Why Quantum of Solace Is A Perfect James Bond Movie | Video Essay

Might sound controversial but Greene isn't that bad a villain compared to Le Chieffre. Le Chieffre is a much better character, yes, but I think his praise is a lil overblown in direct comparison. Both Le Chieffre and Greene are small fish, ultimately working for the real villain above them. Greene's lack of scale in villainy is equal to Le Chieffre: they both terrorize the public behind the scenes to make back for Blofeld.

His personality isn't Goldfinger or Silva but neither was Le Chieffre's. Neither of them are bombastic megalomaniac villains and it's intentional. The CR novel doesn't bolster Le Chieffre as the big criminal mastermind, but one bad person among millions of bad people. This was carried over to the movie (rightfully so) and I see Greene as an attempt to replicate the success of Le Chieffre. He didn't turn out as good a villain but this is why I'm not offended by his presence or characterization- he's just another Le Chieffre at the end of the day, just not as good. Nobody should've compared him to a Goldfinger, Drax or Zorin and I think the film makes it pretty obvious they weren't going for that anyway.

A lot changed after QOS. The later Craigs have a different tone and mission as films, fitting w/the time they were made, making em feel pretty inappropriate following CR narratively. QOS is the only other Craig to go for the kind of style, tone and plot that CR gave us, and if it weren't for the 4yr gap I think the Craigs would've continued in this direction- Bond going after these "small fish" and eventually getting to the leader at the top. As great as Skyfall is it set a new precedent for the Bonds Bond's follow and doesn't feel like the same wavelength of CR and QOS. Then Spectre ruined what the first two were building to, making the "Guy at the top" not only a contrived step brother but the worst characterization of Blofeld on screen. NTTD picked up the pieces, and was a good movie, but couldn't escape the awful conclusion Spectre left us with.

I also appreciate QOS, partially cus I see the original vision of what the Craig films were going for.

Great video. Do Spectre next!

It's a shit movie

I have to say, the more the critics say "worrrrst Bond film eveeeeeer"
The more I dig in my heels.. The ONLY criticism that comes to mind is the song....The song is... Not... Good... As a Bond theme, or otherwise.
Oh, and soooooome of the writing. The writer strike shows in some parts.. But we've suffered worse.
It's just coming off Casino Royale, one of the, if not the best Bond. It was a hard act to follow. But not watching it as it's own film, but a 4th act. Makes it better.

I also think THIS can be pointed to much more than when they made Spectre saying "they're not Bond girls.. they're Bond women" THIS film should be pointed to!

The relationship with Camille is very good.. An victim of violence and abuse,with trauma, could have been a bad look for Bond to get off with her in the end. But, it makes sense! He's probably not in the mood after Vesper, and Camille isn't really looking for a guy..

This has always been my least favourite of them all

TRUMP 2024 🇺🇲🔥

It took the algorithm 2 years to recomend this me after its release, but im glad there are other Quantum defenders out there. Keep fighting the good fight dude

I interpret Bond's quantum of solace to be an unexpected twist at the end - he gains closure not by achieving revenge, but by saving a woman from Vesper's fate. We're fooled by the way he keeps his focus on The Boyfriend. But that's just logical tactics. Naturally he keeps his eyes on the one he's threatening with his gun.

But everything he says and does ... it's all for the woman's benefit. Everything. And her little weak "Thank you" as she leaves ... That tells Bond he's done the job. He can never save Vesper, of course. But he can save the next one. A small solace, but enough.

We're still thinking the climax is yet to come. But instead, Bond just lets the others take him in. What just happened?

Bond's emotional climax already happened and we just didn't realize it yet. That little "Thank you".

The bad guys in this movie are easily the worst in the series. Though the action and pace of this movie are amazing so I never understood the hate. Criticism yes but hate no.

Nah the movie sucks bond is so out of chatecter in it acting like a emotional weak bitch

I thought i was the only one who loves QoS. I'm 5 minutes in. Perhaps i am. Let's find out.

AGREE...Best of DC (loosing his tie), the best teaser, great dialogue, impressive action and the best package with David Arnold's score as the icing. It is however, not perfect...but, You tell me what is? :D

For me every Bond film that's not set in Europe goes to the end of the line. South America is not my idea of where Bond should be operating.

I don't want to see Bond work through his emotional issues. I want to see stiff upper lip. I hate emo Bond.

Unless you love this film like you love The Room and Plan 9 from Outer Space, you are out of your mind!

Good ideas and good intentions don't make for a good movie. It isn't misunderstood. It's clearly a bad movie and this does not overlook any short comings in the final product. It's very badly edited, the plot is empty and pondering, there's so many elements in the film that make no sense and are not shown very well. The action takes too heavily from The Bourne franchise and even uses the same stunts. Daniel Craig is even dressed like Jason Bourne.

Way way way way way too long. No one will ever need to do a review on QoS ever again. i hung in there as long as I could (23 minutes) but I had to give up when I felt my brain start to melt.
I think you could have said all you needed to in five minues, I would have agreed with you, though. Not a bad film when all's said and done.

