Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Spectre’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

When it comes to storytelling, a few things come in to play to make the story as perfect as possible. For one, the tale has to be compelling of course, and the characters need to pop off the screen or the page and face tests along the way. After all, if the character isn't being pushed to do something more, to be something more, then we will never find ourselves truly attached.

Thankfully there's an easy way to do that, give the character the greatest challenge that they will ever face by way of a powerful nemesis. Sometimes the nemesis may be a bit more philosophical in nature, say the roadblocks toward achieving their goals. But often times it comes in the form of a grand villain, a person who wants nothing more to see our hero suffer and falter and when it comes to the James Bond franchise, our dearest spy has been without a true nemesis for a long time but that all changed in Spectre.

Now for those of us who love the franchise, that name should bring joy, for after years of legal battles behind the scenes, the greatest challenge and most diabolical of organizations our intrepid spy ever faced returned to the franchise at last and let me tell you... their return was worth the wait. For this film as it turns out, is nothing short of fantastic, finally pitting Daniel Craig's Bond against the legendary and powerhouse organization that his predecessors once faced and the film handles this in incredible fashion.

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Now, I will do my best to not totally lose myself in a fanboy moment, because this is a Bond film that I could fawn over for hours. But there are a couple of elements I need to fanboy about in this film, so you have been warned. So, the first thing I really loved about this film... is the fact that it manages to tie everything together when it comes to the Daniel Craig Bond films. I love the fact that the entire time we have been enjoying these films, S.P.E.C.T.R.E. has been with us all the way and that adds new depth and layers to the Craig era, meaning I'm going to have to go back and watch all of them again to appreciate all the nuances put on display in Spectre.

Speaking of this secret organization, one must also take a few minutes and appreciate their evil plan in this one. It's quite diabolical really and I appreciate the fact that this time around it didn't involve nuclear weapons or some wild and crazy scheme. This was a plan grounded in fear, grounded in control and one that allows for a dark cloud to hang over the film throughout its running time and perhaps the sweetest treat, and the part that I simply cannot hold back about... is the mastermind behind the whole thing. Because it is just amazing to see Ernst Starvo Blofeld return to the fold and do his thing and he is perfectly played by Christoph Waltz and is oddly… is even more evil in this film than in past ones.

I will also make a point of saying that some of the fans may be furious over the ending, and that's understandable given how it plays out and what it seems to imply for the story. But stay through the end credits to have your concerns addressed. But outside of that, this really is a fantastic Bond film through and through and after viewing this one again, my mind is battling over which Craig film I love more, this one or Skyfall and I guess a few extra viewings of Spectre will help me in deciding that. Either way, this is a wonderful entry in the franchise, one that finally brings back the finest villain Bond has ever faced.

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