The Living Daylights - it just gets better and better...

Halcon · December 2014

Watched The Living Daylights again last night...

wow, what a fantastic Bond Movie. In fact my top ten Bonds are now in this order -

From Russia with Love
License to Kill
Octopussy
Dr. No
The Spy who Loved Me
The Living Daylights
Thunderball
Casino Royale
Goldeneye
Skyfall

TLD continues to move up my list almost everytime I watch it.

Timothy Dalton is a fantastic Bond, he IS Daniel Craig, Connery and Brosnan all in one.
We see Timothy Dalton manifesting all of Bond's multiple personalities as they become necessary -

Bond the focused and cold blooded assassin wielding the HUGE gun, Bond the cultured connoisseur when opting for a preferred beverage for Georgi and recognizing the personal name attributed to random cellos, Bond the vengeful yet controlled professional when preparing to execute mistaken enemies,

Bond the incredible charmer when taking sweet and innocent ladies on trips to Vienna (this one in particular was so much fun to watch as we see Bond as a super capable spy who in dealing with his lady is manipulative, almost predatory, calculating and deceitful, all behind a façade of charm and affection, all for the sake of the mission).
I don't think any other Bond could have pulled off this aspect of the story in TLD.

This film has so many great points -
The blurring lines between the good and bad guys, it's a complicated world...

The Vienna scenes are gorgeous and almost zen like, Timothy Dalton and Maryam D'Abo are the perfect cast for these scenes in all their beauty and excessive luxury...

The perfect ending in Afghanistan, placing Bond in the middle of a very still relevant conflict.

Other smaller but still great points -

Dalton, again, completely convinces as Bond from the VERY intro. He IS Bond, completely by the time he lands on Belle Avery's yacht as she is complaining about the lack of real men on her island. As Bond swings from the top onto the boat, decked in black gear there is no doubt that we have transitioned from Roger Moore's style onto something very fierce.

All the scenes with Necros - he was a truly unsettling villain (in the entire films really), I squirm every time I saw him in a scene and was very glad Bond finally gave him the boot.

This of course speaks to the acting ability of Mr. Wisnewski.

How about that black/grey Aston?? I'd have a hard time choosing between this beauty and the DB5 (is that the original one?)

Virginia Hey and Bell Avery - Love, love, love them in their incredibly small parts (Virginia doesn't even say one word ) Avery is the epitome of my perfect woman, if a woman like that walked into the room....
And Virginia oozes pure sexuality in all her short scenes. Its amazing how sensual she comes off even with her hair up and very formal get up when accompanying General Pushkin on his various head of state events. The sexiness meter on her very intense lingerie scene blows off the chart

)

The soundtrack in my opinion was perfect, from the action scenes to the Vienna scenes with Bond's intimate moments with Myriam.

There are many more points, how about sharing some if you agree with me on this? -{

AlphaOmegaSin · December 2014

I agree 100% -{

Thunderpussy · December 2014

Great film it would be in my top ten. {[]

AlphaOmegaSin · December 2014

I personally don't see how Brosnan could have pulled it off as much as Dalton

chrisisall · December 2014

Last time I saw it on Blu Ray I just got lost in its brilliance.
We gotta do a Clockwork Orange thing on Higgins & MAKE him watch it again.

)

Higgins · December 2014

Maybe with a bucket in reach I would consider watching it again

Barbel · December 2014

I thought you weren't going to jump for the biscuit any more, Higgins!

)

chrisisall · December 2014

Barbel wrote:

I thought you weren't going to jump for the biscuit any more, Higgins! )

)

Absolutely_Cart · December 2014

I agree.

I enjoyed TLD, and as time passes on, I remember it even more fondly. It was the right movie at the wrong time. If it had come out in the 60's it would've been hailed as a masterpiece. And had it come out in the 2000's, it would've sold like hotcakes.

Higgins · December 2014

Barbel wrote:

I thought you weren't going to jump for the biscuit any more, Higgins! )

Well, it's the time of the year.
I wanted to shine a little light into the sad and dark life of a Timboy

Asp9mm · December 2014

You know what. I'm going to put TLD on tonight and watch with fresh eyes

Higgins · December 2014

omg, I can see another Asp-gate after the AT-gate, the Explorer-gate and that snake that poisoned you

Asp9mm · December 2014

I never said I was going to be turned all misty eyed by it. It's better than watching Eastenders or whatever other crud is on this time of night. He does wear a Sub, so it can't be all bad.

Blackleiter · December 2014

I agree that TLD is top-flight Bond, and Dalton breathes new life into the series after the increasingly stale era of Roger Moore. After Connery, I consider Dalton to be the second or third best Bond (I frequently flip-flop between Dalton and Craig when it comes to the second place spot).

Higgins · December 2014

Asp9mm wrote:

I never said I was going to be turned all misty eyed by it. It's better than watching Eastenders or whatever other crud is on this time of night. He does wear a Sub, so it can't be all bad.

He wears that ugly TAG Heuer like I've said 10 years ago already and Deaton took it for an "exclusive and new discovery" some years ago 8-)

Expect the movie to be **** and ask me - the expert when you have questions about watches.

