Flick Pick: Skyfall

Skyfall
(Columbia, 2012)

 Perfectly directed by Sam Mendes, the 23rd Bond, in the 50th year of its onscreen run. So far. It opens with the second instance in the series where 007 gets killed in the beginning of the movie. Then onto more and more instances for the resurrected Bond to burn through bad guys like a human chain saw. Minimal, as in virtually no, gadgetry, maximum stunts and mayhem, and in the perpetual nods to iconic moments in the early films, this time the Aston Martin DB V gets to take one more turn around the track before going out in a blaze of glory. As does Judi Dench, retiring her portrayal of M, and handing it off to Ralph Fiennes, who shows that when one fails to be the Wickedest Wizard on Earth, becoming head of MI6 is a good career fallback. The theme song by Adele won her an Oscar for Best Original Song, it also won an Oscar for Best Film Editing, and the movie set the record for the highest box office gross of any film in the series, even accounting for inflation, at over $1.1B. Which puts the series second only to Harry Potter, until it inevitably passes it too. (Which means Fiennes won't be hurting on residuals checks for the rest of his life.) And apparently Mendes, the new M, Q, and Moneypenny are all in for the next installment, working title "Bond 24", and Craig has signed for at least three more films.
James Bond Will Return.