WHEN director Martin Campbell decided to overhaul the seriously flagging Bond franchise in 2006 with Casino Royale, no one could quite predict just how enthralling a 21st century 007 instalment could be.
Whether it was the script, snappy direction or Daniel Craig’s stellar turn in the iconic role, Casino seriously resurrected Bond from the ashes.
It was also the first Bond movie to have an inconclusive ending, which brings us to its highly anticipated sequel, Quantum of Solace, from director Marc Forster (Finding Neverland, Monster’s Ball).
Quantum picks up an hour after Casino left off, with Bond in full flight to exact revenge for the death of his beloved Vesper Lynd.
The beginning is a high-speed car chase through Siena, Italy.
In the boot of his Aston Martin is Mr White, at whom Bond points the finger for the death of the girl he loved.
As usual, Bond manages to manoeuvre himself out of trouble and takes White to be interrogated by M (Judi Dench), when they realise – too late – that their own agents are now working for Quantum, a mysterious agency with a sinister agenda.
Bond defies M’s orders to stand down and tracks down one of Quantum’s major players, supposed environmentalist Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric), who is taking control of Bolivia’s water utilities.
Along the way, he meets this instalment’s main Bond girl, Camille (Olga Kurylenko) who is Greene’s former flame and now a wanted target.
This movie could never hope to reach the heights of Casino, but it has enough intrigue and thrills to take its spot alongside some of the better films in the 46-year-old series with pride.