Filed under: Etc., Ford, Lifestyle, Celebrities
Autoblog goes to the movies: No solace in this quantum
After Daniel Craig's triumphant return as James Bond in Casino Royale, my family and I were really looking forward to seeing his sophomore effort in Quantum of Solace. We were among the guests at a Ford preview screening of the new Bond flick last night, and after we walked past the gorgeous Aston Martin DBS placed in the lobby (talk about product placement), the movie got off to a promising start. The opening chase sequence with Bond's DBS being pursued by a crew of Alfa Romeo 159s was classic 007. In fact, the first third of the movie was actually quite promising. Unfortunately, my wife, who is a film buff, noticed something during the opening credits that is usually a bad omen: three different screenwriters. That's typically a sign that other writers had to be brought in to fix the original script. In this case there were a number of plot elements that seemed to pop up and then be forgotten, while others seemed to appear with no explanation. It's almost as though the three writers were each assigned one act to write and not allowed to read the work of the other two. Given that Ford hosted this screening, it should come as no surprise that Ford vehicles figured prominently. Fortunately, having multiple brands in the family allows for some extra variety in the movie vehicle fleet. While the Ford Edge dominated after the opening, Volvos, Range Rovers, and Jaguars also appeared. Now that Aston Martin, Land Rover and Jaguar have been divested, it seems unlikely that Ford will be a part of the next Bond Film. What about the stuff besides the cars? Read on after the jump.
Gallery: Quantum of Solace
Evidently the Ka and the multiple Edge CUVs were hydrogen-fueled, as evidenced by the hydrogen stickers on their hoods and the characteristic electric motor and fuel cell compressor whine that was dubbed in. Apparently, the antagonist, one Domenic Greene (green, get it?) was involved in some kind of alternative energy project. Unfortunately, the director/editor/writers never really explain any of this, leaving his history as one of those hanging threads.
One of the things my wife liked about Casino Royale was the decent character development and absence of the misogyny that has traditionally been a part of Bond movies. That change was short lived. Gratuitous violence against women figures all too prominently in this episode. At the same time, my wife was also disappointed in the lack of visible skin from Daniel Craig who showed off his assets to such good effect in the last film.
Overall though, the biggest sin committed by the creators of this film was that it was boring. A great cast featuring Craig, Judi Dench and Jeffrey Wright was simply wasted in this messy effort. Quantum of Solace proves once again that a great trailer is something completely different from a great movie. If you do insist on seeing Quantum of Solace, I won't ruin the ending for you by explaining what I think the title means.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Adam H. 10:48AM (11/13/2008)
and i quote from Darth Vader from the prequel-sequel mess...
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!"
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Flashpoint 1:16PM (11/13/2008)
Craig has already stated that:
"the quantum of solace" is the moment when you realize that you can never love again.
As for the movie, I'm going to go see it based on my love of Casino Royale and I'll judge for myself.
The Joker 10:58AM (11/13/2008)
Thanks, you just saved me about $18 (tickets for me and my fiance).
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nmd 11:05AM (11/13/2008)
Uh,
Why would you give away details on the movie before anyone has really seen it on the front page? Kinda like giving away bits of info on the race before anyone has seen it. At least put up some sort of spoiler alert before anyone clicks the link.
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The Joker 11:17AM (11/13/2008)
Uhh, everything he said (which appeared on the front page) can be seen in the trailers for the movie.
Librapaj 11:07AM (11/13/2008)
Thanks for your insight, but I usually tend to completely disregard other people's opinions on movies.
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rsfourever 11:10AM (11/13/2008)
lol! +1
mike 11:35AM (11/13/2008)
FWIW, Casino Royale also had 3 screenwriters - the exact same 3 guys.
Librapaj 11:11AM (11/13/2008)
Not to mention, if I was going to actually consider someone's opinion on a movie, it wouldn't be on a car blog.
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geo.stewart 2:28PM (11/13/2008)
nobody complains about Alex's blogs on KR, stating this isnt tv.com or adcritic.com.
give them a break. Yeah, this is kind of a stretch but maybe they are testing the waters.
and hey, we all expect bond flicks to heavily involve awesome cars and car chases.
and we should not criticize his critique until we see the movie...maybe it is bad
Librapaj 2:33PM (11/13/2008)
Umm, thanks for the insight but that was not the point I was trying to make. This site is called AUTOBLOG not MOVIEBLOG. I do not come here for movie reviews. I come here for automotive news. I would have expected a review on the autos used in the movie. I don't expect to read his opinion on whether or not the script was any good.Whether he is right or not is irrelevant. Not to mention that the other point you missed is that I like to make my own opinions on movies and never listen to what someone else has to say about a flick.
Bungle 3:40PM (11/13/2008)
Librapaj, just come clean already, your favorite movie of all time is "How the West Was Fun."
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110068/
You're just sore because all of the critics gave it bad reviews, but you thought it was the bee's knees.
Librapaj 3:41PM (11/13/2008)
the fact that you know that movie even existed is creepy, not to mention it borders on pedophilia.
Bungle 3:51PM (11/13/2008)
Nah, I only came across it because Costco was selling it in a twin-pack with "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre." Same screenwriter, I guess.
Librapaj 3:55PM (11/13/2008)
Bungle,
Are you really Ebert in disguise you sly fox you.
Dave 11:14AM (11/13/2008)
More importantly, did you see the Transformers 2: Return of the Fallen preview?!?!?!?!!?!?!
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Librapaj 11:15AM (11/13/2008)
You Sir, have asked the million question.
Shipey 11:33AM (11/13/2008)
Don't forget JJ's Star Trek!
(Though I'm more interested in RoTF, myself.)
Dave 11:17AM (11/13/2008)
Errr, i mean Revenge of the Fallen?? lol
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Bungle 11:36AM (11/13/2008)
Are there boobs and a shaky camera? Apparently that can substitute for a plot these days.
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