Brooding Bond drives action in 'Solace'
"Quantum of Solace" (two-disc special edition) "Quantum of Solace," the 22nd film in the James Bond franchise, isn't as good as "Casino Royale," the one that preceded it. But it's a solid action flick, and it continues the bold reinvention of the Bond character that "Royale" started. For my money, it beats the smirk right off the face of any of the Pierce Brosnan installments.
"Solace" picks up almost immediately where the last film left off. Bond (Daniel Craig), still seething about the fate of his previous girlfriend, Vesper, stumbles into an international conspiracy to take over the water supply of impoverished nations and then sell it to them at an inflated price. Along the way he gets into a series of extended chases (car, motorcycle and boat) and meets Camille, a sexy Bolivian secret service agent with a personal vendetta. The two run headlong into the conspiracy together, guns blazing.
Critics said "Solace" is overly complicated, too grim and not "Bond" enough. What? Yes, the movie does have its flaws. A clumsy opening act moves in fits and starts, and director Marc Forster doesn't have the touch with action scenes that Martin Campbell showed in "Royale." But the film's tone and portrayal of the Bond character - brooding, flawed, methodical - are precisely what critics fell over themselves to praise in "Royale." Craig rocks once again, Judi Dench and Jeffrey Wright do solid supporting work and Olga Kurylenko brings a fresh coolness to the Bond-girl role. All in all, this is a nice effort. The two-disc DVD offers a slew of behind-the-scenes bonus features that are informative, but rarely fascinating. (PG-13; MGM, $29.99)
"Twilight" (two-disc special edition) After the tidal wave of hype that surrounded this adaptation of the first book in Stephenie Meyer's insanely popular teen-vampire romance series, I have to ask: All that fuss over this?
"Twilight" introduces us to Bella (Kristen Stewart), a quiet teen who just moved from Arizona to rainy Forks, Wash., to live with her father. In her new high school, she meets Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), a dreamy but aloof boy who's part of a "family" of equally odd foster children. The two are drawn to each other, but then Edward reveals that he and his siblings are vampires, though they've agreed to feast only on the blood of animals, not humans. The movie sets up Bella and Edward's forbidden romance while introducing us to a group of "bad" vampires who have no problem biting human necks. The strong premise behind "Twilight" gets sunk by dialogue that rarely rises above soap-opera clichés and acting that turns Bella and Edward into surly mopes. I realize teenagers often act both surly and mopey, but here we never get to see anything else. Three more installments of the "Twilight" saga are on the way; I hope they improve on this disappointing opening chapter.
"Twilight" fans, though, should be more than happy with this two-disc DVD set, which comes packed with excellent extras, including a surprisingly funny commentary (featuring director Catherine Hardwicke, Stewart and Pattinson) and a painstakingly detailed documentary about the making of the film. The makers of this DVD clearly had the many fans of Meyer's series in mind. (PG-13; Summit Entertainment, $32.99)
"Watchmen: Tales of the Black Freighter" This excellent DVD includes material from the "Watchmen" graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons that couldn't be included in Zack Snyder's film version. "Tales" is an animated presentation of the grisly pirate adventure told as a comic-within-a-comic in the book. It works well as a stand-alone piece, though I can't wait to see Snyder edit it back into a director's cut of the film (as he's promised to do). If you liked "Watchmen" and want more of the story, definitely check out this release. (R; Warner Home Video, $27.95)