Over usage of CGI, flat Bond girl, wooden dialogue, predictable plot twists, terrible direction, no heart. That's the final entry in the Brosnan Era. It was and still will be, the worst Bond film to ever come to existence.
Bond on a mission in North Korea to bring down a Colonel using conflict diamonds to trade illegally for weapons, Bond kills him and sabotages his plans, but his captured and tortured. A year or so later, He's released in exchange that the MI6 release a captured Zao, the dead Colonel Moon's right hand man. Bond realizing that there is more to this than what he's being told and realizing there is a traitor somewhere deep in MI6 He gathers info from a contact in China before heading out to Cuba. Upon arriving in Cuba, he meets Jinx, an undercover NSA agent with her own agenda, that's somewhat similar to Bond's. After a shootout in a clinic in Cuba, Zao escapes but leaving behind a diamond. Upon further inspection the diamond bears instant resemblance to the same conflict diamond Colonel Moon was using, though it's engraved with GG: Gustav Graves, a British Billionaire. Bond sets out to find out who Graves really is and it turns out, he really is Colonel Moon. He was never killed, just severely wounded, and underwent DNA Gene therapy to have his appearance altered. Working with Jinx and the NSA, Bond must stop Graves and Zao from using a solar energy source laser called "Icarus" which is to cut the Korean Demilitarized Zone in half in order to bring the two together and unite a powerful military force.
Though Tomorrow Never Dies and The World Is Not Enough do feature somewhat of a thin plot with heavy focus on the action, they're still enjoyable. Continuing with that trend, this installment released for the franchise's 40th Anniversary, was a slap in the face. The idea almost sounds recycled from other previous attempts in a way, and the CGI is extremely bad. See the Iceberg melting scene, thank me later for being right. Halle Berry is easily the worst Bond girl, her character seamed interesting, but with painful dialogue, cringe worthy acting and no chemistry with Brosnan, it's hard to take her seriously as Bond's equal in this.
Once again, a terrible flat score from David Arnold, but to make it worse, an ever worse title song by Madonna. The opening action scene in the prologue is fun, but afterwards it's pretty much the same thing you've already seen in prior Brosnan Bond films and action films of that time. The Villain plotline, HA! Am I supposed to take this serious? Is Toby Stephens really being scary? Please, I'd rather be scared of Georgi Koskov, who was a fumbling idiot, than Gustav Graves. It's in a weird way almost like a much worse version of The Spy Who Loved Me, except Die Another Day has no heart or soul. I remember seeing this as youngster in the theater with my father, and being blown away by how "cool" it was, but at that age, anything is cool to you. At a much older age, this is crap. It's a shame to see the franchise hit an all time low with this. It's a shame of what Brosnan's tenure came to be. It could have been what we all wanted to, but that's what happens when you go with the opposite approach to things.
As you can see, I don't like this. I'm not young anymore, I'm older, and I hate it with a passion. The producers realized they messed up, and the only way to come back from this pit they dug for themselves, was to go back. Go back to the origins of Commander James Bond, C.M.G., RN. The only way to do that was to adapt and modernize the very first novel: Casino Royale. With This in motion, Pierce Brosnan bowed out of the role.
The whole world would seemingly forget about James Bond, until 2006, when a Blonde haired man stepped into the Tuxedo and holstered the Walther PPK and brought to life a more human-like James Bond for the world. Casino Royale, 2006, James Bond would return with Daniel Craig in the lead role and the world was mesmerized that their favorite spy was about to be relevant again for a broader audience.
Casino Royale
Four years after the monstrosity that was Die Another Day, EON Productions would return to the origins and go back to Bond's first assignment; Casino Royale. The result was complete reboot with Daniel Craig playing the super spy and Martin Campbell returning to direct. Earning many accolades and critical acclaim, Bond was finally able to connect to audiences around the world and show a much more different side to Commander Bond. A more human, violent, emotional, James Bond.
Set in modern times and establishing a new timeline, Commander James Bond has finally earned his Double-Oh status with the MI6 and is established as 007. Upon a lengthy, violent, chase through Madagascar, killing a bomb maker, Bond discovers that the bomb maker was working for a man, Alex Dimitrios, an associate of Terrorist Financier, Le Chiffre, and sets out for the Bahamas to locate him and gather further information. Bond uses his wife to get closer to Dimitrios before setting out to Miami and killing him. After killing him, he realizes that Dimitrios had hired a man to set off a bomb in the Miami international airport, targeting the latest Skyfleet Prototype Airplane. Bond eventually stops the man and is given the assignment of going to Montenegro to enlist in a high stakes poker game, of which Le Chiffre will be at, and collect the winnings and take him down.
