Quantum of Solace
Quantum of Solace
DIR: Marc Forster • WRI: Paul Haggis, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade • PRO: Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli • DOP: Roberto Schaefer • ED: Matt Chesse, Richard Pearson • DES: Dennis Gassner • CAST: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric, Judi Dench, Giancarlo Giannini, Gemma Arterton, Jeffrey Wright, Jesper Christensen
Action, beautiful women, exotic locations and evil opponents all come together in the latest Bond movie that is a follow on to Casino Royale. In that movie, fans will remember, Bond’s love interest Vesper drowned in a cage in Venice. There was clearly some unfinished business left when James shot the baddie Mr White in the leg at the end of the movie. And no one had paid for the death of his beloved Vesper…
Quantum of Solace explains why she died and what Bond (Daniel Craig) is going to do about it. I watched Casino Royale again on video before going to see the film to get into the Bond mood. I think it helped because there is a distinct carry over: Mr White (Jesper Christensen) and Mathis (Giancarlo Giannini) are again central characters.
And what about this title Quantum of Solace? What does it mean? I got out the dictionary.
For ‘quantum’ there are three choices:
‘A required quantity or amount, especially an amount of money paid in recompense’. Could this be a possibility? No. James wanted something specific but not money.
‘A portion or allotment’. No, definitely not. James never shared.
‘The smallest discrete quantity of a physical property such as electromagnetic radiation or angular momentum’. Most definitely not. Too small!
Then ‘Solace’ has two alternatives:
‘Comfort at a time of sadness, grief, or disappointment’. This is a definite possibility.
‘Somebody or something that provides comfort at a time of sadness, grief, or disappointment’. Definitely. James is not left alone to his grief.
James himself is very clear. He wants a little something. He wants REVENGE. Nothing less than the demise of the person or persons responsible for Vesper’s death in Venice, is what James requires. This is the quantum of solace that James seeks.
The film moves from one location to the next and excitement follows each time. Cars, bikes, boats and plane chases result. Bolivia looks fantastic and the wonders of Siena, Lake Garda, Austria and Haiti add to the colour and spectacle. It is a satisfying movie and is a delight to the eye. Lake Garda’s mountains and tunnels are ideal for the expected car chases in luxury high performance cars. The desert of Bolivia is breathtaking and the people in their national dress are very colourful and wonderfully photographed. Even the hotels are spectacular. Why should James Bond stay under cover in a cheap hotel when he can luxuriate in the best?
Dame Judy Dench as M provides the link between the exotic locations and even gets out of the office herself, quite unusual for the head of MI6 who traditionally stayed in the office, protected by Miss Moneypenny.
And alas, there is no Miss Moneypenny this time and there is also a distinct lack of gimmicky gadgets. James has the ability to make ordinary equipment do extraordinary things although MI6 (Universal Exports) appears to have updated its IT equipment, which is displayed to the full.
Although the key evil opponent Le Chiffre was killed in Casino Royale, Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric) is an able, evil and creepy-looking replacement. The premier lady in the story, Camille (Olga Kurylenko) is a South American with a grudge and measures up to all that is expected of a Bond lady.
This is the second of four movies that Daniel Craig has been contracted to make and he looks wonderfully fit and healthy as usual, making a believable Bond and displaying physical agility and acrobatics almost akin to The Matrix with plenty of fight scenes, mayhem and death to keep the escapist viewers’ adrenalin flowing.
Did I enjoy it? Yes. Will I go again? Yes. There was a lot to see but the film moved so fast I got the impression that I needed to see it again, and perhaps view parts in slow motion to follow the action. Who got shot? Who shot whom? Yes, a very enjoyable evening.
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