DVD Review: Quantum of Solace

007: Quantum of Solace
Written by: Paul Haggis, Neal Purvis, and Robert Wade
Directed by: Marc Forster
Starring: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric, Judi Dench, Giancarlo Giannini, Gemma Arterton, and Jeffrey Wright

Quantum of Solace is the second outing as super spy James Bond for Daniel Craig who may just be the best bond since Sean Connery. At least in my opinion. After the brilliant Casino Royale could Quantum of Solace compare?

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Absolutely! As the first direct sequel (meaning the events continue from the first film to this one) Quantum of Solace ratchets up the action in every way possible. It's a tense and action packed film that in some cases seems a bit more like a Bourne film, which I know is a major complaint for people.

Personally, I really enjoyed the film. The action sequences were top notch, the story extremely captivating and interesting, and Daniel Craig again delivers a perfect performance. I think he may be one of the best Bonds yet and do hope he sticks around for a while.

The DVD looks great and the 2-disc set comes with a lot of special features, well it appears that way but the majority of the features are featurettes. Disc one features the film itself along with the "Another Way To Die" music video and the theatrical and teaser trailers. Disc two contains several featurettes including Bond on Location, Start of Shooting, On Location (another one), Olga Kurylenko and the Boat Chase, Director Marc Forster, and The Music. There is also a behind the scenes feature called Crew Files. This seems a little light to warrant a 2 disc set. There are no deleted scenes or alternate takes here but if you're a fan of featurettes, this DVD certainly delivers the goods.

The film does stand on its own though. Despite the kinetic action and frantic Bourne like pace that put a lot of fans off, Quantum of Solace makes a worthy entry in the Bond franchise. It made me eager for the next entry to the series and I may have to grab this on bluray as well. I'm sure it will look and sound incredible.

007: Quantum of Solace is in stores now.

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DVD Check In

Netflix is a wonderful thing. Even if I keep the same movie for weeks before I watch it. It's still a great service. In light of that, I am going to start watching the movies as soon as I get them and then putting up little reviews here so you, readers, can be informed when decided what to rent.

So here is a quick recap of three films I've just caught on DVD from best to worst:

Hot Fuzz

Simon Pegg and Nick Frost star in the Edgar Wright directed action comedy extravaganza. The guys behind Shaun of the Dead deliver this fantastic movie about hot shot London street cop Nicolas Angel who is forced to take a promotion that would station him in a seemingly peaceful small town. Simply because he is making the other cops look bad. Well, the town is plauged by some pretty insane "accidents" and it's not long before Angel suspects murder, much to the dismay of the entire town. Laughs throughout and some great over the top action scenes. Highly Highly Highly recommended. Certainly one of the best of 2007.


Driving Lessons

This little film stars Julia Walters, Laura Linney, and the criminally underrated Rupert Grint. It's typical coming of age story about a teenager, who is a bit weird, that lives with an overly religious mother and a reverend father. The mother uses the pretext of giving her son driving lessons to get up to some...none christian activities. The real heart of this movie comes from the incredible chemistry between Grint and Walters. Walters plays an aging actress whom Grint comes to work for and the two eventually head out on a road trip. If you like small coming of age stories I would really give this a look. It's Rupert Grint's first foray outside of the Harry Potter series and he does great. He's been my favorite part of the HP series so I'm glad to see him doing other things.

Notes on a Scandal

This may be the last on the list for today but that doesn't mean it is a poor movie. Cate Blanchett, Judi Dench, Bill Nighy, and newcomer Andrew Simpson star in this tale of an illicit affair between a teacher and a student as well as the obsession another teacher develops on another. Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench again give us amazing performances. They continue to prove that they are among the best actresses working today. Bill Nighy does brilliantly as well. The movie is a bit melodramatic and you may find yourself annoyed by the constant voice over of Judi Dench but overall it's an entertaining watch. Dench and Blanchett really make these characters real. Give it a look if you like the actors or a good drama.

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