Must-Watch Film | Skyfall

A surprise for all, when Skyfall was announced, with an actual villain, or at the very least, a villain worth taking note of. The James Bond series isn't exactly well known for its great villains (bad guys), making this one, immediately emerging for audiences, as the villain, Silva (played by Javier Bardem- well-known for his role starring in "No Country for Old Men", as the creepy hitman) was actually entertaining, with all the elements which make a great villain.

Silva, the perfect Bond villain. Let me elaborate for you. Silva is a world class villain with ability to do as he wants, when he wants; the villain look (that's right, the look!); the creepy smile; the well-organised and trained henchman; ability to kick-ass; a past, surprising enough to make it exciting and enthralling for audiences, and not to mention a whole other bunch of great things.

This is the film to rival any action-packed, adventure film out at the moment, baring in mind, it is now 2 years since the release of "Skyfall". A fair few years ago now, back in 2006, we came face-to-face with the best Bond/super-spy we have ever encountered in a film before, covering the imminent need for an action-hero. Then, in 2012, we saw for the very first time, the perfect villain to face-off with the ultimate Bond (played by Daniel Craig).

The title is a little confusing from the offset, but my first impression was, "what a cool Bond title", since its been a while since we've seen a title which didn't sound cheesy, or a little pointless. Since this review contains zero spoilers, as to keep you all blissfully unaware of the great storyline which you'll be faced with when watching "Skyfall", if you haven't seen it already. But the title all makes sense when you head through the duration of the film, so no worries.

As you've seen previously in Bond films, to be specific, "Casino Royale" and "Quantum of Solace", there is a cool, well thought out opening to the film which really sets the film up nicely and by this, I mean the scene with the opening song playing, along with visual aid, being animation of Bond shooting, playing cards floating on the screen and bullets flying across the screen aimlessly etc. Although, we have come to expect this in Bond films.

The contemporary audience member is going to love this Bond film, with little negotiation over its play-time, since the film could never be long enough, so don't worry about the film being too long, since this Bond film could never be too long, in my opinion.

Traditional Bond fans, who are more used to the oldies and far less of the modern takes on the series, may be a little disappointed, but then again, that would beg the question, "what is wrong with these people?"

Why?

The why answers itself, almost instantaneously once tuning into "Skyfall", as the action is plentiful, the chaos is never ending, the villain is psychopathic, actors are well-suited to their roles, the scenes in Britain are brilliant and most importantly the series has redeemed itself after the disappointment, named "Quantum of Solace".

To appreciate Skyfall, truthfully, you may need to watch it twice, as I always see the film differently, every single time I see it. In total, now, I have seen "Skyfall" 5 times, which I find to be a fair few times, considering its more than 2 hours long and feels intense to watch, in an action-adrenaline kind of way. Although, I will say it always feels like such a brilliant film, every time.

No more silly, unrealistic gadgets being used by Bond, as now it is all about realism in the Bond series, so those who remember the Bond invisible car, laser pen days may be surprised to see this new change, and in some ways, disappointed, but I assure you, its for the best.

Today's audience wants the best experience possible when going to the cinema theatres, so Hollywood has adapted to this very audience. Since, if a production company wants their films to sell, getting the flocks of people into the cinemas to watch their films, its in their best interest to create the more realistic, shocking films.

The James Bond series is no exception to this change, resulting in their adaptation also, which we got a major glimpse of back in 2006, when Daniel Craig stepped into James Bonds suit for the first time. Sorry, fans of the old James Bond films, as things have certainly changed and they aren't going back.

The film hits every note perfectly, not only bringing in the best villain, who has a brain we can all feel intrigued by, but also a whole new set of characters which are fitting the bill for this ultimate Bond film.

This is not only the best Bond film so far (in my opinion), but also the highest grossing Bond film, pulling in a whopping billion dollars at the box office, certainly something to brag about, plus this reassured the comeback after the previous disaster in "Quantum of Solace", nearly causing a loss of Bond fans.

Action films today, mostly feel half-hearted in their efforts, feeling as though they either have a whole lot of action, but no story to bring it home, or a great story, but a serious lack of action which is generally the point of an action film in the first place.

Then, in 2012, action films saw their masterpiece awaken, bringing back action films from the dead, where they have been asleep for some time since. The Bond series has breathed new life with Skyfall, as everything from the title, down to the very settings where the scenes were filmed were near-perfect. Finally, we have been given something actually worth the ticket money we paid to go see the film in cinemas.

The storyline for "Skyfall" felt like there was real substance to it, revealing truths behind Bond's past, as well as a couple of other characters as well, offering more to an otherwise great action film, rather than the brilliant (step above great) film we all now know and love (for those who've seen it).

It was a pleasant surprise to see Bond actually chase the villain and at times, be chased himself, rather than typically spending a silly amount of time enthralled in pointless one night encounters with strange, supermodel-looking woman. Great, but we're here to see Bond take down the villain threatening the security of her majesty's great kingdom (aka Great Britain).

The director, Sam Mendes, had the Bond vision which the series clearly required, so thankfully he's the one who undertook the greatest task any film director has received, reviving the Bond series before it hit complete meltdown.

From start-to-finish, its the one Bond film which will leave you screaming for more, without thinking of the things they could do wrong next.

What do you mean? Daniel Craig has been the official face for Bind since "Casino Royale" in 2006.

Yes, that's true, but Daniel Craig has finally partaken in a brilliant Bond film, which makes all the others look weak in comparison. Not that the other two previous Bond films starring Daniel Craig were bad, but they are not in any way comparable to "Skyfall", raising the bar extremely high, making the next Bond release, one with high expectations from audience members who've seen "Skyfall".

No fear all, as Daniel Craig is still due to star in a further two Bond films, so we are still in for a surprise, good or bad, in the upcoming Bond films. But one things for certain, "Skyfall" has got everyone talking about the Bond series and the next upcoming release, "Bond 24", which is due for release in 2015.

To watch Skyfall, is to watch the best Bond film ever produced in Hollywood (or anywhere, for that matter).

Skyfall Rating- 9.4/10

Skyfall, the first in the must-watch series, having certainly packed-a-punch after having seen the film myself for the first time, as well as being one of the most memorable films I know of, which I now class as being the best Bond film ever created (in my opinion).

Do you agree that "Skyfall" is the best Bond film ever created?... Leave your answer in the comments box below.

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Your friendly movie, games writer: Craig Easom