Black Bag

Been itching for some espionage.

Will fully admit though the story looked interesting it was the combination of Michael and Cate in the story that got me to go see it. And also big time props for the movie not really doing a lot of hand holding as you're pushed into this plot of a married couple in an intelligence agency have to find a leak within their own organization who has intent to sell an albeit original doomsday weapon, which I actually greatly appreciate! The movie is told well enough and is concise enough (with a 90 minute runtime to boot) to where you can grasp the character dynamics and the stance each character has in the agency, and it's a mystery first and foremost which again I appreciate. We don't need extensive gunplay and explosions to make it interesting! Michael Fassbender is a pretty solid lead, I buy he's this vastly intelligent agent who has a knack for reading people with ease and while the movie is juggling six "main" characters he is the primary focus. Hell the relationship between him and Cate Blanchett is fascinating in and of itself, we rarely get stories with agents who know their spouse is an agent as well and Cate easily holds the edge and you know she's done legitimate field work and has little qualms ending a life. Then we have our suspect list of characters each unique and noteworthy. Naomie Harris as the office shrink with dirt on everybody lends a wild card element to her and plus it's Naomie, she's grand! Tom Burke as this loose and fast agent with a penchant for swearing and banging is certainly a new type for this genre of film and no doubt is more for the sparse comedic relief. Reģe-Jean Page who I don't think I've seen since our Paladin companion in Dungeons & Dragons, is your more typical suave agent but still gets to put his own spin on it. And last but not least Marisa Abela who is the more tech based agent who has a fascinating attraction to our man Michael, which I don't know why but it gave her a lot of personality and humor. Also shout out to Pierce Brosnan, though in a minor part I'm still happy to always see him, and to get him in a spy movie even if he takes on a more overarching leader role is great stuff to a certain generation of Bond fans. Production wise it's standard but good nevertheless with really nice lighting, good set design, and frankly the soundtrack was working for me for reasons I can't even explain myself! I kinda figured it would be decent but I walked out happier than I thought and I don't mind saying it's worth a shot seeing in theaters. I give it 3 stars, 7.5/10!

Black Adam

I had some faith in this movie, I bought the movie cup.



I think Black Adam is the weakest of the DC movies, and even then the score is actually pretty good! It's a very odd origin story, not so much in the actual plot of how a slave under a cruel emperor gained the same powers of Captain Marvel and has awakened in the modern day to find his footing and do battle, but more just the execution of the film. If you want your action, this movie sure delivers but obviously there's more to it than that. When I heard Dwayne was gonna be Black Adam instead of Captain Marvel, I felt that was a off choice of casting. No man. It took exactly 1 second after he properly appears and literally pumps a guy with so many volts he essentially disintegrates to a skeleton and then I shut the f*** up real quick. He doesn't have that immense charm but he can still be funny and has no qualms about just brutally massacring people, it's a bit shocking (no pun intended I swear) but still rad. And when I saw trailer appearances of Dr. Fate, Hawkman, Cyclone who I never heard of until now, and The Atom (who for some weird ass reason is called Atom Smasher here) I was ever so slightly concerned the movie was going to be too busy with so many characters, and truth be told if you can just roll with it that these characters are here, the movie suffers no serious damage. The focus is on Black Adam throughout and the Justice Society while still prevalent are secondary characters. And I thought the acting for all of them were rock solid, with my favorite of all the characters being Cyclone played by Quintessa Swindell, she is just so fab and full of cute energy, I was there for her hardcore. Noah Centineo as The Atom was more on the funny bumbling side, it legit almost felt like they were backdooring Ezra Miller's Flash into his character portrayal but it still worked for me. Aldis Hodge as Hawkman I felt did justice to the character in his adaptation, and the clashing of ideologies between him and Black Adam leading to physical clashes I thought was a nice touch. Dr. Fate played by Pierce Brosnan, what interesting casting but he was my other favorite and gahd bless it I want that friggin' robe! Also, really nice of the film to put some love toward middle eastern actors and architecture, Sarah Shahi did very well being an emotional compass but sure wasn't afraid to throw down so well done young lady. Bodhi Sabongui, I will not grudge a great deal, he did decent work and while he was fully a kid sidekick I can't bash a kid's acting talent. The story moves in a somewhat predictable fashion but the entertainment can still be felt. The characters serve a purpose and progress the plot. It does have some very dated aspects to it I sensed a lot of 90s in this, a severe dose of slow-mo, trailing kid sidekick, there is literally a character in a shiny black trenchcoat, the effects do work but the CGI is obvious. And I know this is going to happen, and I'm already goddamn sick of it but people are going to call ripoff on this movie. Oh Dr. Fate is just Doctor Strange, Cyclone is almost Storm and dresses like the Eternals, Hawkman is Falcon, Atom's mask is flat out Deadpool's mask just painted blue, the powerful ore Eternium is just Vibranium. Move along! It's a typical superhero movie. A strange semi-recurring motif occurs where action scenes are put to popular music, when Black Adam goes on his first rampage the entire scene damn near is shot in slow motion set to The Rolling Stones' Paint It Black, and another even odder occurence is they reference The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly and it was so nice they did it twice, prefacing an action scene with Ennio Morricone's The Trio which was my favorite part of the movie. It isn't a great movie, but nor is it a bad movie, as previously mentioned above it is the weakest of the DC movies in my opinion yet I give it 2.5 stars, 7/10, and stick for that mid-credit's scene. Holy shit man! And we need some 50s classics before this month unfortunately ends so join me next week!

