Finn

Haven't seen this one in about 5 years but really just so fantastic. Not going to act like I've seen any Bond films pre-Craig, but this stands shoulders above the other entries since (all of which I still love). One of the all time great action movies and just so slick, so fun, so cool. Probably my favourite Bond intro song. Nothing like getting the greatest vocalist ever to sing your theme, so catchy aswell. I do think it's pretty funny that Casino Royale introduces us to a fresh-faced, bold Bond, Quantum of Solace takes place less than an hour later, then the subsequent 3 films are all about how old and tired Bond is and how he literally cannot wait to retire. Forgot how great some of these action set pieces were. The cranes, the airport, the stairwells - more understated than say a mission impossible but still not taking themselves too seriously. Executed very well, Bond never seems superhuman and indeed gets slightly fucked up in every fight but still clearly capable. Really great casting here, really set the tone for the rest of the era. Craig is so so good, absolutely perfect. So suave, effortlessly (seemingly) cool. Eva Green. Jeffrey Wright, Judi Dench, all excellent. Mads Mikkelsen still the best villain of the Craig era, which isn't a small feat considering the calibre of actors. Vesper is such a great character. I think she still falls into the damsel in distress trope a bit but this is Bond. Their chemistry together is super, the way she is able to go toe to toe with Bond at various stages is really well done. I do think she becomes a bit less interesting, a bit dulled down after they leave Montenegro. But maybe it's just the brief transportation into fantasy, into a world where they can live happily ever after, drifting from sunny beach to sunny beach. Or maybe it's Vesper herself layering illusions onto Bond that he's unable to see, lowering his guard. There's definitely elements to her character I've missed. And obviously so well played, not to mention absolutely stunning. Casino Royale takes a really deep dive into who this persona of Bond actually is, how it came to be. Who we see at the start of the film is the closest Bond ever comes to his true self, or at least to who he once was. Arrogant, rash, naïve to a degree. He's quite trusting, often seen as a good trait in the real world but disastrous as a spy. He trusts Vesper, Mathis, even Le Chiffre's tell. He assumes he has control, assumes he is one step ahead. It takes the events of this film to turn his ideas on their head. Vesper and Mathis' betrayals build his walls higher than ever, his continuous loss of control brings his ego down substantially. But even at the end, Bond is still Bond, still utterly at odds with how MI6 want a double-0 agent to behave. Still arrogant, still rash, but dulled slightly and harnessed into weapons to be used alongside his individuality. What a really great start to the era, pity it never got to this level again but this will always be here. Infinitely rewatchable.

My god, what an ending. The comedy to horror pipeline is incredibly real, never in a million years did I think I'd see Curry Barker of all people make such an amazing film. Inde Navarratte is phenomenal, I'm not entirely sure how she does that with her face. Imagine using your one magical wish to become a rapist. Different level of fucked up honestly. The implication aswell that Nikki also had feelings for him, *pre-wish *is incredibly disturbing. Bear's fatal flaw, his insecurity, stopped him from seeing what she might have felt, what Sarah definitely felt, and then it kept him holding onto a make believe relationship with Wish Nikki until it was far too late. I think something in me finds the elimination of choice and free will particularly terrifying, to imagine watching through your own eyes as your body acts against your will. It's not really clear how much Nikki actually was conscious of, but either way what a horrifying existence. The brief flashes of the Real Nikki are maybe the scariest part. Right up until that scene in the car with Sarah anyways. Not a big fan of jumpscares usually but they are quite mild here, the tension usually is building up to a point in each scene and the scare itself well telegraphed. The sweeps of music, the framing... it was easy to tell when they were coming and hence never overpowered the scenes. Really looking forward to see what Curry Barker comes up with next, such an intruiging concept and executed so well and richly.

What is there to say, that hasn't been said a hundred times a day for the last 70 years? Saying "The greatest screenplay of all time" doesn't really do it justice. It's become somewhat of a basic take to sing the praises of 12 Angry Men, but theres not that much else to talk about. The characterisation of all twelve jurors, from the first shot to the last, is absolutely phenomenal. To do so much, with so little space, is remarkable. In the first 10 minutes you know exactly who each juror is, how they will react to certain revelations and events. Some fantastic scenes in here aswell, ones that will stay with me for a long time. The knife, the shunning of Juror #10... well, every scene is just perfect really. Henry Fonda is utterly superb, Juror #3 too. There really isn't too much to add. Just a brilliant, brilliant film.

Would that itwerr so simple I really don't love these vignette-style films with a bunch of loose threads that never really join together (Similarly disliked Buster Scruggs). I also generally don't like films set in the Golden Age of Hollywood. I feel like the focus often gets pulled to the setting, a director's "love letter" or "tribute", even satirical, instead of focusing on making a coherent film. Hail Caesar is half baked. It's the definition of flash over substance. It has it's moments - every Clooney scene is great, he was born for Coen films. Channing Tatums dance number, Alden Ehrenreich, Josh Brolin in the confessionals (although somehow not his funniest confession scenes). But these storylines don't belong in the same movie without a real connection. Josh Brolin's character is maybe the least interesting protagonist to appear in a Coen film. In fact, the colourful, realised characters who typically inhabit their films seem somewhat dull. I think maybe the focus on this huge ensemble of A listers and cameos detracts from the quality of each individual character. It's also lacking a certain charm that their more comedic films usually posess. In Fargo, in Lleweyn Davis, in True Grit, it almost feels like an adaptation of a fairytale, of something in a Brothers Grimm story. I don't really know how to describe it so I won't really try. But in their other films there is an element that simply isn't present in Hail Caesar. Oh well. Even the worst Coen film is still, at the very least, an undeniably fun watch.