Licence to Kill - is it too American?

i expect u2 die

Having just watched LTK for the first time in ages, I was once again struck by how engaging and exciting the film remains. I love the film, probably my third favourite after CR and OHMSS, and I think the chemistry between Dalton and Ravi provides the most fantastic hero/villain combination of the series.

But one of the biggest complaints LTK receives is that it feels too American, akin to an episode of Miami Vice, or suchlike. Do you think this is true? Indeed it does feel somewhat American, especially with the settings and the characters, but is this overwhelming? Of course Bond remains British, and whether he seems out of place or not, is that not enough to render this a legitimate Bond film?

Food for thought

Rick Roberts

Many of the cast members are from big 80's action films like Die Hard of Leathal Weapon, another reason why this film dates so badly. I guess you can say making it "American" did hurt it quite a bit.

DaltonFan1

I think that while LTK is one of a few American Bond films(along with DAF and LALD for example), that is simply to do with the locations and theme of it. I think what maintains LTK as a Bond film, not an American film, is that we look from Bond's point of view, at the American themes of the film, eg Bond gets frustrated by the Americans not doing anything about Sanchez.

Rick Roberts

DaltonFan1 wrote:

I think that while LTK is one of a few American Bond films(along with DAF and LALD for example), that is simply to do with the locations and theme of it. I think what maintains LTK as a Bond film, not an American film, is that we look from Bond's point of view, at the American themes of the film, eg Bond gets frustrated by the Americans not doing anything about Sanchez.

That is true and I actually did found Sanchez as an effective villian. The film I still found a let down.

thesecretagent

I like Bond films partly for the locations - exotic tropical places with sandy beaches, old European towns, snow scenes, drizzly London - it all acts to change the scene and be of interest. LTK is a bit dull in that respect.

Napoleon Plural

Apparently Dalton fought to keep the agent more British looking, and not have him in Miami Vice-style pastel suits. That said, the attire he does wear looks a bit cheap, and Dalton seems a bit slim and sloping shoulders in this.

Factor in that Bond never returns to base ie London and it does have that stray feel to it which could benefit it. When the Brits show up (ie M) it is a bit stereotypical, though that is exactly how Britain feels when you get away from it. I was over in the States for three months at the time, on gap year 'duties'.

hegottheboot

It definitely is too influenced by the action films of the time-Die Hard/Lethal Weapon etc. and Miami Vice. The whole revenge plot is very 80's action, and as a whole it is rather dated now.

Number24

Many people feel LTK was too american, but the movie wasn't very well liked in the US! It's ironic, isn't it?
I like it a lot, but it does have its flaws. The direction is the oposite of QoS - traditional, with a often static camera and no creative angels.
I feel LTK would have been better with a more modern director, a better theme song (U2?) and by changing the scene where Bond contacts Pam. That scen should have been on an other continent. Partly because that scene is the most dated in the movie, and partly because 007 needed more international locations.

Mr. Arlington Beech

maybe so

but it's better than most of roger Moore's films

and it had one of my favorite scenes from LALD that never made it to the movie

Moonraker 5

It would be too American if it were License to Kill. I do enjoy it, though it's certainly not my favourite film, but it does 'stick out' from the rest of the pack.

For a start, it completely avoids London, and I don't mean by visible location, but strong reference point. YOLT and, Bond's unfamiliar 70s pad aside, LALD, don't visibly feature London but it is clear that the ensuing story is commanded from there. M is present in the early stages, with Britain's last line of defence Miss Moneypenny, outlining why Bond's imminent mission is of real importance to Her Majesty's Government. That does not happen in LTK. Bond generates his own mission, and the bypassing of London - not only in location, but in 'fount of order', has quite an impact. Both the mission itself, of revenge, is completely personal and the side story of drugs transiting between central and north America, is of no importance to HM Government and therefore the idea of Bond being a British agent suddenly vanishes. Indeed, his licence to kill is revoked, and he ultimately a renegade. He's James Bond, not 007, for more or less the entirety of the film.

So, point one, it's not a film about a British secret agent involved in espionage for Queen and country or the free world. It's a film about an angry man exacting revenge for the death of a friend.

The locations completely lack any sense of glamour or travelogue. The Florida Keys, and an anonymous looking 'central American' city; they don't really inspire or create any sense of occassion. No sense of culture is built, unlike, say, Bratislava ,Vienna or Tangier in the film preceding. Central American culture could've splashed on screen, creating a bit of atmosphere, but instead all we get is a sense that the place is completely corrupt and overrun with drug runners, their hired hands, and gangster's mauls. Much of it feels overused, because we have seen it before in Miami Vice, Die Hard, etc. The bar where Bond meets Pam for example, the sawn off shotgun, the speedboat getaway - it is just missing Crockett and Tubbs.

The characters as well are missing any sense of mystery or intrigue. The main villian is an all-too-real drug baron and his "henchman", you wouldn't even describe as a henchman, because he's not larger than life - just a realistic, cold blooded killer. There's no mix of exotic accents or a sense of internationalism. They're American or central American, in the locations you'd expect them to be. No surprises.

Then there's the deeply uninspiring musical score and the non-existance of a poster campaign. The LTK posters are just woeful, and keep in with the colourless mood of the film.

Elsewhere I've bemoaned about the lack of glamour in modern films and TV programmes; this is definitely where it started with Bond and definitely, in my opinion, the nadir in terms of that particular allure.

Does it feel too American? No, it just doesn't feel of anything, really.

