The Living Daylights Movie Review
Q-Branch_2012
Posts: 80MI6 Agent
Timothy Dalton assumes the role of British super-spy James Bond in what is the first of his two efforts, and I think he does a terrific job. Roger was looking old and Dalton came in looking younger, fresher and hungry.
The pre-title sequence is up with the best of them. The 00 agents are on a training exercise and they all pararchute out onto an island to infiltrate it, which is being guarded by the British military. However, while climbing up a cliff, one of the agents are killed, and Bond discovers the rope has been cut and goes after the assassin. After a great chase sequence, the car the assassin is driving, complete with Bond in the back, goes over the cliff, luckily Bond pulls his parachute ejecting himself out of the car, and into the safe arms of a lady on a boat looking for excitement.
The main plot revolves around the defection of KGB General Koskov, however his defection is a ploy, and he is soon out of the hands of the British, thanks to a milkman armed with exploding milk bottles. During the initial defection there was a woman seemingly trying to kill Koskov and Bond goes to investigate the lead. After contact with the girl, who is actually only Koskov's girlfriend and not a KGB sniper, thye both flee the USSR in a great chase sequence in which they end up fleeing across the border on a Cello case.
Koskov is really working with American Brad Whittaker in a plot that involves arms deals and Afghan heroin,
James Bond refuses to kill sniper Kara Milovy while assisting in the defection of KGB General Koskov. Koskov plays a complex triple-cross involving an arms deal and Afghan heroin. This has Bond bouncing across the globe chasing Koskov and Whittaker, that includes an excellent fight scene on board a crago plane, that has them hanging out the back on netting.
Overall I thought this had a great solid plot, the story was really storng and drove the movie. The film tries to stay away from the Moore quips, although the do merge the heads at times including the line "We have nothing to declare" after crossing the border being chased by the KGB. Apart from that, this is more reminiscent of a Connery story of old, as opposed to a Moore. The story is definately a great breath of fresh air.
Dalton is very strong in the role and brings his own unique style to the character, he seems alot more colder, and is definately more believable at killing someone than Moore ever was, in my opinion he definately grounds the character somewhat. Dalton helped to bring credibility back to the role.
Koskov is a great bad guy, and as strong as any other, I thought his character was excellent and perfectly cast against Dalton. Whittaker is ok, he seemed decent enough but is definately overcast by Koskov, the two together though make a brillant pair of adversaries for Bond.
The cello playing Kara is a decent enough Bond girl, but at times seemed out of her depth in the role, she does manage to hold it together, and manages to keep the small girl in a big world look.
This movie also has a great ski chase as part of the scene when they are fleeing the USSR, with Bond and Kara sliding down in the Cello case, but it seems like there have been quite a few before this that it doesn't have quite the impact that it should.
Daltons car has the usual array of gadgets in them, one in particular is a laser beam that cuts a police car in have which was an amusing scene.
This movie brings back realism and espionage to the series which was a well deserved return and Dalton made a great effort of bringing Bonds dark side back. Overall a great Bond movie.
The pre-title sequence is up with the best of them. The 00 agents are on a training exercise and they all pararchute out onto an island to infiltrate it, which is being guarded by the British military. However, while climbing up a cliff, one of the agents are killed, and Bond discovers the rope has been cut and goes after the assassin. After a great chase sequence, the car the assassin is driving, complete with Bond in the back, goes over the cliff, luckily Bond pulls his parachute ejecting himself out of the car, and into the safe arms of a lady on a boat looking for excitement.
The main plot revolves around the defection of KGB General Koskov, however his defection is a ploy, and he is soon out of the hands of the British, thanks to a milkman armed with exploding milk bottles. During the initial defection there was a woman seemingly trying to kill Koskov and Bond goes to investigate the lead. After contact with the girl, who is actually only Koskov's girlfriend and not a KGB sniper, thye both flee the USSR in a great chase sequence in which they end up fleeing across the border on a Cello case.
