"Where's the Solace?" lawl.

''High school musical 3 is a better film'' should have put that on the poster.

Pond of wood. Fish of trees.

Duran Duran's A View To A Kill was great.

Kermode and Mayo are getting me through a tough time

"Pond of Wood" and "Fish of Trees" would be great names for two halves of a prog rock double album. With a Storm Thorgerson style cover.

All Bond actors who did multiple films had stinkers. This is Craig's. A few good scenes, but overall a complete mess. Just makes Casino and Skyfall look even better

@tiearts

8 жыл бұрын

Diamonds Are Forever would be Sean's. Roger has more than one, neither of Dalton's are that bad but I think Living Daylights is the weaker, Brosnan has TMND or Die Anither Day, Craig had QOS

@amarsbarr

8 жыл бұрын

+Tomas Jamieson I thought You Only Live Twice was very terrible, Sean had put weight on, the story was grey, the action incredibly poor and commerical and no real serious threat to Bond or danger or pain or even cold and gritty like Thunderball. Diamonds Are Forever was Sean's worst Bond it was about as dissapointing as Quantum Of Solace for Daniel Craig except Daniel worked very hard in looking very physically fit and perfectly right for Bond plus his hair style was the best of his four films. It looked very traditional and stylish. Diamonds Are Forever Connery looked 15 years older than he did from You Only Live Twice. Even bigger and aged so badly I've never seen an actor age that fast in just over 5 years. plus diamonds was so weak and childish. 3/10

@tiearts

8 жыл бұрын

Connery's first three are really the ones of his worth watching. Thunderball and You Only Live Twice have some throwing moments but they aren't on the same level. When Connery did Thunderball he'd had 3 out of 4 good outings as Bond, now Craig's at 4 and he's been pretty solid through out. Even though QOS was a mess he was still good in it. If Spectre is good and then Craig goes on to have another classic or 2, he'll have a better average then any of the Bonds

@amarsbarr

8 жыл бұрын

Spectre was like I was watching a Bond movie from the 1960's. For me 10/10 it's almost too good to be true. Thunderball was excellent 9/10 it was for me surprisingly dark and Terence Young who was responsible for Introducing Bond to the world and forming the biggest most successful longest runnning film series came back from having taken a break from Goldfinger which was a blockbuster fun flanboyant glitzy bond to make Thunderball dark, firm, and sinister. Totally different to Goldfinger. Thunderball is the highest box office smash of any bond film in a newly read article with the INFLATION RATE adjusted from the mid 60's to today. Thunderball set off the Bond phenomenon. You only live twice ended it. Fight sequences were so poor and scenes I could have fallen asleep. Oh wait Bond turns Japanese...

@williamrandolphjr6807

5 жыл бұрын

If you want to talk about a BAD BOND FILM, it couldn't be worse than OHMSS,it was just plain BAD.what was IT'S STORYLINE? 1st you would sent Bond UNDERCOVER to say that HE DON'T LIKE WOMEN and about half way through the movie he's in bed with over 4 women. 2nd Bond says "I HAVE A STIFFNESS COMING ON" SERIOUSLY every one knew darn well what that meant; HE WAS GETTING A HARD-ON so AGAIN that broke HIS COVER right then 3rd HE has gotten busted BIG TIME by BLOFID, so clearly in this Bond at least he didn't do his homework. Don't get me wrong OHMSS had a great score, but it was STILL BAD, cause NO ONE WOULD EVER believe to send him undercover that way.And I don't want to even start on GL. He was just wrong for the part of Bond.I did had a hard time following QUANTUM OF SOLACE the 1st time, but I had to see it 2 or 3 times to get it.Every Bond film can't be knocked out of the park like Sean Connery,in fact, people didn't liked NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN,but I did and it had a plot,which OHMSS didn't. NOT ALL BOND theme has words you could sing to,like the before said, OHMSS no words, but it sounded great

Teletubbies bouncing around in a padded cell? Hilarious

to this day I still don't know what a quantum of solace is

@DeeperStoriesbyTT

6 жыл бұрын

the smallest bit of comfort from grief

Quantum of Solace is a tragic entry in the Bond franchise, sandwiched between two gems

@ep5019

3 жыл бұрын

i really don't understand people who don't like I thought it was one the better bond films

@jhenning499

3 жыл бұрын

@@ep5019 you must like boring movies.

@ep5019

3 жыл бұрын

@@jhenning499 its a good film that's just true

@mortyp473

2 жыл бұрын

Skyfall is tremendously overrated.

@davidcauley9400

2 жыл бұрын

@@mortyp473 I was literally about to comment that. It's weak, derivative of other films that were recently out, even a bit gross, and badly written tosh. Directed well, looks pretty, but tosh.