Die Another Day

It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but that ain't saying much.

I was incredibly shocked at how much I was slightly enjoying Die Another Day, some of the dialogue was really good, some bits of action were pretty damn cool, and while the movie is an absolute hot mess it's not my most hated Bond film. The plot is a bit mad but it has elements that were taken and done correctly in the Craig films, with Bond being captured and tortured for well over a year in North Korea before being traded for an army official that Bond is quite strongly feeling like going after though his 00 status has been cut, he soon meets up with a NSA agent named Jinx as they try to stop the powerful businessman Gustav Graves and his solar lazer called Icarus. I honestly don't know where to begin with this movie. It has some real stupid stuff in it, but there are a few elements which aren't half bad. Yes the CG is laughably terrible almost Spy Kids level quality, but the car chase on the ice with two gadget filled cars is pretty amazing if criminally short. Yes the plot and characters are absurd at times, but the actors don't do a bad job and look like they're having a bit of fun. It's such a mixed bag. Brosnan could have went out on a stronger note but he does okay in this last movie. Halle Berry isn't terrible and genuinely looks happy to be in a Bond film and I quite liked her character, she seemed to be so much more the spy than James oddly enough. Toby Stephens is actually really good in this movie but his character just makes you want to...drink. Rick Yune does pretty well as the henchman and has a cool look if nothing else though again it's bizarre. This film gets brutal though man, I mean daaamn people got all up in arms over Licence To Kill but this movie makes that look like the friggin' Care Bears. Licence To Kill had a quick shot of an exploding head and a shooting of a corpse, but this movie has dismemberment, throat stabbing, lazers blasting through people's heads, it's pretty gruesome and dark at times. Why though, I don't know. God I have such conflicted opinions on this, on one hand it's way too out there for a Bond film and severely hurts the series, but on the other hand it has some decent moments and isn't a complete dumpster fire. So the big question right now is, do I like it more than Thunderball? Well Thunderball got a 5/10 from me and to be perfectly honest Die Another Day gave me a bit more entertainment. So I will give what many consider to be the worst Bond film a 5.5/10, 2.5 stars, you can skip it and I won't blame you but at the same time it has a few highlights. I will however say that after hearing Queen Elizabeth II attended the premiere of this movie, even I feel I have to apologize to Her Majesty for this and I didn't do a thing on this movie. I remember when I rented this from Blockbuster back in the day one night, and I got maybe 10-15 minutes into the movie and I fell right asleep, I had to have been 7 maybe even 8 years old and I don't think I really watched it again after that the next morning and I couldn't remember a damn thing that happened in that movie. So this has been my first viewing in 17 years, and I feel I can go a lot longer than that until my next viewing of this movie. Annnnd that's where we will stop, I hate it too but until the week that No Time To Die premieres this is the end for the James Bond reviews and really the Daniel Craig films are a reboot anyway so it works that way as well. It was a real blast to go through all of them and finally talk about a series that I've been watching just as long as Star Wars or any Jim Carrey movie so I hope you've enjoyed it. I shall attempt to get something out before the month is over and I'm giving myself a personal Christmas gift this f***tacular year, and I'm not reviewing a damn thing in December that has anything to do with cheer, joy, or good will toward men. There will only be dark music in my domain.

The World Is Not Enough

Better than the last?

Eh, it's kind of a toss up. Tomorrow Never Dies is just a bit of action entertainment to watch on a lazy afternoon this one is more standard Bond fare. It's very well done and story wise is the best of the Brosnan era, with Bond protecting an oil tycoon's daughter after he is murdered by a rogue criminal only to slowly fall for the woman and hunt down her father's killer. I would say this is Brosnan's best performance, mainly because he has more material to work with and can occasionally prod more emotional levels while still having his classic Bond persona present. Sophie Marceau is great as Elektra King, sort of a combo of Tracey and Tania with a dash of Fiona Vulpe, she is lovely in this movie and has a big impact on the series' standards. Robert Carlyle makes for an interesting villain as Renard if only because of his relationship with Elektra and I do quite like the whole backstory that he got shot in the head but didn't die and the bullet is killing off all his senses slowly while making him stronger, that's kinda cool. I may get some good grief over this but I don't hate Denise Richards as Christmas Jones, yeah it's silly to think she could be a nuclear physicist and her line delivery isn't always top notch but I've seen worse in this series and she's barely in the movie until past the halfway mark. She never annoyed me or made me roll my eyes, she was just there so I never took great issue with her. I quite like how M has a more prominent role in this and actually gets dragged into the danger, it helps up the stakes and get you more invested near the end. The action is more lax this time around though that pre-title sequence is great, but it's really not that kind of Bond film and it's more about Bond and Renard's relationship with Elektra which is handled very well. It's never dull and I guess I do enjoy it more than the last movie. I'd give it a solid 8/10 this time around. I somehow doubt the next movie will do as well, if good at all but we shall wait and see as I review the movie that put the Bond franchise on hold for many years, Die Another Day.

