Sam Mendes to direct the next 007 film?

While production for the 23rd 007 feature might be on hold while MGM is up on the selling block, there are reports floating around the internet this week that "American Beauty" director Sam Mendes might be the one calling the shots when the cameras eventually roll. A friend of mine had sent me a text informing me of the possible directing gig for the British filmmaker, stating that it may have been a good idea several years ago following Mendes' last great film, "Road to Perdition", but perhaps not so much now following his forgettable trifecta of "Jarhead", "Away We Go" and the abysmal "Revolutionary Road".

I would have to agree with my friend, to an extent. True, Mendes hit the ground running in 1999 with the superb "American Beauty" and followed that film up three years later with "Perdition", which I thought was every bit the equal to his end-of-the-millenium award winner. But after that, Mendes began to lose his touch. "Jarhead", which could have been a "Full Metal Jacket" for the first Gulf War, turned out to be a beautifully shot mixed bag at best. I've said my peace in the previous paragraph on "Revolutionary Road", which was followed up six months later with the wee indie-wannabe road comedy "Away We Go", which had some genuinely funny moments sprinkled throughout as well as a solid performance from Maya Rudolph, but in the end proved to be a pretty pointless affair. The promise that Mendes showed early in his career seemed to be slipping down the drain.

So, could a big-budget action film revive Mendes? Probably not. Mendes is a filmmaker who works best with actors and not pyrotechnics. But one never knows until the film is completed. If he does get the gig, perhaps he will bring more life to the characters than Marc Forster did in "Quantum of Solace". If he is unsure about handling the action, perhaps Mendes will hire someone who can.