Being the 24th James Bond movie, there isn’t a lot of room for creative originality in the series. The Bond movies starring Daniel Craig (“Casino Royale,” “Quantum of Solace,” “Skyfall,” and “Spectre”) have all followed the same general formula. The movie opens with a intense action scene to grab the attention of the audience and is immediately followed by a title sequence that has as much money invested into it by the producers as the individual action scenes themselves. This title sequence featured a haunting and beautiful original piece from Sam Smith called “Writing’s on the Wall.” After the intro Bond takes part on his new mission, which only differs from previous missions in that he chases a new villain, finds a new lover, and uses different gadgets, but the director Sam Mendes (“Skyfall,” “American Beauty”) has attempted to provide a new flavor to the two Bond movies he has directed.

In “Spectre,” Bond is chasing a new villain but against the condemnation of his supervisor. As a result he is on the run from his own agency. In between dialogue and blood Bond goes through the all too familiar process of discovering who the enemy is. The discovery itself will leave long time Bond fans raving and those new to the franchise still satisfied.

What makes this installment so special is that it connects all the previous Daniel Craig films together with this villain that is different in more than just his name. But don’t worry. Even newcomers can easily follow the simple plot. On the downside, however, it is not innovative enough to overcome the repetitiveness of Bond movies. See one and for the most part you’ve seen them all.

Action, however, is what draws most people to these movies. And those coming for the action will leave entertained. In the opening action scene Bond is hunting a criminal above Mexico City during a Day of the Dead parade. The fight culminates from a chase on rooftops into a suspenseful struggle within a chopper. The eye-poppers don’t end there. The rest of the movie is dominated by car chases, firefights, torture, etc.

“Spectre” teases to many previous titles making this one of the best for hardcore fans and a definite must see. It will entertain those who are just looking for crazy over the top action. But those who weren’t impressed by previous Bond films might as well skip this one because it is not much different.