It's cool to like James Bond. After all James Bond is the quintessential cool. Unlike most things that are cool (cars, football etc.) I actually like James Bond. The aesthetics of his cars, guns, and woman are the obvious box tickers from the 'Things to Like as a Man' book that every father metaphorically hands his son around the time of his fifth birthday but it is Bond's understated attributes that appeal to the genuine psyche. By this I mean the wry smiles, posture, and unforgettable one liners, all the things that us Bond idolisers can do without the help of MI6. Albeit, being able to do something and being able to something in the way Bond effortlessly does, are completely different things. I've been working on a wry smile for years and I just look like a Scottish Prime Minister whose underwear's a little too tight.
But what exactly is it that makes Bond cool? Daniel Craig gives no help in answering this as that guy is a genuinely cool guy. In his interviews I just see Bond taking some time out from shooting and shagging to have a chat with that fat Brummie from Big Brother 3 and Craig's demeanour doesn't offer anything to suggest otherwise. But not all Bonds have been cool, just look at Pierce Brosnan. Not that I have anything against Brosnan, I think he was a great Bond and, as I grew up with him, he is consistently cast in the role of my sub-conscious Bond. But look at him now 'singing' Abba songs and prancing around to family favourites, hardly a double 0 thing to do, is it? Maybe it is credit to Brosnan's acting skills to be able to pull off Bond's cool or perhaps it is the unexplainable Bond factor.
Quantum of Solace really cements Craig as a great Bond as he continues to make himself the sub-conscious Bond of today's youngest generation. The film felt extremely short and lacked a storyline that had any real movement or progression. This was partly the result of the tightly-packed action scenes that allowed for very few non-gimmick story setting moments. That considered, the film was still completely brilliant and the probable reason for it seeming so short is that it completely captured my attention meaning I never had time to consider my discomfort or lack of popcorn. Some of the action scenes - in particular the opening car chase - were ambiguously cut together so that characters' movement from A to B were irritatingly unexplained.
Quantum of Solace is a great film that acceptably rides the crest of the Bond wave rather than creating one of its own and James Bond himself continues to raise the bar of cool.