Tomorrow Never Dies

Another fine addition.

I think I liked Tomorrow Never Dies more than the next movie, not that I hated The World Is Not Enough by any means but when I was younger this or Goldeneye were always my first picks if I wanted to watch a Bond movie. It certainly had enough action to entertain me for two hours, and I really like the characters and plot too. Bond is quickly assigned a mission to investigate a sunken british ship and soon connects it to a media mogul intent on starting World War 3 between China and Britain which he would capitalize on with his media group. Certainly a very different type of Bond villain, more Rupert Murdoch if anything but still quite a lot of fun to watch, in no short part due to Jonathan Pryce's wonderful performance. We add yet another favorite Bond girl with Wai Len played by Michelle Yeoh, who is all sorts of badass and awesome in this movie and makes a great ally for Bond. Pierce Brosnan does fine work yet again but honestly he kind of already cemented his Bond in the first movie. Really every actor whether main player or side bit is awesome, with particular favorites going to Dr. Kaufman played by Vincent Shiavelli who is just so funny to me but you can still treat him very seriously, and Admiral Roebuck played by Geoffrey Palmer and the only reason I loved seeing him is because he was in one of the best BBC series created ever, As Time Goes By starring right alongside with Judi Dench and I just had my little fan moment with them on screen again and I can safely say I was beyond devastated hearing of his passing. The action is still very high like in the last one while still having time for story and character moments, it's so far been a perfect balance act between the two with the pre-title sequence and the newspaper building pursuit easily being my favorite action scenes though the climax is pretty good as well and the car chase tops them all in this movie. It's very well made despite the reported madhouse of production after the unfortunate death of Cubby Broccoli and MGM pushing hard for the next Bond movie to come out, the product is still high quality and while releasing in close proximity of Titanic did very well. It's another high ranking movie for me, and I'd give it a solid 7.5/10, another 3 star picture. Next time the last Bond movie before the new millenium began.

Goldeneye

My first James Bond film.

Am I going to be biased? Yep! I can't help it, I have such fond memories of this movie and even arguably more so with the game, but this is a mighty fine entry in the Bond series and is loved by countless individuals. After the 6 year hiatus, we got a big overhaul with an all new cast, producers, director, and the end of the Cold War made a huge impact to say the least. Pierce Brosnan was already familiar to a spy role in the hit television series Remington Steele, and is my personal favorite Bond but his performance is just the right blend between sly quips, espionage, and action. Izabella Scorupco is one of my favorite Bond girls as Natalya Simonova, and could be the best match with Bond for this era. Sean Bean is one of the best Bond villains, having a more strong connection between Bond and easily has one of the best scenes in the whole flippin' series. Hell all the villains are god tier henchmen in this movie, each with a colorful and fun personality. Gottfried John is more the straight man to the more crazy henchmen but has a great screen prescence, Famke Jannsen is...Jesus I cannot believe I got away watching her in this movie when I was a kid but she does look like she's having the time of her life playing Xenia, and Alan Cumming is always awesome and is probably my favorite of them all. Even the MI6 regulars got switched up, mainly with M being played by Dame Judi Dench, and yes she was my M so it will be endlessly great to see her in more movies to come, Samantha Bond is wonderful as Miss Moneypenny but I can't decide if I like her or Lois Maxwell more just yet, thankfully Q is still the same and in my opinion is at his absolute best in this era. It's a wonderful, even glorious roll call of actors. It's way more the action movie this time around but when am I ever gonna complain about that? From the pre-title sequence to the end credits, the action is incredibly executed and keeps the pacing of the film perfect. But what's the story? Well Bond is brought in to investigate the use of a Soviet satellite known as Goldeneye by a criminal organization and must stop it before it is put to use against London. The film really takes advantage of the post Cold War climate and fully brings the series into the modern age, with great settings in Russia and well crafted sets throughout. This is an amazing Bond film and is the contender for the best Bond film ever once I get to my list making, every aspect of the production is great, the story is fun and interesting, the cast is a dream, and I am very nostalgic for this movie. I'm such a geek I busted out my VHS tapes for Goldeneye, Tomorrow Never Dies, and The World Is Not Enough which were the only Bond movies I saw or owned for quite a good few years before I saw Connery or Moore's films, so I'm incredibly biased towards this era but honestly I've taken grievance with "official" Bond movie rankings and no doubt mine will be viewed in a similar light but it's my reviews and opinions, and I fully respect a difference of opinion. Nevertheless 4 stars, 10/10, I am such a fanboy for this movie and am proud of it! Join me next time for Tomorrow Never Dies.