Mayo's interrupting/mickey taking is why this partnership works so well, lightens the mood and answers some basic questions (not everyone knows what a second unit does for example). Kermode knows Mayo's on a wind up and being a pro takes it in good heart.

what? A View To A Kill's theme is great.

@benjaminanderson7804

5 жыл бұрын

With you on that. Great song for an 80's bond! Great song in general. I agree with Kermode about the QOS theme though

@MostlyPennyCat

5 жыл бұрын

Well, I think you have to be a bit of a 80s synthpop fan...

@TequilaToothpick

3 жыл бұрын

A View to a Kill is a great song.

@mercifulzeus01

2 жыл бұрын

All I can think is that Mark Kermode has completely forgotten Die Another Day, which is not just the worst Bond theme, it's one of the worst songs from any movie ever.

Yeah, but Olga Kurylenko was seriously hot.

@staforiii

4 жыл бұрын

Ted Striker agreed

"Like Teletubbies bouncing around in a padded cell" Lmao!

It literally means little comfort, sums the film up perfectly.

Quantum means “a small amount”. Solace is “to take comfort from something”. Bond takes a small amount of comfort from the revenge he enacts against those who led the woman he loved to her death.

@tc98826

6 ай бұрын

Hm it does make sense now you explain it. But its still supposed to be a play on words with 'quantum'. And in that case, it doesnt work. So it works on one interpretation.

I loved casino royale so much and still do and when I heard that this was a sequel to that I couldn't wait.When I saw it it was absolute garbage and I was so disappointed I can't tell you.This movie is second from the bottom in my list of favourite bond movies.The worst being die another day complete and utter muck that movie was and this is not far behind it.The song is the worst ever bond song for a movie.I hated this movie not just it's bad but also because I was so looking forward to seeing this after casino royale and my expectations were so high that I felt cheated.Mark kermode his review is so spot on.

I was an extra for Quantum of Solace so I'm heavily biased in it's favour - even so I think it's one of the worst ones!

@legoguru3000

3 жыл бұрын

I know this is an 8 year old comment but what scene(s) were you in and what was your experience being involved in the film

Kermode is the best film reviewer ever.

@pearsemacintyre1728

3 жыл бұрын

Hes the most inciteful, eloquent, fair. He gives each film its day in court. I love him for that.

"Quantum of Solace" refers to the lack of solace Bond gets from avenging the death of his girlfriend from Casino Royale, a woman he fell in love with... and the fact that "Quantum" was the organization in this movie.

@tedstriker6646

9 жыл бұрын

I thought it was just rubbish like evrything else in the film.

@TheMagicLemur

2 жыл бұрын

Someone watched 'Why Quantum of Solace is A perfect movie'... 😉

first review iv ever seen from this man, we have come a long way mr kermode

“Do we not know what’s going on because it is incomprehensibly told, or do we not know what’s going on because we don’t care?”

Mark “Why don’t I understand it? Is it incomprehensible or don’t I care?” Both.

Mark is definitely right about the film. But A view to a kill is definitely one of the best Bond theme tunes.

@woodhd

4 жыл бұрын

loving you was a view to a kill

@adolflenin4973

2 жыл бұрын

Y3ah

All I remember about this movie is that I fell asleep in the cinema (never happened before or since) and my dad couldn't even explain what had happened when I woke up. Stuff I already knew plus explosions, apparently.

Duran Duran "A View To A Kill" song was good.

You just reminded me of Adam Buxton's mock theme song for it there :) "I know they do big bags of solace, but I don't want 'em" and so on.

Tellytubbies bouncing around in a padded cell...incredible

A shame Quantum of Solace wasn't on the same level as both Casino Royale and Skyfall which are fantastic. If judging those Bond movies as a trilogy, Bourne has got them beat due to this let down.

Mark Kermode is the best movie reviewer on this planet.

6.20: 'repercussions' is the word I think he's looking for :) This is the best review I've ever heard. He's right about everything here.

Great review-especially the music discussion

I love that the last line of this video is a quickly blurted out "High School Musical 3 is a better film".

This review is the reason I became a fan. Well put, sir.

i do not know who this guy is, but i love him. let me put it this way: i felt asleep in the theater. and i totally agree, i did not at all care about the plot, because it seemingly was too busy with the action

Mark's absolutely right in all his comments, except the one about 'A View To A Kill'.

Still one of Mark's best reviews in the past couple years.

@LASHH9669

10 ай бұрын

Still is

@opmike343 Was it mainly people running really fast whilst talking into mobile phones?

The orchestral treatments of View to a Kill during the actual movie sounded fantastic, and were on the b side of the single.

It's always good to see his cheery sense of fun!

Casino Royale was an almost impossible act to beat. Roll on Bond 23.

Quantum of Solace is a great title because it's unique sounding and enigmatic.

