Daniel Craig is back in his third performance as James Bond in the series’ 23rd Bond film 50 years after the franchise was launched with Dr. No in 1962. In Skyfall, Bond is tasked with investigating an attack on MI6, which turns out to be part of an assassination attempt on M (Judi Dench) by former MI6 operative, Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem). At this point, that’s pretty much all I have for you in terms of a synopsis. Just like with The Dark Knight Rises, I’ve held out on seeing trailers and have yet to hear the new theme song sung by the critically acclaimed Adele. What I do know is that the movie is going to be awesome.

Betsy Sharkey of The Los Angeles Times writes, “In Skyfall, Sam Mendes [the director] gives us a thrilling new chapter in a franchise, that by all rights should have been gasping for air, with a well-cast, smartly acted film that shows Bond’s inner turmoil and back story and keeps the action, style and mission solid and entertaining.”

Casino Royale opened at just under $41M, and Quantum of Solace opened at $67.5M. HSX predicts that the Skyfall will open to a modest $72M, but Fandango reports that the most recent spy flick is selling twice as many tickets as the most recent film, Quantum of Solace. In the two weeks it’s been out overseas, the film has already generated a whopping $289M $321M before opening in the US, so I’m taking the over and guessing that the buzz will help Skyfall earn anywhere between $85M-$100M in its debut weekend.

To download James Bond related media or find tickets for a theater near you, navigate to the official Skyfall website.

Rating: PG-13 // Genre: Action, Adventure, Crime // Runtime: 2 hr. 23 min. // Starring: Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Naomie Harris// Directed by: Sam Mendes // Written by: Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, John Logan // Produced by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Danjaq, Albert R. Broccoli’s Eon Productions, Sphere Studios// Distributed by: Columbia Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

Edit 11/12/2012: According to Box Office Mojo, Skyfall earned $90M through the weekend in its opening release. “$72M.” Ha.

Edit 12/13/2012: Deadline.com reports that Skyfall has set a new record for Sony Pictures’ highest grossing movie ever beating Spiderman 3’s $890M, and it still hasn’t been released in China.