Review: Skyfall

Inception was often accused of owing more than a bit to the Bond movies, but the 23rd film in 007 series certainly returns the favour, with a fair few nods towards Christopher Nolan's recent efforts.

For starters we get a daring raid on a Shanghai skyscraper, followed by a villain's liar that looks more than a little reminiscent of Limbo. Bond even has his own Alfred-type character show up at one point, but as Nolan sadly denied us the chance to see Caine wield a sawed-off shotgun Get Carter-style, Skyfall easily one ups it in this area.

Jokes aside, Skyfall picks up where Casino Royale left off, righting the wrongs of the last effort (Quantum of Solace) and continuing the renaissance in the series since Daniel Craig took over in the lead role.

Bond has often been cited as the epitome of all things Anglo and Skyfall succeeds by making the series feel more English than it has in a long, long time - casting the cream of British acting talent and actually setting a fair bit of the story here in and amongst the traditional far-flung set pieces in foreign climes.

That being said, it is one of the international stars the steals the show, Javier Bardem plays his Bond Baddie with just the right amount of over-the-top mania that shows that despite what many would have had you believe a Roger Moore style villain can work in a modern setting.

Review: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

This remake of the Swedish crime thriller does most things bigger and better, but not that much is different to make it worth going out of the way to watch for fans of the original.

The main difference this time around is that this feels more like a film instead of TV episode (though when US TV whore Alan Dale pops up you could be forgiven for being mistaken), thanks to Fincher's eye for cinematography and another pulsating soundtrack from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.

As always, Fincher can always be relied on for an excellent title sequence, but in the case the Bond-esque take on Immigrant Song feels totally out of place with the rest of the film, unlike his previous efforts which complement the existing material.

However, what this film can't fix are the problems with the source material, suddenly swapping from crime thriller to Mission Impossible style chases and heists towards the end still mean things don't ever wind down satisfactorily - and there are times during the two and half hours that feel like like you're watching an Apple advert with the amount of product placement.