Argo (2012)

A hugely successful Oscar-winning film starring Ben Affleck? Directed by Affleck? There shall be bacon falling from the skies today.

OK, Affleck's career as a director hasn't been so bad, and he has won an Oscar before (though that was despite the fact that he starred in "Good Will Hunting") but his acting-credits never really was anything but a standing joke. Nevertheless, this is surprisingly good.

And why not start with the actors? Affleck actually is somewhat of a leech here. It's meant as a compliment. He has surrounded himself with the exceptional talent of Alan Arkin and John Goodman as well as added some brilliant casting with Tate Donovan and Scoot McNairy receiving most of my plaudits. Pairing Arkin and Goodman is actually a stroke of pure genius and as long most of the best dialogues and in-house jokes lie with them, you simply can not fail. Affleck mostly walks around with his new beard looking sad, tired or both and does exactly what he is supposed to. It works because the story here isn't primarily built around the protagonist. So he's still not a good actor, he has (seemingly) just gotten very good at trying to marginalize his shortcomings. Kudos!

The story is well-written (Oscar-winning no less) and never seems dull. In the first 2/3 of the film there actually is a lot of build-up and even some politics. But it's smart, filled with quality characters and good dialogue so it's a good thing. It actually feels great to see that some film-makers still dare to be smart as the idiotic films where any halfwit with a semi-functioning brain is able to follow every lead and angle seem to be taking over Hollywood. And TV... but that's beside the point.

I have huge difficulty seeing why they injected the wife/son-angle here though. It brings absolutely nothing to the story, nor to any of the characters (apart from trying to explain the sad face of Affleck) and is, quite frankly, sentimental tripe. Better than sentimentality are the scenes of claustrophobia and great fear, as in the markets.

But the last half hour or so is riveting. An absolute nail-biter as Affleck uses all the tricks in the book to keep you at the edge of your seat. And, boy howdy, is he ever successful. Granted, if you have seen a lot of films, some of his tricks are on the cheap side, and perhaps there are a few too many. It still doesn't change the fact that I was almost afraid to blink.

Is this the best movie of 2013? I doubt it, though I haven't seem them all. But it is a very smart political thriller with some interesting historical aspects and suspense in abundance. Affleck as a director will be interesting to follow in the years to come.

8/10

Skyfall (2012)

I want it to be perfectly clear that I write this whilst listening to Bond-scores only. Mostly John Barry and most certainly not the score Thomas Newman composed to Skyfall. Seriously? Thomas Newman? I know he has scored most of Mendes' work but he simply doesn't have the right style for Bond.

That aside: The opening, as is so crucial to the Bond-films, is quite OK. A hint of darkness followed by a tedious car chase (no wonder, Bond is letting the woman drive) and a better motorcycle-chase (with one awesome stunt). Then it's off to fight on moving trains again. Not bad, and let's face it: How are they going to come up with something that has never been done before? The finish is brilliantly tense so the let-down of Adele can provide a little contrast.

And the suspense is what Mendes does best. This movie will have you at the edge of your seat for an amazing part of its running time. 143 minutes actually makes it the second longest Bond ever, falling one minute short of Casino Royale (and one minute longer than OHMSS). A particular highlight is the courtroom-scene, both in build-up and execution. Mind you, Mendes would never make a mindless action-festival and I reckon a lot of the extra minutes are for a few good dialogues and build-ups. Fiennes and Dench provide an early highlight as their first scene is so exceptionally British in culture and language it is a triumph to the Crown, no less.

The point of introducing Fiennes though, is to get a new M. Fiennes seems to fit the bill perfectly. The old soldier gone bureaucrat with just the right amount of righteousness. He reminds me a lot of the iconic Bernard Lee's Admiral Sir Miles Messervy (only much younger) and I very much look forward to seeing more of him him in the future.

Bond himself starts off beaten and tired (most Bond-actor get at least one chance at this). Newly shot with fragments to show for it and with a solid intake of alcohol (straight from the bottle is never a good sign for a protagonist). A necessary condition as Mendes has plenty of focus on M and Bond being too old and about to be replaced. To get some fresh perspective, he opts for a very young Q. Swing and miss. Let's hope they correct that until the next time.

But what happened with the villain? With such brilliant characters to follow as Dr. No, Auric Goldfinger, Blofeld etc who is this sissy Javier Bardem trying to portray? He looks like a disenchanted Mr. Wint. And Mr. Wint was hardly even a memorable henchman! Nowhere near worthy of the "shadow" of a person they want to portray before he finally shows up.

Bardem also has the least megalomanical plot a villain in Bond has ever had. Come on, where's the panache? Bond-villains are supposed to be a threat to all democracy and/or life on earth. All this guy wants do to is shoot a little old lady. Lame.

That's not the only place Mendes fails to demonstrate Bond-values. Where are the dead-pan jokes and gambling? And why the hell don't we hear Bond order his drink? It's right there on the bar! There's also a bit too little strut for my taste, but I suppose that's fitting as Bond is supposed to look old and beaten. Oh well, at least they remembered to kill whichever woman Bond beds in the first half of the film.

But Albert Finney comes just in time to bring a decent (though hardly original - look no further than Batman's butler) and warm character to life. And then follows another show-down of great suspense, perfectly portrayed as the trio of run-down "old people" use nothing but ancient military tactics and weaponry to overcome the many henchmen.

Sam Mendes has made a very good thriller with great tension and flair. But he forgot a lot of what makes a  Bond-movie, and as an exceptional Bond-fan, I can't overlook that. As a film, it's very entertaining though.

7/10