This is one of those where you either absolutely hate it, or love it. Rarely do I see this film’s placement in the middle, it’s always in someone’s top ten, or near dead last. However, this is the first Bond I saw in theaters, and for that reason it holds a special nostalgic place in my heart. That said, I take a fairly unbiased view of this one to give it a fair shot like all the rest. So was it really that bad? Not at all, in fact most people simply pan this film because of the miscast role of Denise Richards as Dr. Christmas Jones. But if you’re able to look past that, the film is really quite entertaining with all the ingredients to make a great Bond.
As with previous reviews, I will cover:
Story & settings
Action sequences
Gadgets and vehicles
Villains and Bond girls
And a wildcard for each!
Story and Setting
Like many of the more modern Bond films, this one is a real globe trotter. We begin in Bilbao, Spain with a lovely backdrop of the Frank Gehry-designed Bilbao art museum. Then we travel to London for one of the best pre-credits sequences in Bond history. The bulk of the film takes place in Central Asia, from the Caspian Sea to the Caucasus mountains. While this film has some truly exotic locations, I don’t ever feel like I am getting much of them outside second unit work via establishing shots. At no point do I ever feel like I am being immersed in Azerbaijan or even Istanbul. While the use of Maiden’s Tower is novel alongside the excellent miniature of the submarine, it’s far from a subterranean volcano lair or island hideout. I think this film however does a great job of showcasing London in its precredits sequence and I quite like the Scottish castle standing in for MI6 more than any other backup employed in the Craig era (Castle is also a fantastic multiplayer unlock-able map in the TWINE N64 game). Overall we could have had much more immersive use of our Asian settings than what we got but it’s still sufficiently exotic to give us a good 6/10 score.
Now onto story. Bond is sent to protect the wealthy oil heiress of the late Robert King, Elektra King (Sophie Marceau). After her father is killed in an attack on MI6, M and Bond quickly realize this must be an inside job. Only recently freed from captivity, Elektra is now running the construction of an oil pipeline in Azerbaijan. When Bond shows up to protect her, she is jaded by MI6’s failure to do just that before and seems somewhat overconfident, even nonchalant about the alleged threats to her safety.
Our old friend Valentin Zukovsky is back! He too is involved with Elektra, but to what end? The plot thickens when Bond follows a lead which takes him to Kazakhstan, where the terrorist who once held Elektra for ransom, Renard (Robert Carlyle) is attempting to steal a nuclear bomb from the world’s loosest security nuclear facility. Yes, this is one of many such examples where the story really strains credulity with contrivance but we look past them somewhat because this is a Bond film after all. While contrived it doesn’t break story immersion for me like some other entries in the series.
Bond returns to Baku to confront Elektra, now suspicious after his explosive meeting with Renard. Eventually she proves his suspicions right when she kidnaps M, assuming Bond has died in a mishap at her pipeline. Yes, it’s all going to plan. Elektra, not Renard, is the big-bad in a series first for a female character. Elektra is a master manipulator, having fooled M, Bond and even we learn, Renard. Of course thanks to some luck in the favor of our protagonist, Bond is able to foil the plan in a high stakes showdown amid a nuclear submarine.
It’s a fast paced, action-packed Blockbuster with some occasionally silly plotting which nonetheless works because our cast (not you Ms. Richards) carries it out so effectively. What I really like about this story is how vulnerable it shows Bond. We can tell that with Elektra, this is personal. The involvement of other MI6 characters, including M, is a departure from the norm in that they are usually reserved for exposition, not the field. It raises the stakes and makes this a compelling watch for that reason alone.
If you can get past some of the plot points being somewhat improbable (how long did Bond really hold his breath outside that sub?) I think you will find yourself enjoying this film. The dialog can be cringey at times, like that Christmas joke or literally any dialog spoken by Christmas Jones, but hey there’s some genuinely hilarious Bond quips in here too, so I forgive it. Overall, the story is very solid despite some convenient plot points, earning it a 7/10.
7/10 for a setting and story which has some contrivances, and maybe even a lack of visual panache, but it mostly delivers the goods.
Action Sequences
The infamous Thames boat chase was once the longest running pre-credit sequence in Bond history (until No Time to Die). And boy was that satisfying in theaters! Absolutely edge of your seat stuff. Just when you thought it couldn’t be topped, every single act gave us hair-raising action sequences. They spared absolutely ZERO expense on the setpieces in this film, and much of it practical effects with some excellent miniatures work.
