Quartile rating: 7/10 · 2 ratings
When Bond's latest assignment goes gravely wrong, agents around the world are exposed and MI6 headquarters is attacked. While M faces challenges to her authority and position from Gareth Mallory, the new Chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee, it's up to Bond, aided only by field agent Eve, to locate the mastermind behind the attack.
Skyfall is one of the most visually accomplished Bond films ever made, with Roger Deakins' cinematography elevating it well above the franchise norm — the Shanghai glass-tower sequence and Macau casino are genuinely stunning. The cast is exceptional: Craig's weathered Bond, Bardem's flamboyant villain Silva, and Dench's career-best M all deliver memorable performances. The plot, however, is serviceable rather than brilliant — the 'villain gets captured on purpose' device was already a cliché by 2012, and the third-act retreat to Skyfall estate feels narratively convenient. The ending, while emotionally resonant in dispensing with M, wraps up somewhat predictably. Novelty is moderate: Deakins' visual signature and the thematic depth around Bond's identity and mortality give it a distinctive texture, but the bones are recognizably Bond formula.