Ensofter Overrated and overhyped

XoWizIama Excellent adaptation.

PiraBit if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

Helllins It is both painfully honest and laugh-out-loud funny at the same time.

Harvey Kong Tin I have read all of the Modesty books a long time ago, and liked them better than the Ian Flemming James Bond books. This movie is of course better than the one made in the 60s' - which I saw at that time (I read the books later on).I did read some of the reviews here, before viewing this fairly recent movie adaption - and I was prepared for a less than stellar movie treatment of Modesty Blaise. However I was pleasantly surprised at how viewable this movie is. I was not expecting a full action movie treatment - for such an action packed character - but when the action sequence did come, it did not disappoint me much.I thought Alexandra Staden did a reasonable effort at portraying Modesty Blaise - and overall I felt this was a reasonable effort at recreating the Modesty Blaise mystique via the cinema. I do hope that Modesty Blaise will get the full movie series treatment it deserves. I'm sure it can outdo James Bond any day when no expense is spared on it - this smaller scale movie will do in the meantime to show it does have the potential to be much much more. I just hope that a suitable actor will fill Modesty Blaise shoes who is prepared to play the same role time and time again...

mediumsizedeal In case you don't know, I'd like to make it clear that this is a true story.The first flashback actually happened. When the creator of Modesty Blaise, Peter O'Donnell, was a serving soldier he gave food to a feral child who carried a stick with a nail through it as a weapon.He hoped (as do I) that she grew up to some kind of happy life. It seems unlikely, though.The remaining flashback sequences are a fleshing-out of O'Donnell's own back-story for the character, and ring true to the original.My argument with the rest of the film, the sequences with Modesty Blaise in the casino, is that they're not up to the standard of plotting of the books and cartoon strips. To give one instance, Modesty Blaise has a gun held to her head and dragged behind a curtain. As anyone who knows the stories is aware, a villain who holds a gun within arm's reach of either Modesty Blaise or Willie Garvin is in for a serious kicking.This film is an encouraging step in the right direction, but I still worry that the next film in the series, if there is one, will be poorly plotted.

Enchorde Recap: It's business as usual at Louche's casino in Tanger. The casino is about to close and prepares for a big transaction the next day. The owner Louche and some staff leave for the night, leaving Modesty in charge. Suddenly a troop of armed gangsters storm the casino, shooting wildly. Unknown to Modesty, they have already killed Louche, and are now after the money hidden in the vault. But no one present, and still alive, at the casino knows the code to open the vault. The vault itself is heavily booby trapped with explosives so the assailants can't blow the door as planned. Suddenly Modesty finds herself eye to eye with the gangsters' leader Miklos in a game of roulette with their lives in jeopardy.Comments: This is a review written with no connection what so ever with other published media about Modesty Blaise, as I have neither seen nor read any of it. The first point I like to make is that this is slightly wrongfully classified. Foremost I thought this was a thriller with a battle of wits between Modesty and Miklos as the main plot. Sure, there are some bursts of action but they are not really an integral or important part of the story.As already mentioned the main plot and the main suspense-filled scene, is the game between Modesty and Miklos. It's an innovative and intriguing way of revealing the background of a character, and in doing so much of the story takes place outside the casino at a much earlier time. Someone said that it is almost like a pilot for a TV-series, and the feeling is that it might indeed be used as such. But, I felt it was a much better way to introduce a character than many other have done. I was in no way disappointed in the lack of action, instead I enjoyed this game, the history much more than a simple action movie.I think the two main stars, Alexandra Staden and Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau did very well. Staden especially portrays Modesty very well, and really carries this confident and talented character.7/10

Propagandist Having heard of Modesty Blaise before, but never having read a novel or a comic strip, my wife and I liked the film a lot. It delivered, in a captivating way, a good introduction to the character and her background.Although it has some action flick elements, it is much more an intimate play, excellently written. Sadly, this is also, where a major drawback of the movie is revealed. An intimate play lives on the capabilities of its actors and unfortunately only half of the cast delivered. While Alexandra Staden did an excellent job as Modesty Blaise, her counterpart Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau - as the villain Miklos - did not. Smiling his way through the plot as if it is an extend toothpaste commercial, he fails to build up an atmosphere of anxiety that would have made the movie a masterpiece. The supporting cast is somehow similar, from some stereotyped gangsters and sluts to decent performances from Fred Pearson as Professor Lob and Eugenia Yuan as Irina.