In this film we got:
A boat chase on the Thames ushering us in to the new millennium (dome).
A paraglider snow showdown with Bond on skis.
A gun fight on rails in a nuclear bunker.
Helicopters equipped with buzzsaws tearing through a factory.
And a finale set amid a sinking sub ready to go nuclear.
My only real criticism of the action is that a lot of it feels noticeably done by second unit direction and some of it feels forced into the film, disrupting narrative cohesion (especially the helicopters arriving at Zukovsky’s factory). However, I am here to watch an action film, and so you won’t get much of a complaint from me that there is too much of it. That’s not a problem the way dragging boring sequences is.
Despite all of the absolute bombastic set-pieces, all of it delivered on the Bond formula, expertly done by a least likely suspect in dramatic director, Michael Apted. However, some of it does feel disjointed at times, seemingly shot by second unit crews which take us out of the immersive quality that films like its predecessors, Tomorrow Never Dies and Goldeneye, did better. So what could have been a perfect score gets an excellent 8/10 just missing out due to over-reliance on second unit direction and its disruption of the narrative at times.
Gadgets and Vehicles
Like the actions sequences, this film is absolutely packed with clever gadgets. Fittingly so as this would be the last time Bond fans would ever see Desmond Llwelyn’s Q on screen (he died shortly after the film’s release). From the silly (X-ray specs) to the timeless classic (grappling hook watch) this film really had it all.
The product placement run with BMW also delivered once again after a fantastic outing in Tomorrow Never Dies, this time featuring the BMW Z8 and some clever rockets (before it is immediately cut in half). The “fishing boat” is also one of the most memorable Bond crafts since Rodger Moore’s hovercraft Lotus. They really went to the drawing board for this one and came back with some bangers.
Given the amount of clever use of gadgets and some iconic vehicle moments, this category gets a rare 10/10. Couldn’t ask for more honestly. Farewell to Q, “always have an escape plane.” (I’m not crying, you are!)
Villains and Bond Girls
This category starts out with both a Bond girl and villain in Elektra King. Unlike previous female baddies from Colonel Klebb to Xenya Onatop, this female is the head honcho. Renard is just another man under her masterful spell of manipulation– relegated to the role of henchman. She is a megalomaniac out not only for revenge, but to rule what she believes is rightfully hers (while eliminating the competition along the way). While mostly known for her romantic comedies in France, and this being one of her few Hollywood productions, Marceau does an excellent job here. Elektra is entirely convincing, not only as a victim, but equally so as a villain, and one that really gets under Bond’s skin.
So powerful and personal is the connection with Elektra that the filmmakers sought to costume Elektra in a ski outfit strikingly similar to Tracy Bond in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. It’s a detail lost on most, but not to Bond enthusiasts. Many fans, myself included, argue that Bond falls for her. This is especially apparent when faced with having to kill her, he still tries to save her first (to no avail). That exchange between Elektra and Bond is absolutely iconic: “You wouldn’t kill me, you’d miss me,” says Elektra playfully, before immediately radioing the sandman in the sub. Bond clenches his teeth and shoots her in cold blood before she can finish, almost channeling the ruthlessness of Craig, “I never miss.” *chef’s kiss* 10/10 Bond villain, and not just in my book but most fans at this point.
This is where things fall off from villain perfection. Renard is a compelling enough villain as a concept, played with appropriate menace by Scottish actor Robert Carlyle. However, his backstory as first introduced through this rather clever CGI head in the middle of MI6 temporary HQ is quite fantastical. We are meant to believe he survived a bullet to the head, but not only that, he has lost all feeling and while the bullet will eventually kill him, he will grow harder and stronger than any man. They could have easily played with a nerve damage injury rendering him unable to feel and still come away with the same crazy madman anarchist driven insane by his lack of feeling, almost to the point where he’d embark on a suicide mission for his lover. I mean, “there’s no point in living if you can’t feel alive,” am I right? Overall, he feels woefully underutilized in the plot, and we never even capitlize on his lack of pain response in any fight with Bond. The showdown on the submarine is anti-climactic and after Elektra is gone, I almost don’t care what happens to this mopey loser because it is Elektra and the return of Valentin as ally that make this film so good. 5/10 for this henchman as he is a waste of Carlyle’s talent.
