‘Skyfall’ Review By David E. – A Dude’s Eye View (Spoiler Alert!)
With 25 Bond films now in the books over a period of 50 years, I can honestly say that the direction the famed series is going in these days is a good one. For the most part, I've never really been a die-hard fan of the movies. I have seen every one of them at least twice though (could I really call myself a "movie buff" if I hadn't?) and sadly, the majority of them are not good. Even worse, a handful of them are horribly bad (like Moonraker or The World is Not Enough to name a couple). But when Daniel Craig took the reigns in Casino Royale, he breathed new life into the series.
His next film Quantum of Solace was not as good, but didn't harm the series's new found momentum. With this third installment though, James Bond has retaken his rightful place atop the action adventure spy/thriller genre.
In Skyfall, Bond finds himself not really the center of the story but his boss M (Judi Dench) is featured. As head of MI6 she has had to make any number of tough decisions over the years, which held the lives of her agents in the balance.
During one of Bond's missions to retrieve a stolen encoded list of every British agent undercover, she makes one such decision that results in the mission's failure and Bond's apparent death. While Bond wastes away in Margaritaville, recovering and brooding from his bosses decision, MI6 is attacked and M made to watch, helpless to stop it. This news pulls Bond out of his drunken malaise and he reports in to MI6, but sadly fails the battery of tests necessary to report for active duty. It seems Bond has lost a step or two. and as England's politicians debate whether or not MI6 should even exist M is told that she will be relieved of her commission in 2 months time.
An investigation of the attack shows that whomever the attacker, was also the person who acquired the list of undercover British agents and that M is in fact the ultimate target. With no one else to turn to and facing a forced retirement M turns to 007 (falsifying his test results to get him back to active duty) to get to the bottom of things.
Daniel Craig gives us his best performance as Bond to date although the movie makes a point of showing us that he's aged since we last saw him. Whether he's aged we'll or not is up for debate though (didn't he always have those huge ears?). Judi Dench, previous to Skyfall's release had gone on record to say that she didn't want to continue to play the role of M so the movie's plot wasn't that much of a surprise to me but her performance was indeed a surprise. Out of the main performances in the film, hers was the least likable. She seemed tired but dutiful portraying M and with the movie's plot centering around her that's a shame. Her performance doesn't detract so much from the movie that it cripples it, but she's done much better in other installments to be sure.
The jewel of this film is Javier Bardem who plays the movies villain, Silva. Silva is a presumed dead MI6 agent (most likely a former "Double O", although the movie never says it outright) who blames M for sending him to what they both thought was his death. When Bardem is onscreen, a very creepy fear and tension radiate so the audience knows for a fact that his character is more than capable of destroying both Bond and his boss.
The movie is almost two and a half hours long. but I didn't check for the time once. Every scene is deliberate and meaningful. Either to tell us that Bond still has "it" despite being a little bit older, or that Silva could be the one to finally put an end to the famous spy.
The pleasant surprises in this movie center around the new faces playing some of the old favorites we've come to know and love from the series. I won't spoil who they are. although the trailers give away one with Ben Whishaw now playing the role of Q (short for Quartermaster...did you know that? I didn't), but I will say that I approve of them all and look forward to seeing how they will preform in upcoming films.
All and all, Skyfall is very much worthy of being this series representative as it celebrates its Golden Anniversary and very much worthy of your hard earned coin to see it.
Written by: David E.
London Premiere of ‘Skyfall’ – Red Carpet
Craig. Daniel Craig.
'Skyfall' had it's London premiere on October 23rd at the Royal Albert Hall.
Dame Judi Dench
Charles and Camilla
The movie's stars Daniel Craig, Naomie Harris and Dame Judi Dench were joined by Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall at the event which also served as a benefit organization to help current and former members of Britain's intelligence agencies.
