Big Picture Big Sound

James Bored

"Spectre" had an unfortunate, probably unfair, but unavoidable disadvantage before it was even released. Following the last Bond entry, "Skyfall," was not going to be an easy task because it was not only a great Bond film but also a masterful piece of filmmaking. Following "Skyfall" was a herculean task indeed and "Spectre" can't quite match - or even come close to matching - that superlative entry in the franchise. Comparatively or not, "Spectre" is kind of a mess of a movie - peaking far too early and falling off shortly after.

Let's start off on a positive note. The opening sequence of "Spectre" is nothing short of astonishing. Set in Mexico City during the Day of the Dead parade, the camera navigates throughout the crowd in a single take. The tracking shot  - courtesy of cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema - is fluidly shot, leading Bond (Daniel Craig) to an exciting helicopter ride. Sounds thrilling? It is - and then it stops.

Bond globetrots and "Spectre" continues on to become a little too crowded for its own good. Bond needs to track down a nefarious syndicate - doesn't he always? - that leads him to Franz Oberhauser (Christoph Waltz), who may know a little more about Bond than Bond knows about him.

Bond movies have always been about Bond versus the baddie and that is certainly true here to an extent. These movies lead to the inevitable showdown but "Spectre" makes a few different narrative stops along the way. There is a lot of connections to the syndicate that harken back to Bond's past and past Bond films. It's fitting that ghosts of Bond's past haunt him throughout a movie where ghosts of better movies loom so heavily.

"Spectre" brings back some familiar faces, including Ralph Fiennes as M, Naomie Harris as Moneypenny and Ben Whishaw as Q. New to the cast is Monica Bellucci as Lucia, underused as a Bond girl for only a few scenes. Léa Seydoux is the film's true Bond girl. Seydoux has been on the rise since her heartbreaking work in "Blue is the Warmest Color" and isn't given much to do besides travel the world with Bond.

Sam Mendes returns to the director's chair for "Spectre", the 24th outing in the Bond franchise. It is said to be his last - and Craig's - but they have been a relatively reliable pair. Mendes knows how to shoot these big action pieces and "Spectre" looks great. The screenplay is too uneven though, creating long stretches of narrative lulls, which suck the energy out of the movie.

If "Spectre" ends up being the last outing for the Mendes-Craig pairing, it will be giving the Bond series resurgence. But we won't hold anything against them - we'll always have "Skyfall."