"Where's the solace?" Amusing.

It's the weakest entry in Craig's tenure (or maybe Spectre?) but having rewatched it just the other day it's a lot better than people give it credit for. Sure it's not up to the same quality as Casino Royale or Skyfall but it's still pretty good. And for everyone saying they don't understand the plot, they clearly weren't paying attention. It's a direct sequel for starters and if you watch Casino Royale before Quantum of Solace it's actually pretty logical.

Is the cable on the side of Simon's headset deliberately set up to look like a treble cleff?

I agree with the review completely. And yes, On Her Majesty's Secret Service is the most interesting Bond film. I beg to differ about Duran Duran's "View to a Kill" tune: it was great. Watch "Fate Fatal"; it's much better.

Fantastic review, agree with everything apart from View to a Kill.. Killer tune!

Play Dead by Bjork and David Arnold should've been a Bond song..

The first thing he said had me in tears

@biped19 Where did you get the idea that the next one will be directed by Marc Foster. It's going to be directed by Sam Mendes.

Bond finds at the end when he discovers first hand that Vesper was entrapped by her boyfriend, when he stops another girl from being used by the organization. So he realizes M was right about Vesper, and finally has a small amount of solace. What's so hard about this?

A brilliant hatchet job by the good doctor showing, once again, why he's the greatest and most entertaining film critic out there. These two work so well together - in this review I particularly like Simon's pitiful retort to Mark's question about explaining the story at around 1:30 ... "Well, can you do it?" :( First class !!!

@roarinrocker

3 жыл бұрын

sounds like a self important whack job to me

'What's the story?!' 'Well... can you do that?' lol

The plot is perfectly clear! Someone wants to steal the water from Bolivia! Unfortunately, understanding the plot means I care about it even less...

but "durrran durrran"'s view to a kill is fucking awesome

Mark talking about being brought out of the atmosphere reminds me of Saving Private Ryan. I was completely immersed in that film until Tom Sizemore said the film's title.

He's not hostile about anything. He's passionate about film.

Just come from the No Time To Die review for this infamous review.

@ethzero

2 жыл бұрын

... jesus, yeah fair enough :)

Quantum of Solace is an Ian Fleming story title, that's why they used it for the film. It just sounds stupid because it has nothing to do with the plot, but the with the short story, it makes sense.

@vishaansingh1019

4 жыл бұрын

Man it's not like Kermode literally says this verbatim within the first few minutes of this video or something...

This bloke is spot on!

Bravo sir! Bravo. I am 15 and i still understood the title (after googling define:solace)

The View to a Kill theme is awesome!!

I keep thinking Clive Owen would been better as Bond, since he really looks like Fleming's description of the character and he looks good in a tux (witness a movie called Croupier), but he's busy doing stuff in Hollywood these days.

A lot of things changed after this came out!

ohhhh if only I'd had the smarts to watch this before I rented the DVD. I

I WAS CONFUSED TOO !!

story/plot; 1hour after casino royale ends. Vesper's 'kidnapped'dead bf-the reason 4her betrayal is alive&a trick Bond goes after him'blinded by inconsolable rage'.Greene is who he has to get to.The action sequences are a metaphor for how he feels.Olga wants vengeance2,mirroring his pain. They kill more of his friends.More revenge.There's a background story of simply one of many complex operations Quantum are up to. Bond finds the bf,hence Solace; comfort/consolation in time of sadness gd film x

The last line says it all! xD

I'm a big bond fan and I haven't watched QOS since its release. I don't even consider it a bond film.

@T4SelNiNO

7 жыл бұрын

Burntwood76 I agree wholeheartedly. I don't like die another day either. And I'd of much preferred Connery in OHMSS. Even though by that point his performances as bond had become lacklustre to say the least

...I think he nailed the review. Really, they should hire him on as a consultant for the next Bond film; and in a hurry. Let's just forget about QOS and hope the next Bond is much, much better...!

I like this guy, he tells the truth with no shame

@MercyBlowz In a way it's an incredible achievement. Never has something, so very loud, so frenetically shot, and so short in actual run time, felt so dull, slow and long. The worst thing is that it cheapens Casino Royale by association. A waste of a good debut for Craig. My own hunch is that they were all too aware of MGM's financial difficulties approaching like a hurricane, and quickly wanted to get another one in the can before the studio's long awaited collapse.

I love how the exact amount of time the film begins after CR is never firmly established. Some people say a few minutes, some say an hour, some say 2 hours.

In a way I was glad that they didn't turn it into a vendetta like the trailer suggested. Ashton Martin must feel really pissed off to get the car into product placement only to find out it got destroyed in 2 minutes. I can see they are still trying to make Bond relevant to the world we live in, which is something they should keep trying in Bonds to come.