I don`t agree mate. The original James Bond was charming, fair, and killed when he didn`t have any other choice. The " New " James Bond.........is a machine...........it`s an " Action Orgy "..............all the charm is gone.........replaced by numbing violence and crazy stunts........😥

I’ll always have a special bond with this movie cause i played the ps3 game a lot when i was younger

BTW I think Mathis' death hit harder for me than almost every other sub-character's death in the entire series.

I wouldn't say perfect but...the first 2/3 was really really good.

No, it was a stupid movie. Complete wastage of time.

I wonder if @calvindyson has seen this

I always liked this film. I think that Daniel Craig's Bonds start off the best and go slowly downhill in a sequential order with this being the second best.
There are lots of themes that you have drawn out and made more explicit than I was originally aware of.
Many thanks - must have been a mammoth effort..

I dont know what you were on when watching Quantum of Solace but its dangerous. Its rotted your brain. Nothing about this abomination is that good

It felt if somebody was reading the book Diary of an economic hitman.

Well done. I've never gotten the hate for QoS, but you've articulated what I think I knew was there all along.

Which Movie?

Great job! We would love to get you on our show...... Cracking the Code of Spy Movies! Let's talk

Excellent analysis, and I agree completely.
Casino Royale is bravado, anticipation and irony.
Quantum of Solace is agony and despair.
Skyfall is redux, as a stronger Bond - having dealt with a broken heart - now deals with his past.

I just came here to say "NOPE"

. Revenge is a positive motive. If you let everyone attack you without repercussions, then what will you be? How you present yourself first (how others perceive you is of the least importance), well, that defines you. The moment you lose your self-respect, you are finished in every way.
In many ways, revenge is a personal form of justice.

its definitely not perfect but its a decent film

The series means a lot to me and not only because of my last name. Before you ask, yes, I've heard all the jokes, and as to whether I'm related to 007, if the scene about his genealogy in OHMSS is anything to go by, the answer is yes - we have the same family coat of arms and common ancestry.

As for QoS, it's the Bond film I've watched the most, perhaps because it's short and paced well. I wouldn't put it above Goldfinger, From Russia With Love, or even Licence to Kill, but it's a genuinely enjoyable film that I keep coming back to every year. I likewise find myself revisiting other entries in the series that enjoy a mixed reputation, such as Diamonds Are Forever, The Man with the Golden Gun, Moonraker, and The World is Not Enough. And, yes, "orbis non sufficit" or "the world is not enough" really is my family's heraldic motto.

I’ve adored Olga Kurylenko ever since I “met” her in Centurion. I hope her future includes more great films ❤

Atrocious films. Boring and unsatisfying.

Unpopular opinion but I just love this movie, my favourite Bond movie after Casino Royale and Goldeneye. Strawberry Fields was hopelessly useless but everything else was great, especially the quiet montages of the desert.

100% No nonsense film great film

Elon Musk, "We'll coup who we want" That was about Bolivia and lithium by the way.

Excellent commentary. I agree wholeheartedly. Nice work.

I re-watched the film recently and what struck me was that there really is a genuinely good movie in there. The main issue is that the script feels like a draft.With a few edits, taking out some of the unnecessary bits, plot connections and just generally clearing up the script a bit it could have been one of craig's best. For example skyfall is an instance of a film where I don't like the general themes and emotions they explore, but the script is pretty tight so it works well overall as a film. QoS has a lot of good ideas and concepts, it just needed to be tightened up.

EDIT: I wrote this before I started watching and OH MY GOD I had no idea about the writers strike and the fact that the script IS ACTUALLY A DRAFT!!! I'm feeling very smug rn about having picked up on that without prior knowledge =))

This film is fine, it just needs to be longer. More time developing Camille's backstory with medrano (show don't tell!) And more with Greene to understand his motivations

Bad story bad camera work and worst editing.

I'm just getting into Bond as its a franchise I've never delved into but was curious about. Watched Casino Royale last night and I feel spoiled that It was my first 007 film, it was so good that I was worried that the sequel would pale in comparison. While Quantum was not as good as Casino, I'd say it was a great sequel to it. Although the action scenes especially in the first half threw me off after the polish they had in Casino. But the story overall was good and I wouldn't skip it if I was doing a Craig Bond marathon. Hopefully gonna watch Skyfall today or tomorrow and after Daniel Craig's run I'll go back and check out the OG Sean Connery ones.

I hate how Mr. White and Vespers boyfriend Yusef basically only have cameos. They should been featured more. dominic greene was a boring villian and was uninteresting. Bond wanted revenge on the guys who helped cause Vespers death but instead we have him going after some ecologist who is stealing water from poor countries. Fucking lame.

No It’s not. Only Casino royal and No time to Die were great Bond movies form Daniel Craig. This one was not even good.

I really liked quantum of Solace