James Bond: The Real Story Of Skyfall's Cinematic Success
4. A Promising Director...
The main reason for Skyfall’s success is on the shoulders of its Director, Sam Mendes. Unlike Marc Forster, Mendes seemed to have a history with the Bond franchise and its lead actor. Mendes had signed onto untitled project shortly after Quantum of Solace’s release. One of Mendes’ reasons for signing onto the project was due to Craig’s performance and the revitalization of the franchise, believing that change was what it needed, not to mention that Mendes and Craig had worked together previously on Road To Perdition.
Mendes was renowned as a particularly skilled and dedicated director and remained loyal to his part in Skyfall’s production all the way through MGM’s financial troubles. Furthermore, Mendes had a pre-existing relationship with the writers too, particularly John Logan. Mendes was heavily involved in writing the script for the movie, indicating that the work ethic between the director and writing team was a collaborative effort.
This highlights the advantages of hiring Mendes as director: He was loyal to the franchise, respected and friendly with the main cast member and heavily involved in the writing of the script. Notwithstanding this, Mendes also brought in legendary cinematographer, Roger Deakins whom he had worked with on several projects over the years. And that really was one of his most important moves.