Quantum of Solace

Forget all the lukewarm reviews you've already read and the British press' collective whining over the fact that this Bond's got too much action, because Quantum of Solace is the finest installment in the storied franchise's 22-film history. Spring boarding from his art house pedigree and using his love for classic Bond titles From Russia With Love and Goldfinger as inspiration, director Marc Forster has crafted a stylish 007 adventure that's both brutal and light on its feet.

Much like Daniel Craig's chiseled frame (you know, the one that sent ladies swooning when it emerged from the blue Caribbean in the last flick), Quantum of Solace is a Bond film trimmed of all the fat the series has accumulated over its 40+ year run. As everyone knows by now, Bond's latest adventure is — for the first time ever in the typically formulaic franchise — a direct continuation of its predecessor, Casino Royale. But where the latter was a dramatically (and in some cases sluggishly) paced love story, Quantum is a corker that fires on all cylinders as Bond tracks down the baddies behind the death of his ladylove Eva in Casino Royale.

Bond breathlessly trots across multiple continents and hemispheres as he hunts down the people behind Quantum, a slimy, shape-shifting organization whose hobbies include destabilizing governments, supporting dictators, exploiting natural resources, and getting in bed with the CIA and MI6. Daniel Craig — who seems even more comfortable in the tux this time 'round — plays the ideal Bond for this day and age, both brooding and charming and not afraid to go rogue against a faceless enemy, seemingly helmed by the deliciously slimy Dominic Greene (played to scumbag perfection by Mathieu Amalric).

However, just because Quantum is streamlined doesn't mean Forster's skimped on the essential Bondian elements, namely wit, sophistication, and style. Paul Haggis' tight, almost minimalist script still gives enough room for sharp banter between mom-like M and her prodigal 00-son, while Forster peppers set pieces with a retro-futuristic look harking back to the days of Ken Adam. In addition, Olga Kurylenko is fiery hot as the vengeful Camille, a former Bolivian agent who acts more as Bond's accomplice than his bedroom partner. But for all its fine-tuned precision and expertly timed twists, sexy style, and jaw-dropping action sequences, it's Daniel Craig's blue-eyed Bond that steals Quantum's show. Forget his pumped up pecs and closely cropped blond locks; his ability to play a remorseless assassin one moment and a suave, tongue-in-cheek British agent the next is what makes him the best 007 since Connery swaggered onto the screen in the 1960s.

Though critics have complained about Quantum's frantic pace and lack of a definitive resolution, it's important to remember that this is both a revenge film and a dark middle act to what seems to be a 007 trilogy — a prospect that already has us licking our chops for the 23rd installment in the series. Quantum, thanks to a deft blend of exotic escapism and bare-bones modernism, is more than strong enough to be judged on its own. In fact, it's the perfect Bond film.