SeanConnery007

I must say LTK is one of my top ten Bond films; it has a fantastic dark tone and Dalton's performance is excellent (though even I can see why people think he's just too serious) and his chemisty with Davi gives the film a great atmosphere.
However, I don't think the film feels American. Yes, its primarily set within America and, as has been pointed out, there are no UK locations, but Bond is still throughly rooted with British mentality. The film doesn't feel any less British than any other film with exotic locations. Very little of CR is set in Britain and is set almost entirely in exotic locations (or foriegn locations)but it doesn't effect the feel of the film.
If I was to offer an 'American' styled Bond film, it would certainly be TND, a film I have always felt is too slanted towards an American tone. Bond is pretty much an 'all-out' action hero in TND in a film that is about 90% action. He also manages to utter a number of Americanisms - cell-phone, station break, (I'm sure there are others that just aren't coming to mind).

chrisno1

Richard Maibaum was an American, but he writes with a wonderful affinity for Britishness, especially early in the series where he was able to utilize Fleming's dialogue. By the time we got to the '80s all the Fleming inspired stuff had pretty much been used up and although there are a few splashes in FYEO, TLD and LTK, the stories were new. Maibaum also wrote with Michael G. Wilson, who is also American.

Wilson is not a member ofthe Screenwriters Guild and there was a strike on in 1988/89, he was left to write LTK alone and I think this is the central reason why the film has an "American" feel, what a lot of you guys call the "Miami Vice" look.

It isn't one of my fav Bond's, everyone, with the exception of Robert Davi, just looks so uncomfortable. It's not romantic. It's not exotic. It's not particularly exciting, despite all the violence going on. It's just a bit nasty and morose and looks (at times) a bit cheap. Unfortunately the script, American or otherwise doesn't help.

I don't agree with the comments re. TND, it's definately a bit Schwarzneggar-ish, but Bond is definately British, on a British mission, and doing it for Britain. PB also looked fantastic in this one, really well suited and booted. The only disappointing aspect is that he uses Wade and the CIA not Q and MI6 to perform the HALO jump etc.

If you want a US 007 I'd look at DAD what with Halle Berry and Michael Masden etc sticking their almighty oars in the mustard. Uggghhh

Higgins

as Mr. Dalton is constantly crying of anger in the movie, I would regard the movie being too Bollywood

TD= the bondian Shahrukh Khan

dr. evan-gelist

As a fan of the film, yes it is too American, simply because the actors are mainly American.

Tobias

i expect u2 die wrote:

Having just watched LTK for the first time in ages, I was once again struck by how engaging and exciting the film remains. I love the film, probably my third favourite after CR and OHMSS, and I think the chemistry between Dalton and Ravi provides the most fantastic hero/villain combination of the series.

But one of the biggest complaints LTK receives is that it feels too American, akin to an episode of Miami Vice, or suchlike. Do you think this is true? Indeed it does feel somewhat American, especially with the settings and the characters, but is this overwhelming? Of course Bond remains British, and whether he seems out of place or not, is that not enough to render this a legitimate Bond film?

Food for thought

yes it is

PPK 7.65mm

I agree that with not having Bond in London, and breaking slightly from the format that the film does feel more American than British. Also as many fans have noted the production really looked like it was made on a tight budget compared to Goldfinger or You Only Live Twice. However with James Bond as the central figure in the story, it is to some degree a Bond film.

chrisno1

PPK 7.65mm wrote:

Also as many fans have noted the production really looked like it was made on a tight budget compared to Goldfinger or You Only Live Twice.

I read John Glen's biography recently (For My Eyes Only) and while it isn't the most interesting of books, he does give some detail on the goings on at Eon and UA during his tenure.
Money was really tight. Glen had £30m to play with in 1981 and had £30m to play with in 1989...that's zero increase in 8 years. I think it explains a lot more than I expected.
The movie was shot in Florida & Mexico because it was much cheaper than Pinewood and this had an impact on everything from casting to set design etc
Glen also maintains Maibaum was really unhappy with the script (esp the coda) and thought it was one of the poorest 007 films he'd worked on, while Glen himself is immensely proud of the achievement.
I got the impression though that Glen is a workhorse director, who is great at finding solutions and getting the job finished on time and on budget, he would fit in really well in the old studio system; he is proud of his achievements because he got the job done rather than because of its artistic merit.
Even more interestingly he considered Sharon Stone for the role of Pam Bouvier... food for thought

Mr. Arlington Beech

the thing that bugged me the most about License To Kill is at the very end, Leiter is sitting up in bed joking with bond like he isn't missing a leg and his wife didn't just get murdered.

Loeffelholz

Mr. Arlington Beech wrote:

the thing that bugged me the most about License To Kill is at the very end, Leiter is sitting up in bed joking with bond like he isn't missing a leg and his wife didn't just get murdered.

Exactly! There's a certain tone-deafness on the part of whomever approved the final edit of this film. Terribly unfortunate.

I really like Timothy Dalton, and wanted him to succeed as Bond...but with the scripts he got, it's like trying to swim the English Channel with an anvil tied round your neck

RJJB

I have always liked LTK. I never watched Miami Vice, so I had no comparison on which to base my appreciation. The movie was definitely much more American in tone, but it served the story well. I think the script was well written, not perfect, but excising a lot of the garbage and hokey shenannigans that had cluttered up the series.

There may not have been the epic feel to the movie, but it is an intelligent movie. One aspect I really enjoyed is that Bond did very little of the actual killing in the movie, instead he had Sanchez demolish his own operation. The most overrated scene in the movie for me is the destruction of the tankers. It was too much by the numbers and that diluted the good parts of it. I really hated when the truck was on its side wheels, a la DAF. But overall, it's definitely a keeper, in the top 10 for me.