I’ve just watched this movie for the first time and it’s an absolute mess of a movie. I also think Duran Duran had a much better theme than Madonna’s awful theme song

@stefanfilipovits21

3 жыл бұрын

Oh totally. The QoS theme is one of the worst but it’s not as bad as Die Another Day.

The balance in Quantum of Solace isn't good, no. But I didn't think it was terrible. But maybe I'm just too fond of Daniel Craig as James Bond to care much about what they actually have him do :p As for getting the name, it's really not that difficult and the way they talk about it is exaggerated. The organization that's uncovered is called Quantum and it's referred to multiple times in the movie. He finds his quantum of solace towards the end of the film, so it's a play on words of sorts.

1:43 Hahaha that is exactly what I thought when I watched on the TV

"lets... attempt... to do this systematically" 🤣

well done mr kermode, spot on!

6:50 this is a beautiful sentence.

The big problem is not the absence of gadgets/cheesy lines (some of the best Bonds underplayed these elements). The main problem is the lack of an engaging storyline and the traditional Bond eligance. Part of the reason CR worked is because it was based on solid source material (one of Fleming's most sombre novels). This time round none of the supporting characters were particularly memorable and most of the action scenes were frankly rather dull.

Can anyone tell me what the point of Strawberry Fields?

The Quantum of Solace was right at the end. Where Bond finally finds a resolve by finding the man who killed his Love, saves a Canadian woman from the same fate and leaves him with his life and doesnt kill him therefore prooving to himself that he is a better man and thus becomes the greatest spy the world has ever known.

"pond of wood." LOL

So wrong about this movie. Quantum; minimum amount of energy used in an interaction. Solace; comfort or consolation. What does this mean? Bond didn’t know how to deal with loss. He was broken, ruthless, an enemy to himself. That was the plot. Btw the song is one of my favs and the frenetic style is mirrored throughout (fight scenes, car chases) because Bond was erratic, it was like stepping into his mind. The bad guy, Dominic Green was just a footnote, not important, this film was about Bond’s struggle and he was a pawn for Bond to release his anguish and anger. So so wrong Kermode

@apseudonym

2 жыл бұрын

I agree, however, that's not the plot, that's the story. Plot is “this happens and then this happens and then” whereas story is what the character goes through. Story is always more important than plot. I also love the theme song.

even the action was un watchable extreme close-ups of things moving fast.. just blurs.

Just from that clip...I swear the whole film looks brown?

Part of what went wrong was the choice to drag in references to the events of Casino Royale. There should really have been a clean break between the two films. Agree with all Kermode says, but I did love that plane/dogfight sequence :) So many good actors let down by a crap script. Nowhere near enough of Gemma Arterton - she would have been great as the main bond girl. instead she dies within 5min and in a rather pointless reference to Goldfinger is covered in oil or treacle?!

Beats me. That and Live and Let Die are some of the best old Bond songs

@uptilthesky: The Bond movies only became silly and light because of the direction the films were taken in over the first few years. The Roger Moore years were fun but made the characters little more than cardboard cutouts. Before Craig the best Bond was Timothy Dalton because he took the character right back to the Fleming originals. The problem is not that Bond is going dark, the problem is that Bond as a character is outdated.

Actually I think, while this review is very good, it could easily have been summed up in a 10 second clip of Mark asking Mayo what the story is, and Mayo just fumbling about with his words struggling to answer.

Watch Live and Let Die or Moonraker. Then watch Casino Royale or Skyfall. There is no comparison. Bond films had a winning formula. Great opening scene, wonderful theme tune over great opening credits, great story, over the top unforgettable bad guys, Hilarious one liners, out of this world gadgets & Special Effects. The formula? Why fix something that wasn't broken?

The theme tune is banging. So is A View to a Kill's.

Damn. I was really looking forward to this movie after the excellence that was Casino Royale but now I'll be going in with lowered expectations.

... whoa.

nice ending line lol

what did he say on T.B.L? I won't hear anything bad said about it.

Quantum - A small amount of. Solace - Peace of mind

Been listening to Kermode for many years now, and as a film critic myself, this is his best review...

@pearsemacintyre1728

3 жыл бұрын

I love this review. I return to it often. This and his review of Eighth Grade are my favourites.

Christopher Nolan would be great for a Bond movie, not because he's good at reboots or whatever (just because we've had one bad Bond it doesn't mean we need another friggin reboot), but because one of Nolan's strengths is professional morally ambiguous well-dressed male leads, whose professionalism is shattered by their emotions, usually due to a women (i.e Inception, Dark Knight, Prestige). The Escapist's MovieBob taught me that. Also, does anyone else think the View To A Kill theme is awesome.

@eoinmurray9701

7 ай бұрын

No.