What about henchmen Gabor and Davidoff? Hardly worth a rating to be honest. The latter of the two is so unmemorable that he returns less than ten years later to occupy a bit part as a goon in Quantum of Solace where he gets thrown off a roof. I’d argue the plane full of chain-smoking Russians was more memorable than either of them, mainly because I find myself coughing psychosomatically through that scene. If we consider English rapper Goldie’s Bullion as a henchman with a mouth full of golden teeth, then we are getting back to Bond formula basics but he’s still barely on the screen (apart from being on the receiving end to one of my favorite Brosnan quips, “I see you put your money where your mouth is”). No rating here as Renard is our primary rated goon in this one.
Now to address the elephant in the room: Dr. Christmas Jones. Now in her defense, the name is not so ridiculous when compared to some others in the long running series to date (Pussy Galore anyone?). However, what is ridiculous was thinking Denis Richards could act, let alone portray a nuclear physicist running around in a Tomb Raider outfit. Every scene she is in is just laced with cringe so powerful it is what kills this film for so many. I think this casting was so poor, that if it had gone to someone else, the film may have been looked at more favorably overall. In fact, it was rumored that the role would go to a French-Polynesian actress, but I guess they already reached their French quota for this film.
When I initially took to reviewing this film I was prepared to say Denise Richards is the worst Bond girl of all time. Beyond her lack of acting chops, I don’t find this character all that annoying the way I do some others who really get on my nerves. Like many Bond girls before her, she is a bimbo punching above her pay grade; a comedic relief character never meant to be taken seriously. She is also far from a damsel in distress and is not an obstacle to Bond. So for all that reasoning, and as I have nearly completed my series retrospective, she gets a two-point charity bump to a poor but not outright bad 4/10 mainly because the role was so miscast and she stands out against all the veterans of cinema she shares a screen with.
While the Bond girl of Denise Richards is memorable for all the wrong reasons, and Renard is under-utilized as a villain, the series first of a female baddie played to near perfection by Sophie Marceau is one of the reasons this film is so good. That salvages this category from a lower rating, earning it a good 6/10 overall.
Wildcard!
Let’s talk about Elektra King again. Director Michael Apted noted in an interview that “this film is really about female empowerment.” Making Elektra the first outright female Bond villain goes a long way to sell that notion, but what really drives that point home is in how she uses that agency. Elektra is a masterful manipulator who seduces Bond, even arguably has him fall for her. So far throughout the series, it’s always women falling for him. With Elektra, the script is flipped, so much so that Bond genuinely struggles to kill her in the end, still believing he can save her from the person he refuses to admit she is: a megalomaniac and malignant narcissist. She is his perfect foil, to where even the delightful theme song performed by Garbage is told from her perspective, not Bond’s.
M is also provided a lot of agency in this film, a first for the series really. While M having larger storylines in the Craig series of films became the norm, this is the first time we really get to explore the human side of M to date. We see M equally struggling with guilt, wishing she could have protected Elektra and regretting the advice she gave her dear old friend, Robert King. Both Bond and M wish they could have prevented Elektra turning out to be who she is today. Nowhere is this more clear than when M speaks to Renard in captivity: “You used her as bait. And for what, to get to me? She is worth 50 of me,” Renard snarls. “For once we agree,” M grimly replies.
Even if casting the wrong woman as a nuclear physicist (hey women can science too!) almost tanked this film, and has tanked this film for many, I think that the prevailing theme of Bond having the script flipped on him makes this a fantastic watch. For this simple story theme, I give this wildcard a 10/10 for daring to be different.
Conclusion
People love to hate on this film for one reason only: Denise Richards. That’s just very poor critical reasoning in my opinion. In choosing to look at other “definitive Bond rankings” which place this film at the bottom, many critics and fans alike have simply written it off instead of looking at all of the absolutely wonderful qualities it has going for it. This film is criminally underrated and only recently have I started finally seeing some reviewers putting respect on its name. Sure some of my opinion is from nostalgia having spent hundreds of hours playing the game on N64 after seeing it in theaters, but I genuinely believe it brings together the best elements of James Bond cinema. So this is a hill I am willing to die on. 8.5/10— or what some will consider “foolish sentiment,” to which I say, “family motto!”
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