Asp9mm · December 2014

You know nothing of any importance. Except I give you that Heuer thing and your weird Seiko obsession.

Did he not wear the Sub at all in TLD? It features prominently in LTK.

Higgins · December 2014

So, you admit that you've been wrong again?

I don't recall having seen a Rolex in TLD.
But I haven't seen the movie fully in the last 15 years or so.

It's just too bad and Dalton too pathetic in that movie. LTK is much better

chrisisall · December 2014

Blackleiter wrote:

I agree that TLD is top-flight Bond, and Dalton breathes new life into the series after the increasingly stale era of Roger Moore.

In '85 I saw AVTAK in the theatre once, and other than liking a cool chase on the Eiffel Tower I have no real memory of that particular viewing. TLD however, was a different story. I thought the cargo net fight was about the most exciting thing I'd seen in a Bond movie since the ninja commando raid in YOLT.

Blackleiter · December 2014

chrisisall wrote:

I thought the cargo net fight was about the most exciting thing I'd seen in a Bond movie since the ninja commando raid in YOLT

I agree. What a great scene! {[]

broadshoulder · December 2014

chrisisall wrote:

Blackleiter wrote:

I agree that TLD is top-flight Bond, and Dalton breathes new life into the series after the increasingly stale era of Roger Moore.

In '85 I saw AVTAK in the theatre once, and other than liking a cool chase on the Eiffel Tower I have no real memory of that particular viewing. TLD however, was a different story. I thought the cargo net fight was about the most exciting thing I'd seen in a Bond movie since the ninja commando raid in YOLT.

From what I remember the entire audience gasped when it slid out the rear of the plane. :x

Is that the first time you have seen it Firemass?

Asp9mm · December 2014

Well, it's on in the background and I'm just bored. A huge problem for me is the very slow score. They play the Bond theme so slowly in the action scenes that all tension is lost. It's more suitably paced for a slow ice skating video, not a high speed fight on top of a Land Rover. This fault is repeated in the music in pretty much all the action scenes. It's not something I really noticed in the previous gazillion views, but somehow tonight it stood out and is just annoying me. There was always something I couldn't put my finger on with this film, and now I know.

chrisisall · December 2014

Asp9mm wrote:

There was always something I couldn't put my finger on with this film, and now I know.

It's my co-favourite with YOLT!
Oh well, different strokes for different cats. -{

Barbel · December 2014

Asp9mm wrote:

A huge problem for me is the very slow score. They play the Bond theme so slowly in the action scenes that all tension is lost. It's more suitably paced for a slow ice skating video, not a high speed fight on top of a Land Rover. This fault is repeated in the music in pretty much all the action scenes. It's not something I really noticed in the previous gazillion views, but somehow tonight it stood out and is just annoying me. There was always something I couldn't put my finger on with this film, and now I know.

Disagree 100%, I love this score.

Thunderpussy · December 2014

I too am a fan of the score -{

Blackleiter · December 2014

I enjoyed the score, too. Plus it was Barry's last Bond score, so that makes it particularly special to me. -{

Jarvio · December 2014

I don't get the love tbh. Sure it's a good film, and an ok bond film, but I don't rate it that highly. Sure there are some great moments - particularly the cargo net fight. And Dalton is great. However, one of the very worst bond girls (Kara was so annoying) and weak, unmemorable villains. A mid-ranker for me.

chrisisall · December 2014

It's not just me who loves it then. Good. -{

Firemass · December 2014

broadshoulder wrote:

Is that the first time you have seen it Firemass?

Me? Good lord no. That was well before my time...

Halcon · December 2014

Blackleiter wrote:

I enjoyed the score, too. Plus it was Barry's last Bond score, so that makes it particularly special to me. -{

The score was fantastic! It evoked tension and supreme luxury when it called for it. U could say TLD was the "classical" Bond, what with the cellos, Vienna, horse estate...

chrisisall · December 2014

Jarvio wrote:

I don't get the love tbh.

No worries mate. It's like anything else- either it GRABS you or it doesn't.
Some Bond films grab me by the throat and DEMAND my attention (DN, FRWL, TLD, LTK), others simply twist my arm a bit (GF, TB, YOLT, Dan's films) and others merely bribe me ( OHMSS, DAF, some of Moore's, Brosnan's)....

Gassy Man · December 2014

Jarvio wrote:

I don't get the love tbh. Sure it's a good film, and an ok bond film, but I don't rate it that highly. Sure there are some great moments - particularly the cargo net fight. And Dalton is great. However, one of the very worst bond girls (Kara was so annoying) and weak, unmemorable villains. A mid-ranker for me.

It deserves to be in the top half. I like it better than all of the Brosnan ones except Tomorrow Never Dies. Ironically, both films suffer from the same problem: Weak villains. But Dalton's debut was strong, certainly stronger than the follow up.

I always liked Kara. Perhaps not surprisingly, I had a girlfriend a few years later than looked an awful lot like her and was also a classically-trained musician. I prefer to think there was no connection, ha ha.

The Living Daylights - it just gets better and better...

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