‘Spectre’ Reviews Are In — How Does Daniel Craig’s Possibly Last James Bond Film Measure Up?

The reviews are in for Daniel Craig’s latest James Bond film, Spectre, and so far the movie appears to fall just shy of expectations. This is due to the fact that Craig’s previous Bond movie, Skyfall, was met with success and because the latest film seems to have a crisis of identity, relying too heavily on past films instead of blazing new trails for the franchise.

Spectre begins shortly after the events at the end of Skyfall, with Bond chasing down his biggest nemesis yet. At the same time, MI6 attempts to hold the 007 project together after new technology threatens the future of the program.

Although the storyline seems to harken back to classic Bond films, it is actually detrimental to the movie because it doesn’t allow the film to venture into new territory. In fact, as the Daily Beast points out, the movie incorporates too many older Bond references in an attempt to connect the past four Bond films together into one cohesive storyline.

Although this nostalgic approach might appeal to many fans of the franchise, the movie’s retirement vibe leaves the film with fewer surprises and twists than are expected in a spy thriller. According to the New York Times, this leaves Spectre with a story that is very predictable.

That being said, Craig, who will likely end his time playing the iconic spy with this film, managed to pull off all the intense actions scenes will relative ease. In fact, true to form, Craig remained dedicated to his version of Bond, complete with all the brooding and hard punches we’ve come to expect from the actor. Although some may not like this humanity-driven portrayal of Bond, it is something that has helped infuse some new life into the old franchise, not to mention it translates well with action scenes.

Although Craig’s portrayal of Bond has been a hit with fans, his relationship with the studio behind the movies has made the actor not want to move forward with his last contracted Bond film.

In fact, he told Time Out London, “I was contracted to do another one. That was all set up. But at the studio there was a real keenness to get it done as soon as possible. In fact, there was a conversation at one point that went: ‘Let’s film two movies back to back.’ I just went: ‘You’re out of your f—— minds.’ In the nicest possible way.”

He was then asked if he was interested in ever playing James Bond again.

“Now? I’d rather break this glass and slash my wrists. No, not at the moment. Not at all. That’s fine. I’m over it at the moment. We’re done. All I want to do is move on.”

At the same, Fox News pointed out that fans should be satisfied with the all of the big-name actors featured in the movie, which is a testament of how well Sam Mendes can sell a movie. Along with Craig, the film includes the likes of Ralph Fiennes, Naomi Harris, Lea Seydoux, Christoph Waltz, and Ben Whishaw.

Speaking of Waltz, the actor does manage to bring a heightened level of presence to the movie as the main villain, despite only being featured towards the end. That being said, his portrayal of Oberhauser is sometimes conflicting because of Walt’s need to interject some humor into the role while trying to be overly serious. Like the overall tone of the movie, this leads to a somewhat confusing character that seems to contradict himself.

Meanwhile, one aspect of the movie that has generated a good report with reviewers is the opening sequence, which features Bond in a splendid mix of colors, complete with flames and, of course, silhouetted women. However, Sam Smith’s opening number hasn’t been nearly as well received as Adele’s was in Skyfall. Then again, it doesn’t seem as though the two films are on par with each other on any level, let alone the opening sequence.

Even still, the film should enjoy plenty of success at the box office despite the rather ho-hum reviews. In fact, the Wrap is estimating that the film should make around $80 million in its opening week, which bodes well for the franchise that is set for a major transformation in the years to come.

Spectre is currently out in theaters everywhere.

Tell us! Do you think that Spectre is Daniel Craig’s last venture as James Bond? Let us know in the comments below.

[Image via Sony Pictures]