Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Halle Berry, Judi Dench, John Cleese
Director: Lee Tamahori
Rated: M15+
MUCH has been made of the fact that Dr No was released in 1962, 40 years ago, and that Die Another Day is the 20th James Bond film, making it the most profitable ‘franchise’ in movie history.
This latest film follows the usual patterns of a James Bond blockbuster. The pre-credit sequences have become some of the most celebrated for their spectacular stunts. It is the same here with surfers riding gigantic waves in North Korea (though filmed in Maui) and military hovercraft skimming over minefields before they all blow up.
Pierce Brosnan is Bond for the fourth time and is obviously at home in the role, and more like Sean Connery than the succeeding Bonds (although he is now nearing 50). He is suave in his manner, rispostes, action sequences and with the Bond women.
This time, however, he has an almost equal partner in Halle Berry’s Jinx, a skilful American agent – but convention means that, ultimately, he has to rescue her and not vice versa.
Toby Stephens snarls as the arch-villain, though how he created his empire and the means of mass destruction for the world in Iceland in 14 months tips the credibility scales.
Rick Yune is his offsider villain with a diamond-studded face after one of the initial explosions.
Judi Dench is back as M with a few more scenes than usual as is John Cleese as Q. Bond is wearing them down with his individualistic exploits but they have some satisfaction in his being imprisoned by the North Koreans for 14 months, emerging as a lookalike for the count of Monte Cristo.
The producers said that they were looking for an unknown country which audiences would find exotic so they chose North Korea (thankfully not Iraq). But reality has caught up with the movies as North Korea recently confessed to having nuclear weapons.
On a personal note, when Once Were Warriors was released, I had the opportunity for a long conversation with director Lee Tamahori. One of his chief ambitions was to go to Hollywood and make big movies. After Mulholland Falls, The Edge and Along Came a Spider, as well as some episodes of The Sopranos, he has topped his ambitions by directing Die Another Day.
