Pros and Cons: The World Is Not Enough

Absolutely_Cart

Released in 1999, it was Brosnan's 3rd outing as James Bond.

Pros:
[list=*]
[*]Brosnan balances Bond's smooth charm but also his darker more troubled side[/*]
[*]Elektra King is a unique take on a Bond villain, and overall a very good one.[/*]
[*]Renard, unable to feel pain or pleasure, makes for an interesting villain concept too[/*]
[*]Plot is a little bit more complex, and fun to unravel, than your average Bond film.[/*]
[*]M gets a good bit of character development and some time to shine.[/*]
[*]Some memorable scenes like the bomb defusion and, of course, the torture scene[/*]
[/list]

Cons:
[list=*]
[*]Really weak dialogue at times. Line editor needed.[/*]
[*]Bad acting by Denise Richards[/*]
[*]Some bits dragged and could've been cut[/*]
[*]Action is sometimes too over the top[/*]
[*]Can get really corny for a serious movie[/*]
[/list]

Overall Thoughts

It has a lot of interesting concepts and striking scenes going for it. It's dark, cerebral and ridiculously over the top. With some writing changes and a replacement for Denise Richards, it could've been a great film easily. But it's a good one nonetheless.

MilleniumForce

Some more Pros:
-Great Pre Title sequence, with the best boat chase and the escape from the bank office is one of my favourite scenes from the series.
-M's kidnapping plot works well.
-The helicopter scene is great.
-Return of Robbie Coltrane.

James Suzuki

More Pros:
BMW cut in half was funny -{
Q's farewell was done perfectly.
Overall Humour handled well.

Absolutely_Cart

I loved Q here. I definitely missed his presence in DAD.

James Suzuki

As much as I Like John Cleese. I didn't like his Q.

Absolutely_Cart

The DAD Q? I agree. It's like he wanted to be the old Q but just wasn't. At least with Skyfall they gave us a new Q.

chrisisall

I won't say it's a step down from GE & TND, more like a step to the side to attempt a darker movie whilst still retaining some lightness.
Biggest pro: Q's goodbye.
Biggest con: The Renard fight (too easy to kill him).

James Suzuki

chrisisall wrote:

I won't say it's a step down from GE & TND, more like a step to the side to attempt a darker movie whilst still retaining some lightness.
Biggest pro: Q's goodbye.
Biggest con: The Renard fight (too easy to kill him).

I agree with both of thse.
Q's send off was fantastic. And Renard had so much potential but was underused.

hehadlotsofguts

Pros

The plot twist with Elektra being the main villain and Renard being a puppet in her plan.

I like the PTS.

The return of Zukovsky.

Cons

For a villain who is supposed to be indestructable, Renard was killed too easily.

Absolutely_Cart

Was Renard really indestructible. I moreso got from it that he was mortal but immume to pain

AnotherJamesBOnd

"Christmas Jones wasn't convincing as a nuclear scientist"

Right. And you bought Roger Moore when went skiing down a slope and parachuting off a mountain in The Spy Who Loved Me?

Or how about just walking down the street in Harlem in Live and Let Die?

Christmas Jones was entirely convincing to me because I knew exactly what she was - another silly Bond girl.

I think people don't like this movie but they can't explain why. There's just something about Brosnan which is annoying. He's sort of uptight. He seems annoyed in his action scenes. He's too nervous, quick, his actions choppy and somewhat cartoonish. He remains too much like his character in Remington Steel.

Blackleiter

AnotherJamesBOnd wrote:

Or how about just walking down the street in Harlem in Live and Let Die?

What do you mean? I grew up in Harlem and I saw plenty of people just walking down the street, including a number of well-dressed Caucasian males. Of course none of them were British secret agents as far as I know, but still..........

Sir Christopher Lee

Q's farewell scene was my favorite part of this film; I used to own the VHS version and also liked the brief tribute video to Desmond Llewelyn that takes place just before the teaser.

The Red Kind

Pros:
PTS
Maria Grazia Cuciontta
Title song works well
Q's poignant departure
Always good to see other agents at the briefing
Bond's suits
Casino scene
I didn't mind the Z8. At least it's missiles were real.
'I never miss..' line

Cons:
Denise Richards
Denise Richards
Denise Richards
Defusing the bomb in the pipeline scene
Caviar factory scene
M overused
R used! (I know why of course, but for me the character and dialogue didn't work)
Goldie as a henchman
Poor ski scene and those paragliders (also the continuity is terrible in this scene)
Oh.. and did I mention Denise Richards..?

Absolutely_Cart

CONS:
Elliot Carver. Oops wrong movie lol

thegreatgalling

I do love TWINE, but as far as a con, there is something to say about villain imposition.

To me, the strongest Bond villain's are imposing by stature, and in this case, I don't even mean physically. Take your Drax, or Stromberg, or even Rosa Klebb. There was just something bigger than life about them - in their delivery and in their mannerisms. They all had gravitas.

