How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from Skyfall.
Quote #1
M: Are we to call this "civilian oversight"?
MALLORY: No, we're to call this "retirement planning." Your country has only the highest respect for you and your many years of service. When your current posting is completed, you'll be awarded GCMG with full honors.
By being forced into retirement, M feels as if she's been put out to pasture. She may be old, but she isn't tired, and she will never go down without a fight.
Quote #2
M: You know the rules of the game. You've been playing it long enough. We both have.
BOND: Maybe too long.
M: Speak for yourself.
M may be old, but she's not giving up. She's not going down without a fight. And she and Bond have that in common.
Quote #3
MALLORY: Why not stay dead? You have the perfect way out. Go and live quietly somewhere. Not many field agents get to leave this cleanly. […] It's a young man's game. Look, you've been seriously injured. There's no shame in saying you've lost a step. The only shame would be not admitting it until it's too late.
Is Mallory insulting Bond here, calling him long in the tooth? Or is he challenging him, letting him know how much harder the job will get with every year Bond gets older—if he lives that long?