The 007 Project: Spectre

Synopsis in 3 sentences or less:

Bond finally identifies Spectre, the criminal organization behind all the recent plots that he has foiled, and he learns that their leader is someone from his past. He vows to protect the daughter of former Spectre operative Mr. White and falls in love with her in the process. 

Memorable Quote:
You're a kite dancing in a hurricane, Mr. Bond.  ~Mr. White

Highlight:

Lea Seydoux is my favorite Bond girl of the series. She's beautiful, smart, witty, kind -- I love everything about her.  

Lowlight:

The end where Bond is in the old MI6 building falls flat and feels a bit cartoonish with the photos on the wall of former Spectre villains and Bond having to save Madeleine before the timer goes off. 

Most interesting piece of IMDB trivia:

Following the success of this movie, Mexico City held its first The Day of the Dead parade, complete with floats, dancers, and giant marionettes, in 2016. Prior to this, no parade had ever been held, despite the movie scenes.

Other thoughts, observations, and questions I didn’t ask when I was in fourth grade:

• Fun setting for the opening with the Day of the Dead parade, though too much CGI at times. And apparently Mexico City doesn't have any air defense, as the helicopter is allowed to fly out of control over the crowded plaza. 
• This is so cool -- it's the exact same hotel and elevator as License to Kill: 

• The guy who plays Max Denbigh (aka C) is a great actor who I remember as Moriarty in the Sherlock series. 
• My favorite scene is where Bond crashes the Spectre meeting and Blofeld calls him out in front of everyone. 
• Looks fun to drive around Rome at night with no other cars on the roads. 
• I don't know why Bond has to ditch his priceless car in the Tiber, he could have gotten away in it. 
• The Austrian clinic is a great location, and in fact the filming location has been turned into a 007 museum. 
• When Madeleine tells Bond about the time that "A man came to my house to kill my father," that's a reference to the beginning of No Time to Die. 
• The train they take in North Africa is quite fancy considering they seem to be in the middle of nowhere. 
• The storyline of Bond and Olberhauzer as foster brothers falls flat, mostly because their interactions in the movie don't seem to reflect a shared history or familiarity.  

Final Analysis:

Overall this is a decent movie, but it's not particularly inspiring to me. Lea Seydoux is outstanding, and Christophe Waltz deliver an excellent performance, but the story doesn't have a lot of depth or meat on the bone. Ranking it 15 out of 24.