2008 (Marc Forster) PG, 106 min
Starring: Daniel Craig, Giancarlo Giannini, Judi Dench

The latest installment in the venerable James Bond series is working hard to keep up with that whippersnapper Jason Bourne and his bone-shuddering car chases; to cement Craig in the pantheon; and to live up to the exciting reinventions of the previous movie in the series. Quantum of Solace starts minutes after the end of Casino Royale, as Bond stalks the shadowy organization that bankrolled the villainous Le Chiffre and destroyed his lover, Vesper Lynd. He eventually, but not carefully, finds them – a Machiavellian New World Order, fronted by a creepy eco-entrepreneur. But the most important questions are: Theme song? Pretty good (much better the last one). Femmes fatale? Oh yes, but no one to match Eva Green’s soulful Vesper Lynd. M? Steelier than ever. Q, Moneypenny, catch phrases, bad puns, cool gadgets that will look laughable in a few years? Sadly, no. Not even a jaunty toss of a fedora onto a hat stand. Craig has said that he feels he has “to earn them.” Even after all this? Now, that’s working too hard.