Naomie Harris
Berenice Marlohe
Harris wore a revealing Marios Schwab dress, while other Bond girl Berenice Marlohe looked stunning in a red Vivienne Westwood gown. Mr. Craig wore a blue tuxedo by Tom Ford. Ford designed all of Bond's perfectly tailored clothing for this film as he did for Casino Royale.
Naomi Campbell and her Russian boyfriend Vladislav Doronin
Supermodel Naomi Campbell was also in attendance with boyfriend Vladislov Doronin, the pair both wore tailored black suits.
'Skyfall' opens November 9th in the US.
Photos: GettyImages
Written by: Brittani
NEW ‘Skyfall’ Trailer
Oh, hey Daniel.
Ooooh...I can't wait for opening night of "Skyfall"! Once every two years or so, my SilverFox husband and I go to the fancy, grown-up VIP theee-ay-terrr, and we'll see Skyfall in a couple of weeks with our dear friends, Dean and Holly!
We have another trailer for you!
Oh yes...and CONGRATS again, to Adele on giving birth to a baby boy!
And the Oscar for Best Song in a Film Goes to...right?
Written by: Diva Julia
Daniel Craig on ‘Saturday Night Live’
Mr. James Bond himself Daniel Craig hosted 'SNL' for the first time, doing pretty well for a guy known more for shooting people than making them laugh. This was a pretty consistent episode with a lot of laughs, a little bit of Muse and a very special guest appearance from someone who made a lot of headlines last week.
Of course the show opened with a parody of last Wednesday night's debates. Former cast member Chris Parnell paid a visit to play moderator Jim Leher trying to get an answer out of a sleepy President Obama played by Jay Pharoah. As he scrambles to try to think of an anniversary present to give Michelle and remember the names of his daughters, Mittens played by Jason Sudeikis takes the opportunity to tell America that he is the one that killed Osama Bin Laden. The sketch could have ended right there, but went on for about two minutes longer than it had to.
So Daniel comes out looking dapper as ever, but I thought his monologue could have been better. Maybe it was nerves, or trying to make that random Shazam joke work. As mentioned, Craig has been in a number of violent movies and wanted to pay tribute to all the people he has killed in them, including one poor sound guy from 'The Adventures of Tin Tin.' It just felt a little weird, but at least they didn't make him sing.
Best Sketches
The Bond franchise is celebrating it's 50th Anniversary this month, and what better gift for the 007 lover in your life than the box-set celebrating James and some of his "Lesser Known Bond Girls." This was definitely the funniest sketch of the night, with Nasim Pedrad playing a very annoying Lea Michele in "Hippopotopussy" and Kate McKinnon as an awkward Jodie Foster and a joke telling Ellen DeGeneres. Kate was ubiquitous tonight, appearing in half all of the sketches and Weekend Update.
She also starred in the "Long Island Medium" sketch as Theresa Caputo, who has been everywhere lately trying to find out if anyone died. I don't watch her show so I'm not familiar with the real Theresa's husband, but if he is as hot as Daniel was playing him I might have to check it out. If Kristen Wiig was still on the show this definitely would have been something for her. Even though she's still a featured player, I can see her being on the show for a long time.
If there is anyone that took President Obama's performance at the first debate the hardest, it was MSNBC's Chris Matthews, played here in the "MSNBC Debate Fallout" sketch by Jason. Newbie Cecily Strong takes over playing Rachel Maddow, previously played by Abby Elliot, and is okay. Kenan is always good as Al Sharpton, coming up with excuses as to why Obama did so poorly, " maybe they switched bodies!" But it was Chris/Jason telling Obama to not be such a "p****" at the next debate that really made this sketch.
Worst Sketches
Okay, it's not that these were the worst, they just weren't that good. "Construction Guys" had the misfortune of being the first sketch, and it seemed like Daniel was enjoying playing his character but it had an odd premise that ended with him remembering when his cat-calling dad was shot by a woman.
