In following the critical and commercial success of Skyfall, it would be fair to say that 24th James Bond outing Spectre arrived in theaters burdened with unreasonably high expectations. While nowhere near a bad movie, Spectre still won't be regarded as one of the best entries in the series, but what it does boast is one of the greatest pre-credits action sequences in the history of the long-running franchise. Opening with a brilliant tracking shot that sees 007 casually abandon a potential conquest (how unlike him...) before taking a leisurely stroll across the rooftops of Mexico city, things escalate quickly when a botched assassination attempt causes Bond to flee from a collapsing building and chase target Marco Sciarra through the streets, before the two engage in some life-threatening hand-to-hand combat in and around a barrel-rolling helicopter. Sam Mendes marked his return to the fold in some style with this extended high-octane set-piece that featured no shortage of death-defying practical effects, but unfortunately the uneven quality of the rest of the movie saw Spectre reach its peak before the credits had even rolled.
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