Show is its own worst enemy

Friday, October 17, 2008

Spy fiction sinks or swims based on the audience's ability to buy into the premise. My favorite of the James Bond pictures, "Goldfinger," has such a wacky plot that if you dedicate even a minute thinking about it, you'd laugh it off. But the telling is crisp and exciting, and there's wit and spirit in the performances. The story doesn't sit still on screen for a moment -- even expository scenes (a business dinner, for one, or a golf match) are brisk; from frame one, it's hurtling forward, and that motion sweeps the audience up and keeps the viewer involved and interested. The major strength of "Goldfinger," though, was its own self-awareness -- even when the stakes were nothing less than the future of the world, the movie's still having fun.

To Read More
Subscribe Sign In
Continue reading with a subscription
Subscription options