Koskov is really working with American Brad Whittaker in a plot that involves arms deals and Afghan heroin,
James Bond refuses to kill sniper Kara Milovy while assisting in the defection of KGB General Koskov. Koskov plays a complex triple-cross involving an arms deal and Afghan heroin. This has Bond bouncing across the globe chasing Koskov and Whittaker, that includes an excellent fight scene on board a crago plane, that has them hanging out the back on netting.
Overall I thought this had a great solid plot, the story was really storng and drove the movie. The film tries to stay away from the Moore quips, although the do merge the heads at times including the line "We have nothing to declare" after crossing the border being chased by the KGB. Apart from that, this is more reminiscent of a Connery story of old, as opposed to a Moore. The story is definately a great breath of fresh air.
Dalton is very strong in the role and brings his own unique style to the character, he seems alot more colder, and is definately more believable at killing someone than Moore ever was, in my opinion he definately grounds the character somewhat. Dalton helped to bring credibility back to the role.
Koskov is a great bad guy, and as strong as any other, I thought his character was excellent and perfectly cast against Dalton. Whittaker is ok, he seemed decent enough but is definately overcast by Koskov, the two together though make a brillant pair of adversaries for Bond.
The cello playing Kara is a decent enough Bond girl, but at times seemed out of her depth in the role, she does manage to hold it together, and manages to keep the small girl in a big world look.
This movie also has a great ski chase as part of the scene when they are fleeing the USSR, with Bond and Kara sliding down in the Cello case, but it seems like there have been quite a few before this that it doesn't have quite the impact that it should.
Daltons car has the usual array of gadgets in them, one in particular is a laser beam that cuts a police car in have which was an amusing scene.
This movie brings back realism and espionage to the series which was a well deserved return and Dalton made a great effort of bringing Bonds dark side back. Overall a great Bond movie.
Check out all my Bond related Movie Reviews - http://www.Movie-Blogger.com/users/q-branch2012/
Comments
UNATTRACTIVE?!?!?!? I think she was one of the most attractive Bond Girls! Real and down to Earth! Not some Hollywood uber-babe and quite the refreshing change after Grace Jones!
Her looks, to me, make the relationship between them more real. She's not some big-boobed biimbo Bond would just look for a screw with. A relationship develops for real, and bounces back and forth between affection, anger and distrust until finally culminating in that great scene in Afganistan. (Are you calling me a horse's arse?)
Together with Tim misty- eyes Dalton and the "good" Taliban and the pathetic end battle around toy soldiers, there is not much good left.
These are the Vienna opera scenes and the Aston Martin chase in the snow. Barrys music is great!
The pipeline sequence was almost as bad as the tarzan yell in OP
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
Wow, three in one post! Care to claim your prize?
Visit http/i'mawelshmanhatingdumass.com and enter your number (666)
:007)
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
And instead of repeating " wrong" it would be more constructive to elaborate why I am wrong and that only in your opinion
Or do you claim now owning the ultimate truth?
Dalton - the weak and weepy Bond!
No matter what cogent argument I made, no matter how logical or persuasive, you'd merely fall back to your position, and that's why I play your school yard game here.
WRONG!
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Or so I'd like to believe in the context of the movie. 8-)
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
I also agree with the criticism that, in the light of subsequent real history, the film's romanticisation of the Mujahideen dates the movie. Kamran is a problematic figure, a type who might have gone on to become a Bin Laden. Moreover, he's compromised by his involvement in Koskov's drugs deal. Kamran's line that he doesn't care whether Russians die because of his bullets or their heroin doesn't bear much thinking about, especially since in the real world the final victims of heroin include the vulnerable young on civilian streets. In the past, Bond's larger-than-life allies from the criminal underworld drew a line at drugs: Columbo, for example, who in FYEO says he leaves heroin smuggling to the villain, Kristatos. TLD's engagement with the series' past is a mixed blessing. It's cool that we get the first reference to SMERSH since FRWL, yet General Gogol's and Frederick Grey's cameos at the end gratuitously evoke the smug "old boys' network" of the Roger Moore years. The idea that M and Gogol can accord pleasantries to Kamran and his roughnecks at a grand reception undercuts any sense of seriousness about the struggle in Afghanistan, and the deaths on both sides to which we've been witness in the film. At least Kamran doesn't acknowledge Gogol's, "Delighted!"
