Contains spoilers
THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH was the 19th Bond film, and the final one produced in the 20th century. Pierce Brosnan returned in his third outing as James Bond, acclaimed dramatic director Michael Apted took his place behind the cameras, and Neal Purvis and Robert Wade were assigned to write the screenplay. After two very Connery-esque outings as Bond, one of which was not a Bond film, Brosnan has a chance to be in the most Fleming-esque Bond since LTK...even if he must continue to be the next Sean Connery. TWINE is easily the greatest of Brosnan's four 007 films as of yet and the fourth greatest of all the Bond films, surpassed only by ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE, LICENCE TO KILL, and THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS.
The film has a very unique cinematic look to it that no other Bond has had; it is the darkest of all the films. The locations are exotic but very real; you would never guess that the nuclear site or the Maiden's Tower were sets at Pinewood studios. Almost every character is given incredible detail, humanity, and in some cases, pity. This was Brosnan's best outing as Bond, and despite he keeps being confined to a Connery style Bond and doesn't quite handle his few Dalton moments, he does a fantastic job. M for once is given a major role in the storyline, and Judi Dench excels in these scenes. Tanner, Moneypenny, and Robinson all return doing a fantastic job. A new character, Q's assistant "R," is hilarious. And Desmond Llewelyn gives his final outing as Q. The final moments that 007 and Q have together are wonderfully written and acted. Llewelyn was the longest lasting member of the original team of writers, actors, directors, and producers on the Bond film and his untimely demise in a car accident following this film was truly upsetting. Ms, Moneypennys, and Bonds can come and go, but for some reason, there can be only one Q. RIP Desmond, and thanks for all the memories.
For the first time ever in a Bond film, a woman is the main villain. Elektra King is one of the most complex, ambitious, and truly evil of all the Bond villains and may very well be the best of them, if not the best of the women; that honor still goes to Bond's wife Tracy (a comment by Elektra makes reference to her). Kidnapped by the terrorist Renard, her father and M had no choice but to refuse to pay her ransom due to policy. So Elektra seduced her captor. She made him fall madly in love with her. He allowed her to escape, and she damaged herself when Renard couldn't bring himself to do it. Deceiving everyone, she had her own father, oil tycoon Sir Robert King, murdered by a bomb exploded in MI6 headquarters. Elektra has a great power over men, especially womanizers like 007. She deceives him as well, and by the time he figures it out, Elektra captures M, buys a nuclear submarine, and arranges to cause a nuclear holocaust to gain control over the world through the oil market. Her evil nature and deceiving all that cared about her makes her a truly nasty character, and when Bond kills her in cold blood, it's hard to surpess a cheer. Her lover, Renard, is definately the most human of all Bond's villains. With an excellent actor in the role, Renard attracts a great deal of pity. With Alec Trevelyan of GOLDENEYE, you felt sympathy for him, but the fact he was also doing this to get rich lowered the abbility for the audience to feel sorry for him. Renard, however, is doing all his actions due to blind love. Seduced and used by the woman he captured and held for ransom, Renard has a bullet in his head killing off his senses, so far making it impossible for him to feel pain or anything else. This frustrates him greatly as he cannot be a good lover to Elektra. This character's blind love for Elektra (he's willing to commit suicide so she can make millions) and the fact that, to her, Renard was merely another employee and tool, makes it hard not to pity this poor, deceived, blinded man. Even Bond seems to pity him; before Elektra's scheme is thwarted and Renard is killed, the two share sympathetic smiles.
As the darkest, most dramatic, and most intense of all the Bond films, there is a great need for comic relief, and it comes in good supply without ruining the tone of the film. Valentine Zukovsky of GOLDENEYE returns with a much more friendly attitude towards Bond. Prior to Bond' involvement, he arranges to get her a nuclear submarine, commanded by his nephew Nikolai, for $1,000,000. He is unaware of the purpose, of M's kidnapping, or that Elektra is working with Renard. When Bond informs him (and when Elektra kills his nephew and destroys his caviar factory), Zukovsky joins Bond, and his final act before being killed by Elektra is to save Bond's life. Both 007 and the audience feel grief for his death, as he is one of the most amusing and charming characters ever to appear in a Bond film. Zukovsky's traitorous henchman Bull, played by Goldie, is another amusing character. The final comic dose, "R," bumbles his way through demonstrating all of Bond's gadgets, all the while being insulted by Q.
The film's title, "The World Is Not Enough," is the Bond family motto, as revealed in ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE. The previously mentioned reference to Tracy and the ski chase pay homage to that film. Despite the excellent story and characters, there are problems with this film. Bond hardly uses his car. Zukovsky should not have been killed. And the Bond woman in this film, Dr. Christmas Jones, is the only character that is poory written. A typical bland Bond girl, she is too young to be an expert in nuclear physics and is rather unconvincingly portrayed. She serves no point to the story at all and is merely added in so that Bond can bed a woman at the end (does anyone else grow tired of this ending?). And once again, as good as this film was, it is truly disappointing they could not let Brosnan for once play the Dalton/Fleming-type Bond he has been wanting to do ever since he took the role.
With 8 out of 10 stars, this is Brosnan's greatest contribution to the series. This film is so great because it is the only Brosnan Bond film to have the feel of a Cubby Broccoli 007 film, and that is something special.
THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH was the 19th Bond film, and the final one produced in the 20th century. Pierce Brosnan returned in his third outing as James Bond, acclaimed dramatic director Michael Apted took his place behind the cameras, and Neal Purvis and Robert Wade were assigned to write the screenplay. After two very Connery-esque outings as Bond, one of which was not a Bond film, Brosnan has a chance to be in the most Fleming-esque Bond since LTK...even if he must continue to be the next Sean Connery. TWINE is easily the greatest of Brosnan's four 007 films as of yet and the fourth greatest of all the Bond films, surpassed only by ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE, LICENCE TO KILL, and THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS.
The film has a very unique cinematic look to it that no other Bond has had; it is the darkest of all the films. The locations are exotic but very real; you would never guess that the nuclear site or the Maiden's Tower were sets at Pinewood studios. Almost every character is given incredible detail, humanity, and in some cases, pity. This was Brosnan's best outing as Bond, and despite he keeps being confined to a Connery style Bond and doesn't quite handle his few Dalton moments, he does a fantastic job. M for once is given a major role in the storyline, and Judi Dench excels in these scenes. Tanner, Moneypenny, and Robinson all return doing a fantastic job. A new character, Q's assistant "R," is hilarious. And Desmond Llewelyn gives his final outing as Q. The final moments that 007 and Q have together are wonderfully written and acted. Llewelyn was the longest lasting member of the original team of writers, actors, directors, and producers on the Bond film and his untimely demise in a car accident following this film was truly upsetting. Ms, Moneypennys, and Bonds can come and go, but for some reason, there can be only one Q. RIP Desmond, and thanks for all the memories.
For the first time ever in a Bond film, a woman is the main villain. Elektra King is one of the most complex, ambitious, and truly evil of all the Bond villains and may very well be the best of them, if not the best of the women; that honor still goes to Bond's wife Tracy (a comment by Elektra makes reference to her). Kidnapped by the terrorist Renard, her father and M had no choice but to refuse to pay her ransom due to policy. So Elektra seduced her captor. She made him fall madly in love with her. He allowed her to escape, and she damaged herself when Renard couldn't bring himself to do it. Deceiving everyone, she had her own father, oil tycoon Sir Robert King, murdered by a bomb exploded in MI6 headquarters. Elektra has a great power over men, especially womanizers like 007. She deceives him as well, and by the time he figures it out, Elektra captures M, buys a nuclear submarine, and arranges to cause a nuclear holocaust to gain control over the world through the oil market. Her evil nature and deceiving all that cared about her makes her a truly nasty character, and when Bond kills her in cold blood, it's hard to surpess a cheer. Her lover, Renard, is definately the most human of all Bond's villains. With an excellent actor in the role, Renard attracts a great deal of pity. With Alec Trevelyan of GOLDENEYE, you felt sympathy for him, but the fact he was also doing this to get rich lowered the abbility for the audience to feel sorry for him. Renard, however, is doing all his actions due to blind love. Seduced and used by the woman he captured and held for ransom, Renard has a bullet in his head killing off his senses, so far making it impossible for him to feel pain or anything else. This frustrates him greatly as he cannot be a good lover to Elektra. This character's blind love for Elektra (he's willing to commit suicide so she can make millions) and the fact that, to her, Renard was merely another employee and tool, makes it hard not to pity this poor, deceived, blinded man. Even Bond seems to pity him; before Elektra's scheme is thwarted and Renard is killed, the two share sympathetic smiles.
As the darkest, most dramatic, and most intense of all the Bond films, there is a great need for comic relief, and it comes in good supply without ruining the tone of the film. Valentine Zukovsky of GOLDENEYE returns with a much more friendly attitude towards Bond. Prior to Bond' involvement, he arranges to get her a nuclear submarine, commanded by his nephew Nikolai, for $1,000,000. He is unaware of the purpose, of M's kidnapping, or that Elektra is working with Renard. When Bond informs him (and when Elektra kills his nephew and destroys his caviar factory), Zukovsky joins Bond, and his final act before being killed by Elektra is to save Bond's life. Both 007 and the audience feel grief for his death, as he is one of the most amusing and charming characters ever to appear in a Bond film. Zukovsky's traitorous henchman Bull, played by Goldie, is another amusing character. The final comic dose, "R," bumbles his way through demonstrating all of Bond's gadgets, all the while being insulted by Q.
The film's title, "The World Is Not Enough," is the Bond family motto, as revealed in ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE. The previously mentioned reference to Tracy and the ski chase pay homage to that film. Despite the excellent story and characters, there are problems with this film. Bond hardly uses his car. Zukovsky should not have been killed. And the Bond woman in this film, Dr. Christmas Jones, is the only character that is poory written. A typical bland Bond girl, she is too young to be an expert in nuclear physics and is rather unconvincingly portrayed. She serves no point to the story at all and is merely added in so that Bond can bed a woman at the end (does anyone else grow tired of this ending?). And once again, as good as this film was, it is truly disappointing they could not let Brosnan for once play the Dalton/Fleming-type Bond he has been wanting to do ever since he took the role.
With 8 out of 10 stars, this is Brosnan's greatest contribution to the series. This film is so great because it is the only Brosnan Bond film to have the feel of a Cubby Broccoli 007 film, and that is something special.