While I loved the concept of Renard, the kidnapping, the gunshot wound and subsequent damage, he just lacked gravitas to me. He was kind of a thug, small and in the trenches with his men. This point though is hard to parse, I don't necessarily need a Shakespearean OTT actor in every film, but I want to feel like each villain is a chessmatch Bond must win, and a formidable foe. In this case, and particularly his odd, easy and lonely demise, I felt something was missing.

AlphaOmegaSin

I've always found TWINE more Entertaining then TND -{

Blackleiter

AlphaOmegaSin wrote:

I've always found TWINE more Entertaining then TND -{

Same here. -{

TheQBranch

Pros:
-Great PTS
-Awesome Theme
-I for one actually like Denise Richards as Christmas Jones
-Elektra is a good villain, and easily overshadows Renard.
-One of the few times I liked a BMW in the Bond series.

Cons:
-Renard is under-used.
-Dialog is really corny. Took it to a whole 'nother level.
-The pacing is weird at times, and some scenes feel really drawn out.

Absolutely_Cart

Agree with most of your points, QBranch. Also, I like TLOU.

Blackleiter

Absolutely_Cart wrote:

Agree with most of your points, QBranch. Also, I like TLOU.

TLOU???

Absolutely_Cart

Just saw this again. Wow. Brosnan's Bond was much darker than I realized here. Brosnan had a great performance. Interesting also to compare it to Dalton's dark Bond. I think Brosnan's dark Bond still had a smoothness to it. I think Brosnan probably wanted to go even darker with DAD but realized how stupid it was.

Damn writers! Damn Denise Richards!

And (a little late), TLOU = The Last of Us , a popular movie-like video-game that came out a few years ago that his pic is based on.

Blackleiter

Absolutely_Cart wrote:

Just saw this again. Wow. Brosnan's Bond was much darker than I realized here. Brosnan had a great performance. Interesting also to compare it to Dalton's dark Bond. I think Brosnan's dark Bond still had a smoothness to it. I think Brosnan probably wanted to go even darker with DAD but realized how stupid it was.

Damn writers! Damn Denise Richards!

And (a little late), TLOU = The Last of Us , a popular movie-like video-game that came out a few years ago that his pic is based on.

I agree with you about Brosnan. This is my favorite performance by Brosnan as Bond, and I think the dark shadings he brings to this turn are the reason.

And thanks for finally explaining TLOU. I was losing sleep at night trying to figure that out! )

Bondage007

Pros:
- PRETITLE SEQUENCE
- The line "The Insurance company is never going to believe this"
- Q scene
- Elektra
- Brosnan looks great as always

Cons
- Generic action
- Locations poorly shot
- Very drab looking film
- Poor plot execution
- Corny dialogue
- One of Arnold's worse scores.

Christmas Jones isn't even on the list, so many other Bond girls are unconvincing as well.

The movie is pretty good up til the line "I came prepared for a cold reception"

HatThrowingHenchman

another Pro:
the line: "She's waiting for you"

chrisisall

HatThrowingHenchman wrote:

another Pro:
the line: "She's waiting for you"

That's a cold Bond line if ever there was one.
Another pro: Bond dumping the body in a dumpster (Brosnan did it before Craig).

HatThrowingHenchman

I think Twine is the best example of Brosnan having a darker side. This dark side doesn't have to mean that Bond is cold with no emotions, but there are some scenes that illustrate perfectly the "selfishness" of Brosnan's Bond:
- Bond killing Davidov after briefly smiling at him
- Bond framing Lachaise's henchman of 3xmurder and using him for a cool getaway
- Bond's line mentioned in post 26
- Bond killing Elektra

Plus one more thing: the scene where Bond frees himself of Elektra's chair shows that Brosnan still brought some emotions to the role as he gives a brif glimpse of grief towards Zukovsky and then goes after her.Take that, all of you who say Brosnan was merely a model to fill in the blank.

and now maybe a bit off topic but I would be very inerested in other's opinions:
I always thought that the killing of Elektra was a bit unnescessary, since she couln't have gotten away (with M guarding her).
I know it makes the film more dramatical and "someone usually dies" but as evil as she was, I still think it's a pitty.
Any thoughts?

Strangeways

Loved TWINE. Would actually be my favourite Brosnan entry except I can't stand Christmas Jones. The character adds nothing and the acting is wooden.

Loved the pre titles sequence.

HatThrowingHenchman

Don't understand why Christmas Jones is so unpopular?
what't with T.Case and Severine for instance?

chrisisall

I don't mind Denise Richards in the least.

Matt S

HatThrowingHenchman wrote:

Don't understand why Christmas Jones is so unpopular?
what't with T.Case and Severine for instance?

Dr. Jones is unpopular because she's just not believable. She just doesn't seem mature enough to be taken seriously as a nuclear physicist. Compare he to Dr. Goodhead, who is far more believable in a similar position.