Mike Mc Laughlin

I've been a Bond fan since the late 60's. I will never understand the instinct of the people running this franchise to make some of the recent decisions. Daniel Craig is at best a serviceable Bond. He has done nothing but whine from the git go and treat Bond as if he was angry and at times unstable. Bond is not a character to be examined esoterically - he is a fun escape who takes on the world's most outlandish villains with a twinkle in his eye and crazy gadgets in his car/plane/watch/boat, etc. If these people wanted to make serious films then they should - Bond should not be in films, he is for movies. Entertain me for 2 hours, make me laugh and marvel at the bad puns and crazy situations. I want to see Bond get in a brawl while wearing his suit then slyly straighten his tie as he walks away. Every James Bond should end exactly like Thunderball, The Spy Who Loved Me or Moonraker. Bond is a highly skilled rambling lady killer, not a character to be studied or brooding over lost loves. There are plenty of other characters in this genre. As for this film, it's beautifully shot and the locations are stunning. I could spend a year on how they have destroyed the M, Q and Moneypenny characters. However, it's the same old same old from the Craig era. Weak, weak, weak villain. And now Bond has a child he has to protect? Or does he? I almost walked out when Bond was groveling in front of the villain who is so forgettable I cannot remember his name. And how can you mess up Blofeld? Kristoff Waltz is an actor way too skilled to be in a Bond movie. Give me a campy Goldfinger, or the crazy megalomaniac Draxx or Stromberg, Jaws and Odd Job, Mr Big, Scaramanga, Generals Gogel or Koskov, etc. Outside of Casino Royale which was tolerable (the seemingly 45 minute card game followed by the smashing of the testes derails the whole movie) I would argue QOS, Skyfall and SPECTRE could be the 3 worst Bond films ever made. NTTD is better than those steaming piles but not by much. I know this opinion makes me unpopular with the "Craig's Bond is so gritty and dark and much closer to Fleming's vision" crowd. These are the same folks who probably argue the end of The Sopranos was brilliant. And don't kid yourself, 100% of fans thought their tv or DVR cut the real ending off then had to circle back to how brave and creative a choice that was. Watch the episode of Seinfeld with The English Patient - it's the exact same mindset. This is all written in fun and with a smile but I really wish the next Bond returns to a more fun and campy approach. It's what works.