Craig's Bond Saves Solace

Quantum of Solace doesn't quite measure up to its predecessor, but that's because the Bond makers set the bar so high with Casino Royale, say critics. Daniel Craig returns for his second outing as the superspy, and his cold-blooded but charismatic performance ensures that his "place as the best Bond since Sean Connery remains secure," Joe Neumaier writes in the New York Daily News.

Quantum picks up right where Royale leaves off, but the thinner plot makes it feel like an "afterthought riding on a better movie's coattails," William Arnold writes in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. The action is fast and furious—although for some, it strays too far into conventional territory. "Leave the action to your Jason Bournes," Roger Ebert gripes in the Chicago Sun-Times. "This is a swampy old world. The deeper we sink in, the more we need James Bond to stand above it."
(More Quantum of Solace stories.)