3 Thoughts on Skyfall

*This entire post is a bit spoilery. Sorry.*

1.  The beginning - I was super worried in the beginning. The whole beginning chase sequence was tedious and underwhelming (fighting on top of a moving train? really? That's the best you got?).  We all know Bond is going to survive, otherwise there wouldn't be another 2 hours to sit through.  So the entire sequence felt pointless.  The film became extremely problematic for me when Bond participates in a drinking game that involved a scorpion, as I have a terrible fear of scorpions (when I say "terrible fear", I mean panic-inducing, can't breathe or think, kind of fear).  I obviously can't fault the film for my own phobias, but I have to admit that I have no idea what happened for the following 20 minutes or so.  When I was finally able to bring myself out of panic mode, I realized that I hardly missed anything important.  It wasn't until the appearance of Javier Bardem, as the super creepy villain, Silva, that the film started to get interesting.  Although, I would still argue that the plot was incredibly simplistic - even the villain's motives were border-line stupid, but at least the performances and intensity began to thrive (there were also some very beautiful shots). 

2. "Skyfall" - First, the Adele song is really boring, but I did have it in my head for forever (it's still there).  The song is actually, literally, perfect for the movie ("Let the skyfall, when it crumbles, we will stand tall, face it all together" makes much more sense if you know what "Skyfall" is).  The song fits perfectly with the opening credit sequence, which is AWESOME.  Like the song, this sequence is much more effective after you've seen the entire movie.  Second, I love that "Skyfall" represented something very personal for James Bond, since the movie felt more personal than the ones before (thanks to Sam Mendes, as director).  I avoided reviews of the film, like usual, but it was hard to ignore the numerous tweets comparing Skyfall to Home Alone, which seemed preposterous.  I forgot about the comparison while watching the movie, that is until they arrived arrived at Skyfall and started booby-trapping the house.  I could not stop laughing.  While I wouldn't go so far as "comparing" the two films, it was a hilarious (and probably unintentional) nod to Home Alone, that I wouldn't have noticed if twitter hadn't pointed it out. 

3. The end - As the film came to an end, I admit I was a little disappointed. I was looking forward to "the best Bond ever", as some proclaimed, and I didn't see it.  It was certainly a more visually cohesive Bond film than Quantum of Solace (which I actually liked), but it hardly compares to Casino Royale. However, I am happy with the direction that Skyfall ended with (and the introduction of some well-loved Bond characters).  The ending felt like a "reboot", which makes me excited for the next chapter.