Unfortunately, 'Spectre' Is the Least Interesting Big-Budget Spy Film of 2015

I’m a Bond fan all my life so I was really looking forward to this film.  However, to be honest, I was disappointed with Spectre.  It wasn’t a bad movie, but I think that in this year’s crop of notable spy films, Spectre stands out the least.  Yes, I actually enjoyed The Man from U.N.C.L.E. more (which I thought was going to be least).

Spectre is the 24^th film in the 007 franchise and ties up with every Bond film starring Daniel Craig (it could actually serve as an appropriate wrap-up to his tenure).  The movie features James Bond (Craig) going against a nefarious secret criminal organization called SPECTRE and discovering an unsettling link between its head, Franz Oberhauser (Christoph Waltz), and his own past.

As far as being a movie production is concerned, Spectre is nigh impeccable.  It’s an extremely well-shot, well-directed, fine-looking film overall.  It has beautiful action scenes and a fairly intriguing narrative.  However, I feel that the script is underwhelming.  It doesn’t have the depth and thrill that I was hoping it would have.

Also, the villain is over-hyped, underused, and one-dimensional – a waste of Christoph Waltz’s casting.  In fact (mild spoilers), there’s a twist about the real identity of his character, which reminded me of the reveal of John Harrison’s real identity in Star Trek Into Darkness, but I wasn’t blown away at all.

Moreover, in my opinion, it felt that Daniel Craig wasn’t into his role.  So this somewhat lessened my absorption on the character (as far as this movie is concerned) and the story.   Because if James Bond himself isn’t invested on his own adventure, why should I?

Spectre is a stylish, entertaining Bond film, but it’s definitely a step down from Skyfall.  It isn’t innovative and outstanding.  In fact, Rogue Nation had been a more fitting 007 film than Spectre.