Quantum of Solace ***

Cast: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric, Judi Dench, Giancarlo Giannini, Gemma Arterton, Jeffrey Wright
Director: Marc Forster
Running Length: 1:46
MPAA Classification: PG-13

Picking up where “Casino Royale” left off, James Bond (Craig) is taking Mr. White back to M (Dench). White is not giving up the goods on his employer, and when the interrogation goes awry, Bond is tracks down a woman by the name of Camille (Kurulenko), who in turn leads him to Dominic Green (Amalric). Greene is attempting to control Bolivia’s water supply. His role in Vesper’s death puts him in the crosshairs of Bond, who is bent on revenge. Meanwhile, M has orders to rein Bond in, but that is easier said than done.

“Quantum” has a lot to live up to after “Casino Royale”, almost too much. And, as such, it falls short. There is plenty of action, and Craig is once again great as James Bond, but the direction is seriously lacking. Forster is a good director, but does not know how to film action scenes, and the result is a confusing mess at times. It is nice to see an actual sequel in the series, especially since “Casino Royale” set “Quantum” up so nicely. Wright reprising his role as Felix Leiter is also a nice touch. It is clear that the producers wanted to set up a new bad guy organization for Bond to deal with and that is done fairly well. However, it would have been nice to have some info on them disseminated. Sure, they are probably waiting for the next Bond film, but they needed to give the audience something. Not the best Bond, but a solid effort nonetheless.

W. ***

Cast: Josh Brolin, James Cromwell, Elizabeth Banks, Richard Dreyfuss, Ellen Burstyn, Scott Glenn, Toby Jones, Jeffrey Wright, Thandie Newton
Director: Oliver Stone
Running Length: 2:09
MPAA Classification: PG-13

“W.” is a look at the 43rd President of the United States (Brolin), and is told in a non-linear fashion. The main story takes place from about 2002 onward, while flashing back to key points in Bush’s past, including his time at Yale, meeting Laura (Banks), working for his father (Cromwell), and his decision to run for governor of Texas. In the “present”, Bush is dealing with the Iraq war and its ramifications.

“W.” is an odd film that sometimes tries to be a serious drama, and other times branches off into satire territory. It is interesting, looking at Bush’s “daddy issues” and their motivation for the man he becomes. But then, performances like Newton’s Condoleezza Rice are downright campy and take away from the overall effect of the film. Also, dream sequences undermine the factual elements of the film, since it is unlikely that President Bush had any input into this film. Brolin’s performance is solid enough to make this worth seeing. Bush does not really come off that bad, the same cannot be said for Cheney. Liberals will think it doesn’t go far enough, conservatives will think it went to far, and those in the middle will probably find it the most interesting. Any way you look at it, “W.” will have you talking.

Casino Royale ***1/2

Cast: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen, Judi Dench, Jeffrey Wright, Giancarlo Giannini, Caterina Murino
Director: Martin Campbell
Running Length: 2:24
MPAA Classification: PG-13

Two kills, and James Bond (Craig) has been elevated to double-O level. M (Dench) feels that he is not ready, sends him on his first mission anyway. His job is to find Le Chiffre (Mikkelsen), a supplier of terrorist money, and shut him down. When Le Chiffre enters an exclusive poker tournament at Casino Royale in Montenegro, Bond enters as well to prevent him from winning. Even with the help of Vesper Lynd (Green), a treasury agent, Bond may have his hands full, as Le Chiffre sets his eyes on removing Bond from the picture permanently.

“Casino Royale” is a successful reboot of the James Bond franchise. As different as night and day from “Die Another Day”, “Casino Royale” does almost everything right. Daniel Craig is perfect as Bond, maybe even the best ever. He is a rough around the edges “blunt instrument” that has a ways to go before he is the James Bond we know. Grounded in reality, “Casino Royale” also does away with most of the gadgets one would expect from a Bond movie. The supporting cast all do a good job in a movie that is all Daniel Craig. This is not your father’s Bond…this is better.