Why So Blu?

Skyfall (Blu-ray Review)

James Bond returns in this 23^rd entry in a series that is now celebrating its 50^th anniversary.  The enduring character has gone through a lot, from secret volcano lairs, to undersea hideouts, to up into outer space.  Since Daniel Craig has taken on the role of Bond, the character has since become grounded in a somewhat more plausible reality than some of the more outlandish entries (very similar to Dalton’s days, actually).  Unfortunately, following the superb Casino Royale, my hopes were incredibly dashed by Quantum of Solace, which I considered the biggest disappointment of 2008 and one of the lesser entries in the Bond series as a whole.  Moving up to present day, it was my great pleasure to not only have my anticipation for Skyfall reignited by the fact that it looked to be great, but to now have seen the film and acknowledge it as a wonderfully entertaining, strongly acted, and beautiful-looking entry in the series.  Now the film is available on Blu-ray, and continues to look great.  Read on to find out what is also great about this Blu-ray.

Film: 

Skyfall kicks into high gear quickly, as the opening sequence, set in Istanbul (not Constantinople), finds Agent 007 (Daniel Craig) chasing an assassin who has stolen a hard drive containing all the names of undercover NATO agents in terrorist organizations.  Unfortunately, Bond is accidentally shot, taking a big fall, which allows the assassin to get away (spoilers, James Bond does return).  As M (Judi Dench) deals with the supposed death of her top agent, things get much worse, as MI6 is attacked and is forced to move to a more secure location.  Bond returns, in a wounded state (in more ways than one), and is assigned to finding out who is responsible.  This leads to Bond traveling to various locations such as Shanghai, Macau, and Scotland, as he faces off against a cyberterrorist, Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem), who has revenge on his mind and shares a connection with his fellow double-0.  Vodka martini-shaken madness ensues.

The film also features a supporting cast that includes Ralph Fiennes as Gareth Mallory, the Chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee, who wants to help M.  The new Quartermaster (Q, played by Ben Whishaw) is established as well, providing Bond with a couple neat toys.  Naomie Harris costars as Eve, a field agent, who may be better suited to staying in the office.  Berenice Marlohe enters as another glamorous Bond girl, who has a connection to Silva as well and is scared to death of him.  And lastly, Albert Finney shows up as Kincade, who has a past relationship to Bond.  It is a great cast for a super-sized film, which firmly cements itself as a grand entry into the series.

Something I noticed throughout this Bond film is that Sam Mendes clearly seems to be having a great time directing it.  I do not want to keep harkening back to why ‘Quantum’ was a big miss for me, but that film feels more like a mix of Marc Forster putting together the more low-key scenes, while he let his production team handle the more exotic and action-y aspects.  As a result, it feels kind of impersonal.  Mendes, on the other hand, seems to have his hands all over this film.  Regardless of the work done by first and second unit directors, the editors involved, and Roger Deakins as cinematographer, this feels like a film where everyone was on the same page and it was all put together by people who are fans of Bond movies.  Much like Martin Campbell with Casino Royale, Mendes directs the hell out of this movie and makes sure all the money is on screen in terms of its budget.

To speak a little more about the Oscar-nominated cinematography, Skyfall is flat-out beautiful to look at.  This movie could be shorter if it did not want to linger so much on a lot of the locations that Bond visits, but it really did not bother me, as the film is so visually full of life.  Deakin’s work on making an intense, cinematic feature pays off in spades, as he gets those great shots of the environment and also creates distinct tones for the various settings of this film.  A fantastic-looking sequence taking place in Shanghai is just one of the highlights.  And, as this is a good place to mention the beauty of the filmmaking, I really enjoyed Thomas Newman’s Oscar-nominated score for the film and how it worked with the tone of the feature, as well as the way it incorporated Adele’s wonderful Bond theme, which did manage to win the film an Oscar (the first time for a Bond film).

Getting to the more Bond-related side of things, Skyfall is basically the most recent version of a classic Bond story.  While some of the stakes skew on the personal side this time around, the film does like almost every other film in the franchise and incorporates elements from previous films in the series, while utilizing elements of what works in the action films it is up against.  Mendes has stated that The Dark Knight was the biggest influence and that very much shows here.  None of this is much of a mark against the film, however, as it simply goes about being the Bond film it is by incorporating these various elements, which makes it very successful in doing so.  It is because I saw elements of GoldenEye, The World Is Not Enough, and even You Only Live Twice, among others, that I was happy to go along with it, as opposed to seeing another entry that tried hard to be nothing like its predecessors.

That’s the other thing.  I was really happy to be watching a Bond movie that felt like a Bond movie.  The film has a fairly serious tone held throughout, but it does have the moments of whimsy that make it highly enjoyable to watch.  Bond gets to have his little quips, flirt with the female characters, interact with Q, and goes about his mission in a generally suave way that can only be described as doing things “Bond style”.  It is something I was missing in Craig’s first couple entries, but this film is now showing me the James Bond I want to see on screen.

Regarding Craig, he is very good in this film and comfortable in the shoes of Bond.  His issues may be a little more simple (he got shot and is basically just feeling shaken up about it), but he is still embodying the role with a three-dimensional personality that makes you aware that there is more going on with him.  Judi Dench is certainly worth noting, as she gets a ton to do in this film, with a greatly expanded role for M this time around.  The relationship between her and Craig has been a highlight for this era of Bond and Skyfall does not disappoint.  The last person to mention is Javier Bardem, who is clearly having a blast playing a Bond villain.  He is certainly not trying to outdo his own turn as Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men, one of the best film villains of recent years, if not ever, but his fairly flamboyant presence is certainly a great counter-balance to Bond.