Bond's only help is the lovely, somewhat mysterious Vesper Lynd, an agent for the British Treasury. Bond escapes many near death experiences. Nearly getting killed by gunfire, having his head nearly chopped off, and being poisoned. But to Bond, it only fuels him to further continue the job and complete the mission, which he does, he wins in the showdown and collects all the earnings. Him along with Vesper are taken captive by Le Chiffre and his men in an attempt to take the money do to him owing money to several terrorist organizations across the globe. Le Chiffre is eventually killed by the same organization that employs him and Bond is rescued. Bond decides for what he thinks is best, to resign from the MI6, and continue a peaceful life with Vesper at his side. Though it's more that what it seems, and that the job isn't actually complete. Feeling betrayal and anger, Bond sets out to complete the job and learns the first valuable lesson: Never Trust Anyone
There is so many things that are perfect about this. It's easily one of the best Bond films since, hell, The Living Daylights. It was a much more darker, harder edged, violent James Bond, and to some it was different seeing 007 with a knack for killing people and enjoying it too. This was your dads James Bond, this was pretty much a Bond who to some may not have had all the charm, but was charming and suave in different ways, but knew how to kick major ass. After the decline of the franchise with the Brosnan films, Daniel Craig put on the tux and holstered the PPK and embodied Bond perfectly for a new generation that had critics and movie-goers screaming for more.
Going with a much more realistic approach, the gadgets were gone and so was Q. The villain was a much more human like character with his own agenda and not some elaborate plan that was silly. There was humor, but in a different, black comedy style approach. The locations are fantastic too, spanning from the Czech Republic, England, Madagascar, Bahamas, Florida, Montenegro, and Italy. They were breathtaking and it while it didn't have crazy elaborate sets, it still felt breathtaking and simply awesome. It also had one of the most brilliant chases not just in Bond film history, but in film history. I still recall it as my favorite to this day. The chase featured Bond chasing Mollaka, the bomb maker in Madagascar, through the shanty towns, through a construction site with Bond running head on through dry wall (Any means necessary to catch your target, right?) and through an embassy. Then you had the action scene at the Miami International Airport which was gripping and intense. The poker game at Casino Royale, while to some felt slow, it was actually quite intense, as you didn't know what was to happen next. Then there was the finale in the sinking house in Venice. One of the most
Daniel Craig did such a fine job bringing the character to life, with each Brosnan film declining, it seemed the same way with each performance he was giving, but Craig truly brought him to life and made everyone believe he was Bond. He is one of my favorites, only behind Connery, and above Dalton. David Arnold also finally gave a score that didn't sound like something you heard before, or did it? It was different than what he usually gives, but still good and perfect for the film. The theme song "You Know My Name", written and performed by Audioslave and Soundgarden front man, Chris Cornell, is probably one of the best songs for a Bond film. It truly captured the emotions and the feel of James Bond. It's easily my favorite and not just for my love of Soundgarden, but for the fact it was a song that truly felt where it belonged.
Casino Royale to some is one of the best and to others, highly overrated, but I disagree. It's one of the most gripping, enjoyable Bond films in a while. It's the one film that redefined the character and his legacy and made him relevant again to everyone. It was for that time, the highest grossing Bond film, and it showed. Everyone enjoyed it. Bond was back and the world was ready to see him return again, and he would two years later in the lackluster follow up, Quantum Of Solace.
Current ratings
Dr. No - 4.5
From Russia With Love - 5
Goldfinger - 3
Thunderball - 5
You Only Live Twice - 3
On Her Majesty's Secret Service - 5
Diamonds Are Forever - 2.5
Live And Let Die - 4.5
The Man With The Golden Gun - 4.5
The Spy Who Loved Me - 4
Moonraker - 3
For Your Eyes Only - 5
Octopussy - 2
A View To A Kill - 4
The Living Daylights - 5
Licence To Kill - 5
GoldenEye - 5
Tomorrow Never Dies - 3.5
The World Is Not Enough - 3
Die Another Day - 1
Casino Royale - 5