There was also "Mars Mission" where Bobby Moynihan longed for the companionship of his kitty Kirby. His crew panicked at the thought of him bringing an animal on board, which he momentarily thought was dead, but turned out to be a grey neck pillow. Kirby was safe all along, and maybe this was funnier in retrospect than it was when I watched.
"Loving Couple" saw Fred Armisen dressed as a woman, again, playing Craig's pretentious and easily excitable girlfriend. She turns off his friends but gets turned on by him whenever he kisses her neck. We were supposed to laugh at her wild facial expressions, but the funniest part was Fred's skirt exposing his underwear and Bill Hader breaking. Which he always does so well.
"Working Class Drama" was about a show called "A Sorry Lot We Are,"a British sitcom in it's 45th season about a bunch of losers who gather at a bar to talk about their financial woes. What was this sketch?! Aidy Grant, another new cast member, played Daniel's character's lecherous ex-girlfriend. It seems like she has a lot of potential on the show and I would like to see her not do characters that do jokes about her weight.
Weekend Update
Politics always makes for a good WU. Seth Meyers introduced another new segment, "Winners and Loser," that focused on the debate. FLOTUS was a "loser" because "she came with Blane, but left with Duckie." Always appreciate a good 'Pretty In Pink' reference. There was a big appearance by Big Bird, and it was funny to watch Seth struggle to look the over eight foot tall bird in the eye. He was asked about his mention in the debate but not wanting to get political, he is only 6-years old, he opted to tell jokes instead. "You know who loves de-bates? De-fishes." Good one, Big Bird.
And how cute was it to see Bobby hug him during the closing credits?!!!!
Credit goes to Vasodilation for the screen caps.
Written by: Brittani
Daniel Craig’s SNL Promos With Taran Killam – ‘Double Oh HEAVEN!’
I'm dying. No, I'm actually DEAD. The promos for this weekend's SNL with host DANIEL BLOODY CRAIG (!) are so funny that I can barely contain myself.
Daniel Craig -- best known as being the darkest, broodiest James Bond ever -- is indulging his wackier side as host of this week's Saturday Night Live.
And based on these promos alongside Taran Killam, the actor is game for some serious silliness, spoofing his tough-guy image ("I don't like guns!") in one take, fending off Killam's amorous advances in another, and -- in the best sequence -- embarking on a montage that sees the two sharing cupcakes, wearing silly wigs and giant sunglasses, and playing Monopoly.
It's all such madcap hilarity, Killam dubs it "double-oh heaven" -- a Bond pun that sends Craig heading for the exit."
Let's watch together...over and over and over, okay?
Daniel's little shrug before he crams a cupcake into his mouth? Priceless.
And MUSE as the musical guests? I'm in anglophile Double-Oh HEAVEN. If only the musical guest were a very-pregnant Adele, though. I think my head would explode.
What???
Aaaaaand...this is ME realizing I won't be home to see it--and our DVR isn't working. Hunter?
Hunter - Playing at FUEL in Pioneer Square, Saturday Night, Oct. 6th!
I hope you're happy I'm going to your first big gig in downtown Seattle at FUEL, Bruv. Awww, you know I wouldn't miss it for the world, Boo.
Written by: Diva Julia
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Editor in Chief/Founder
DivaJulia is a nutty, sarcastic, yet overly-sensitive former model-turned-photographer and writer. She's also the Managing Editor of Dipped in Cream.
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Brittani (Contributing Editor) is a 20-something North Carolina native and aspiring writer traveling through life with a martini in one hand and a remote control in the other.
David E. (Contributing Writer) is a laid-back father and proud California resident who loves movies, sports and whatever else manages to pique his curiosity.
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Tiffany (Contributing Writer) is a yummy mummy living in Seattle who scouts Gamers for Microsoft by day and looking for the next band to fall in love with by night. She loves horror movies, and subscribes to both Vogue and Scientific American. Things will no doubt get weird. Buckle up!
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