Skyfall

Daniel Craig’s continued development of the James Bond character well beyond its previous dimensions is at the forefront of Skyfall, the first Bond film directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty). The film’s opening sequence finds Bond botching an attempt to recover a stolen hard drive containing mega-important information (albeit after another stunningly awesome over-the-top chase scene, which has become something of a signature for the rebooted series). From there it’s all womanizing, day-drinking and swallowing handfuls of prescription medication. And when a bleary-eyed Bond is put through a series of physical and mental tasks to determine whether he is still fit for service (secret service, that is), we are confronted with a concept entirely foreign—Bond being bad at stuff. He misses practice shots and labors through push-ups and chin-ups, all while looking generally disheveled. The dialogue between Bond and his latest nemesis, Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem), is the most compelling aspect of the film—excluding the scene in which a military helicopter crashes into a Scottish castle. Cinemark 14, Feather River Cinemas and Paradise Cinema 7. Rated PG-13.