Why so serious, Mr Bond?

Are the new James Bond movies too serious? Ok, so I'm blogging about Bond again. I'll try not to make a habit of it.

The teaser trailer is out for Skyfall, the new Bond film released in November.

Check it out, then let's talk:

It looks as moody and serious as the previous Daniel Craig films. All the thrills and spills of a helicopter landing, coffins and a tube train derailment.

Old school Bond was always a mix of fun, cheek and grit. There was always a certain cold nastiness to Sean Connery's Bond, but it was leavened with a bit of glamour and fun.

Now it feels as though they have looked at the box office success of something like the new Batman films and thrown out all the fun and cheek in favour of a tonne of grit. They even enlisted director Sam Mendes to lend dramatic clout.

Why so serious?

I think this brilliant song sums it up perfectly. It's an alternative theme tune for Quantum of Solace:

Other action films have taken up the marketplace left by Bond's pursuit of credibility. I thought Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol had all the pomp, invention, scale and glamour of an old-school Bond movie. It was great fun as a result.

I'm not saying classic Bond is perfect. He was a big square, mysogynist killer for the man who thinks The Beatles are a racket and wears blue towelling trunks with a matching playsuit. He is a materialistic sociopath xenophobe. Quite unpleasant.

What about this quote from Goldfinger? "My dear girl, there are some things that just aren't done, such as drinking Dom Perignon '53 above the temperature of 38 degrees Fahrenheit. That's just as bad as listening to the Beatles without earmuffs."

In short, he's a bit of a dick.

You get the feeling Bond would have been more into Wings than The Beatles, which is perhaps why Paul McCartney wrote the theme tune for Live and Let Die.

But don't get me wrong. I am not saying we should return to the Roger Moore days of hover gondolas and penny whistle sight gags. I like the idea of making Bond a little more vulnerable and gritty. One of the reasons I lked The World is Not Engough was the way he was left hanging from the Millennium Dome, having failed his opening mission. It reminded me of the way Jimmy Stewart is left hanging at the opening of Vertigo, vulnerable and flawed.

All I am saying is the grit and seriousness need to be balanced with fun and glamour. It's all part of the Bond mix. You can't have him getting drunk and weeping at the sky bar all the time.

Having said all this, I look forward to the new Skyfall. It looks classy as all hell and I'm intrigued with where they are going to take the franchise.

So, what do you think? Do you miss the light edge of Bond past, or are you happy with the new grit? What do you want from Skyfall?

What do you make of the first two Daniel Craig Bonds? I thought Casino Royale was cracking, but Quantum of Solace was a letdown.

Follow Charlie Gates on Twitter