Metascore

Universal acclaim - based on 43 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1102 Ratings

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 36 out of 43
  2. Negative: 0 out of 43
  1. Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    Nov 7, 2012
    100
    Skyfall triumphantly reinvents 007 in one of the best Bonds ever. This is a full-blooded, joyous, intelligent celebration of a beloved cultural icon, with Daniel Craig taking full possession of a role he previously played unconvincingly. I don't know what I expected in Bond No. 23, but certainly not an experience this invigorating.
  2. Reviewed by: Steve Persall
    Nov 7, 2012
    100
    The movie's assured direction by Sam Mendes can't be underestimated.
  3. Reviewed by: Betsy Sharkey
    Nov 7, 2012
    80
    In Skyfall, Mendes has given us a thrilling new chapter in a franchise that by all rights should have been gasping for air - which really makes him the hero of this saga.
  4. Reviewed by: Dana Stevens
    Nov 9, 2012
    60
    Skyfall leaves you wondering whether this incarnation of the character has anywhere left to go. It's the portrait of a spy at the end of his rope by an actor who seems close to his.

See all 43 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Negative: 68 out of 336
  1. The latest entry to the long-running James Bond series has perhaps hit a high note for the series as a whole, which is fitting, considering it was made for the 50th anniversary of the franchise. Pretty much everything feels right about this movie, the acting is superb from all involved, but I think Javier Bardem's turn as the ever famous Bond villain, in this film Silva, steals the show magnificently: he's just the right amount creepy and eerie as he is camp, liking him to Heath Ledger's Joker is perhaps some of the best praise I can give him (shame he does not have an Oscar nomination, although he does have a BAFTA nomination). The film starts in a very exciting fight and chase scene, but the rest of the film is not as high octane as the opening scene, which is good as it really lets you get to see the characters properly. While most of the old Bond films have him going to exotic places to get the bad guy, Skyfall spends most of its run time in England, and the end of the film in Scotland, again, perfect for the 50th anniversary thing they had going, the scenes outside of England are just as good as ever, particularly the scenes in Shanghai, containing some of the best cinematography I have ever seen. This is not found only in Shanghai, for one of the film's crowning glories is how beautifully shot it really is. On the 50th anniversary topic, several nods are made to what happened in the older films: a lot of these, sadly, went over my head, as I have not seen many Bond films at all. It does deal with the timeline as well as it could, showing an old institution, which is changing with the times, but sticking to its roots was a fine indication of where the series is headed in the future. Exciting, beautiful, tense and disturbing can all be used to describe Skyfall, whose only problem in my book is that the final showdown was a little lackluster in places compared to the rest of the film, helped only by Silva's creepy arrival. The best Bond film? Perhaps. 92/100. Expand
  2. I thought Skyfall was the best of the Daniel Craig movies. Javier Bardem was a great villain,as always. The plot was very good. great chases and fighting. Although I love Sean Connery more, Skyfall made me a big Daniel Craig fan now too. Expand
  3. Bond simply can't avoid falling back to old cliches if the script doesn't offer smarter opportunities, and the story is rather simple overall. But the cinematography is great, the action breathtaking, the acting fabulous and Javier Bardem gives one of the more original (and personal) villains of any Bond movie. Not as good as "Casino Royal", but one of his better films. Expand
  4. MB_
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Why didn't the badguy just kill Q at home or when he exploded her headquarters? Why didn't Bond ask for a doctor to remove the fragments rather than using a knife and his left hand? Why didn't the bad guy just kill bond, what did he want him for? Why didn't they just hide in the tunnel as the bad guy didn't know it existed? Why did the priest hole lead to no where? Why did Bond walk over the ice when everyone else went around? Where did the ice henchman appear from? Why did Q plug the bad guy's PC into the network rather than an isolated PC? Why did they lock the badguy in a glass room which is locked electronically rather than just use a padlock? When did Bond set off the radio beacon on the island and why didn't the electronics mastermind badguy not have him checked? When did the badguy put the explosives on the roof of the chamber letting the train through, wouldn't he have used his time better, running away? Why didn't they just withdraw all the at risk agents? Why didn't bond shoot him at any point, he'd be tortured for months by the Chinese why would he talk to them? Why was there more screen time dedicated to Judi Dench than for Daniel Craig? Why did bond's face change from Brosnan to Craig yet M's is still Dench? Why would you cut up a perfectly good opening action scene to an old woman moaning in an office ever 30 seconds? Can I get a refund? Expand

See all 336 User Reviews

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