonna's theme song - I thought it was wretched. Electronic songs are not what James Bond theme songs should be, they should be sung with passion, and have a solid orchestral backing. Madonna missed badly with this song.
Also, Madonna's part as Verty, the fencing instructor, was average, she's just not a good actress.
Michael Madsen was wasted in this film.
The plot was a bit hokey. I think too many films are jumping on the "North/South Korea DMZ as the global hot spot in the world" bandwagon where unrest is just a few committed terrorist away.
I have it 3 stars or a grade of B (for Bond).
PatCave; HT Pix;Gear;DIY Projects;DVDs; LDs
The Good:
The premise was somewhere we've never seen Bond having to go through. But he did sort of re-acclimate himself a bit too quickly.
The villains had some grit to them. The extent they went to become who they were was mind-boggling if you thought about it. Their big bad weapon was big and bad. How much of it is actually possible remains an exercise for the viewer.
The stunts were just plain fun to watch, sure, there's some throw-back 1960's stunt work going on, but it gave it a retro feel to the stunts. And I've never seen some of the stuff that was in this film, and the second unit pulled off most of it well enough. There's quite a few OMG stunts, and there's a few implausible stunts that you either buy or don't.
The opening credits footage was good in that it progressed the plot along at the same time.
James Bond got his mojo back in this film. I'm pretty sure his middle name must be "Randy".
Q was great and exasperated as always. He still comes up with the nifty toys.
Moneypenny's money shot was priceless.
The Okay:
Halle Berry's Jinx doesn't come across as a sharp secret agent type, and I would not go see her in a "Jinx" movie because there's just not enough to work with. Her role in this film as written stumbled to give her some credentials to make her believable as Jinx.
M was more crotchety than ever before.
Miranda Frost was aptly named. I think she got short-shrifted in some character development bits.
The Bad:
Madonna's theme song - I thought it was wretched. Electronic songs are not what James Bond theme songs should be, they should be sung with passion, and have a solid orchestral backing. Madonna missed badly with this song.
Also, Madonna's part as Verty, the fencing instructor, was average, she's just not a good actress.
Michael Madsen was wasted in this film.
The plot was a bit hokey. I think too many films are jumping on the "North/South Korea DMZ as the global hot spot in the world" bandwagon where unrest is just a few committed terrorist away.
I have it 3 stars or a grade of B (for Bond).
PatCave; HT Pix;Gear;DIY Projects;DVDs; LDs
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