In TLD, Dalton plays along with moments of broad comedy, working with residue tone from the Moore films - such as the "We have nothing to declare!" gag, and the groan-inducing "What kind of a girl do you think I am?" sequence in which a supervisor of 'the pipeline to the west' is distracted from his duties by a caricature of a bosomy East European harridan. By the time we get to LTK, such comedy is thankfully almost completely retired. When Q tries to console Pam - who's upset that Bond has spent the night with Lupe - his line, "A field operative often has to use every means at his disposal!" is funny precisely because it's a one-off throwback to the sort of Roger Moore crack which by then seemed firmly a thing of the 'old school' past: think St John-Smythe and Tibbet. Pam's reply, "Bullshit!" is apt. Like others on the forum, I only regret that Dalton didn't get the opportunity to make another couple of Bond movies. After LTK, it would have been fascinating to see where he would have gone next with the character.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
Also I think that the Pushkin interrogation comes close to the scene from Dr No where Bond kills Prof Dent in the bedroom. Two great Bond moments.
Agreed. Real stand-out moments showing the professionalism of the James Bond character.
Some of the reasons I love Dalton as Bond. -{
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
But Tim just nailed if for me. :007)
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
I accept that Bond, early in the film, would have shot dead the sniper if he'd believed them to be a genuine KGB assassin, though it's obvious that it's a job for which he has no liking. As it is, he realises that things are not what they seem - that further investigation is warranted - so he deliberately misses (it's not just because "the sniper was a woman"). In the case of Pushkin, I'm not sure that Bond ever really considers killing him. It's clear from his exchange with M that he doesn't believe Pushkin is behind any 'Death To Spies' directive: he agrees to accept the assassination assignment only because he knows that if he persists in arguing Pushkin's innocence M will stand him down and he'll lose his chance to find out who's really behind the killing of British agents. I think Bond has it in mind from the outset to conspire with Pushkin in faking Pushkin's death. As he tells the General, if he believed Koskov "we wouldn't be talking." Still, it's clear that Bond would know how to carry out an execution in cold blood, even though he'd find it distasteful; this was a new, darker perspective on the character.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
What makes the scene amazing it Dalton's intensity. We're following Bond basically every step of the way, and know what he does, that he's being played by Koskov to kill Pushkin.
When we first see him shadowing Pushkin, we're at ease. Because we're in the know with Bond that Pushkin is to be trusted, We're just waiting for the moment when Bond pulls him aside and tells him what's going on. So when Pushkin walks into the hotel room and his wife (Or mistress) is distraught, we're confused. Then Bond comes out from behind the door with the silenced Walther, we're even more confused. James, why is the gun in your hand? This is an ally.
And this, I feel, is one of the things that makes Dalton's Bond stand out above the others. He takes what should be a ho-hum scene and makes it the dramatic high-point of the film. His ruthlessness, intensity, and acting Make us sit back in our seat and wonder what's going on. Did we miss something? Is there something Bond knows that we don't? It seems obvious this man is innocent, yet Dalton convinces the audience that he's going to pop this poor guy with as little care as he did Professor Dent. We're almost left yelling at our TVs as we do in a horror movie, where the girl goes into the basement that we know the creepy killer is hiding in. Don't pop this poor bastard, Bond! He's a patsy. He brutally beats the guard, adding to the idea that Bond is going to pop Pushkin, then sends the woman out so she doesn't have to see it. Everything Bond does in the scene 100% convinces the audience that Bond is going to kill this poor guy, even when we as an audience know he wouldn't, and can't. That takes serious acting chops, and Dalton delivers in spades.
