Director Sam Mendes’ Skyfall and Spectre capture the maturation of Daniel Craig into that of Ian Fleming’s classic character. While Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace showcase a more brutal and relentless Bond, Mendes’s direction depicts a more physically restrained Bond. The action sequences are breezier. As Craig ages, so does Bond, and thus there is a reliance on more guns, gadgets, and intelligence behind his fighting style.

If time has proven anything, however, it’s that James Bond is resilient. The movie franchise celebrated its 50^th anniversary in 2012 with a massive Blu-ray boxed set and the theatrical release of “Skyfall,” a film that is arguably the best in series history. Directed by Sam Mendes (“American Beauty,” “Revolutionary Road”), “Skyfall” embraces Craig’s new reading of Bond while offering plenty of nods to the franchise’s iconic trappings. 

The latest Bond film Skyfall fills viewer’s heads with delectable, admirable views of what it means to be British. There are plenty of other explanations as to why Bond films are adored by American audiences. But some of that success must be credited to the long tradition of Anglophilia in America. The American expansionist impulse has a connection to the love of Englishness, as the United States inherited, more or less, the role of the great imperial power from Britain.