Only a few things held this back from being an all-time favorite Bond film for me and they mainly had to do with the series trying to establish purpose, which felt fairly unnecessary.  There seems to be an agenda, addressed from M’s point of view, where the series needs to justify its existence, when I really did not see why, let alone have already seen it in the past (explained by Judi Dench in GoldenEye) no less.  There was also the general simplicity of the story (Silva wants revenge, Bond was injured, M makes sad face), which did not necessarily lend itself to the entire 2 hour and 23 minute running time.  I was also a little hesitant about having the film be so pandering to fans in regards to some certain elements introduced in the film (though there was one pleasing thing that came from all of this).  Still, these are all just little things that slightly took away.

Getting back to the grand scheme of things, the last thing I want to touch on is the action and its sizable scale.  The action in this movie is great fun to watch and while I am happier with Daniel Craig’s scrappier fights, an all-out car/motorcycle/tractor/train chase is pretty amazing to watch.  Again, this film goes for embracing the spirit of a Bond movie and it is better for it.

I am a James Bond fan.  Everyone has their favorites and least favorites (Connery is my boy, but I support Roger Moore more than most, as well), but when a new Bond film comes around, it always feels like an event for me.  Having revisited the vast majority of the film series, before initially seeing Skyfall, it certainly feels like a special time when I get the chance to watch the latest entry in this franchise.  When Casino Royale came out, I was incredibly satisfied.  That film may be more of a film about how Bond became Bond, rather than a true ‘Bond film’, if you get my meaning, but it has a glorious sense of scope that makes it incredibly entertaining to watch.  Quantum of Solace was a step back, feeling more like a Bourne wannabe than an actual James Bond adventure.  Skyfall is a wonderful return to form.  It is a great piece of entertainment that is made strong by the high level of skill involved behind the camera and seen on camera.  James Bond is back and Craig delivers on playing the character with plenty of cool.

Video: 

It is not too surprising that this film’s video quality is absolutely fantastic.  Given that the James Bond franchise is so seemingly important to the studio, the work done to properly transfer this film onto Blu-ray is out of the park good.  I have already spoken about how wonderful the film looks, given its great use of locations, lighting, camera placement, etc., but this Blu-ray really gives you a chance to just pause the film and look at the detail.  The 1080p AVC-encoded transfer is flawless.  Deakins use of digital photography, instead of film, is practically negligible because of how wonderful this film looks all around.  The different color schemes we see throughout, the textures, the clarity, the black levels during the darkened scenes (including the fiery climax) all come off brilliantly.  Skyfall is one of those discs you show off to friends, as an example of great Blu-ray picture quality.

Audio: 

Speaking of amazing Blu-ray quality, the audio track for this film is just as wonderful.  The lossless DTS HD 5.1 Master Audio track is stellar.  This is a Bond film and it goes for broke on its scope.  The film was nominated for Best Sound Mixing and Best Sound Editing for a reason, as the film has so much going on throughout.  Explosions, gunfire, car chases, the score, the opening song, all of this plays a huge part in delivering the ultimate action/adventure experience and it all comes out great.  The dialogue is also key of course, but even that is as clear as it needs to be, while all ambient sounds register just as clear as well.  Bond is truly a blast on Blu-ray.

Extras: 

Some minor issues prevent me from scoring the extras section higher, but the fact that we get two commentary tracks almost makes up for it.  For a film like this, I am just glad that we were not left in the lurch, wishing for more extras.

Features Include:

Commentary by Director Sam Mendes – This is a very entertaining commentary track, as Mendes seems to really care about delivering a lot of details about the film.  It is also very scene-specific, as it is rare he does not describe something that is not involving what’s happening within the frame, but he does so in a way that is very informative.  A great listen for fans of the film.

Commentary by Producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson and Production Designer Dennis Gassner – Not quite as interesting as Mendes track, but a decent listen nonetheless for fans that still want to learn more about the film.

Shooting Bond – This is an hour’s worth of behind-the-scenes, which can either be viewed in parts or watch as a whole.  It is quite good at revealing lots of how the film was put together, but my only complaint is that it feels like a lot of these segments seem to be shortened, instead of revealing even more about the making-of the film.  It is easy to watch all of these segments, sure, but I feel like there could have been more to see.

Skyfall Premiere – Footage from the world premiere of the film, with interviews from members of the cast.  It only lasts about 5 minutes though.

Soundtrack Promotional Spot

Theatrical Trailer

Previews

DVD Copy of the Film

Ultraviolet Copy of the Film

Summary: 

I really enjoyed Skyfall. I would not say it’s the best Bond film ever, but it is certainly a fantastic action film that really delivers in a lot of ways, including the most important one, which is that it feels like a true Bond film.  It helps that the Blu-ray presentation is absolutely fantastic as well.  The video and audio are perfect examples of what Blu-ray is capable of delivering.  The extras also manage to bring to light a lot of what went into the making of this film.  I am really excited to see where Daniel Craig goes on his next mission as 007, but until that time, I will continue to enjoy the beauty that is Skyfall on Blu.

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Additionally, you can now enter the Skyfall Lodge and access behind the scenes videos, stills and more here:  http://www.skyfalllodge.com/

Aaron is a writer/reviewer for WhySoBlu.com.  Follow him on Twitter @AaronsPS3.
He also co-hosts a podcast, Out Now with Aaron and Abe, available via iTunes or at HHWLOD.com.