In fact, Dalton never tips his hand that it's a set-up to get Pushkin on his side until right at the very end, when he's literally holding the gun at the guy's head. It's brilliant. No offense to Mr. Craig and Dryden to start CR, but this is the best showdown ever, IMO, in any Bond film.
Given all the tension between Bond and Pushkin in the scene where it looks as if Bond might actually be about to execute the General, it comes as a great relief when the pair relax into an alliance. In Goldeneye, we're robbed of a similar relationship between Bond and post-Cold War Defence Minister Dmitri Mishkin because, in that case, the Russian traitor General Ourumov (the latest Orlov/Koskov figure) shoots Mishkin dead just before he and Brosnan have the chance to 'bond' and team up. We're then left with the disturbing spectacle of Bond making his escape by machine-gunning numerous Russian troops who, had Mishkin survived, would presumably have remained subject to his legitimate authority and not been Bond's adversaries at all.
In TLD, Bond largely leaves the killing of Russian troops to the Mujahideen rather than doing it himself. Although he initiates the attack on the airbase by firing machine gun rounds from the back of the jeep, he appears not to be aiming to kill but to cause confusion. It's Kamran and his freedom fighters who do the killing because, in a sense, it's 'their' war. It's true that, finally, Bond takes out some Russians in armoured vehicles by dropping the bomb on them as they're crossing the bridge, but this seems 'justified' in terms of 'adventure movie' rules of engagement because, at that point, the Russians are in aggressive pursuit, at the point of massacring the fleeing horsemen: it's not 'a fair fight', so Bond is intervening on behalf of the 'freedom fighters'.
It would be interesting to analyse the unsettlingly variable codes of violence in the 80s John Glen Bond movies when it comes to scenarios of conflict between Bond and professional soldiers who would only be following orders in the service of their nation states: cf. OPY and AVTAK as well as TLD, with South American soldiers in the OPY PTS (Argentinians?) as well as Russian troops and airmen in all three movies. Sometimes these encounters are played non-lethally for comic effect, but occasionally they involve Bond killing anonymous armed servicemen during an engagement. This was hardly ever a feature of 60s and 70s Bond movies: all the boiler-suited heavies enlisting with SPECTRE or its successor criminal conglomerates had presumably made a mercenary and apolitical choice to turn their back on national citizenship and to enter the service of Blofeld's, Stromberg's or Drax's post-political, nihilistic meglomania; this 'evil' path meant that they unambiguously deserved to be shot down or blown up in the villain's lair. (Misguided/misled scientists like Kutze in TB or Metz in DAF were the exceptions.) Whitaker, Koskov and Necros all loosely belong in this traditional category of post-political Bondian villainy; Necros's and Whitaker's deaths (like Kamal's, Zorin's and Trevelyan's) are thus 'deserved' and qualitatively more Bondian than Bond's occasional killing of hapless, nation-state troops in some of the 80s/90s movies (killings which to me seemed more 'war movie' and never felt quite 'right' for the Bond genre).
Walter Gotell couldn't do it. Sad it would of been great
to see a returning character.
"Yeah, but they were all bad."
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
James Bond- Licence To Kill
In a way though, and I'm going to sound like an @sshole, but I'm kind of glad it was Dalton vs Rhys-Davies. While there's a deeper element if Bond is facing off with shooting Gogol, I don't think it would have been suspenseful, just because we know Bond wouldn't kill Gogol. With Pushkin, we're more uncertain. We have no history with this character, so it's conceivable that Bond could shoot him since there's no established personal stake except for what Bond and M have told us about their relationship.
Plus, Rhys-Davies is just a better actor that Gotell would have been in that scene, again, I'm sounding like an @sshole, but Rhys-Davies was a performance match for Dalton, yet Dalton still dominated the scene. That scene with a Dominating Dalton against an un-dominating Gotell would have lacked the same punch.
Its my Laguage of choice.
I too think Rhys-Davies is a great actor. His scenes with
Dalton were terrific. -{
That's right...he's fluent...or effulent at least