Licence to Kill: A James Bond Retrospective

 

A James Bond Retrospective

So, you think Daniel Craig is the world's first bad ass, ruthless and hard edged Bond? Think again. This trend was started 20 years before Casino Royale with 1989's Licence to Kill. The movie is more violent, personal and out of the ordinary than any other James Bond film before or after. With extreme violence, revenge and determination, this is the ultimate and most underrated movie of them all!

Released in the summer of 1989, Licence to Kill was Timothy Dalton's second and final performance as Agent 007. Having one film under his belt, the producers made a movie focusing on Dalton's strengths. In this movie, Bond isn't just on another assignment for the good of England. He's on his own and is on a personal vendetta to avenge his best friend. This is a no non-sense kind of Bond and something most fans of the series have long been waiting for. Where Roger Moore's seven films had an emphasis on humor and gags and even a mission in outer space, Timothy's films had an emphasis on realism, espionage and vulnerability. This is the Bond that bleeds, cries, stresses and at times grows stubble. This is the Bond straight from the character that Ian Fleming books. Licence to Kill is not for the faint of heart. It is a movie filled with action and best of all, Timothy is the James Bond that is a killer and ruthless agent who just happens to be on the side called "good".

As I mentioned earlier, James Bond is on his own and uses his skills and ingenuity to get himself out of danger. When Felix Leiter, ex CIA agent now working for the DEA, is informed that Franz Sanchez has entered the U.S., it is up to him and an off-duty 007 to apprehend him. Catching Sanchez just in time before he manages to escape to Cuban airspace, Bond and Felix proceed to Felix's wedding. They literally drop in to wed. Once on route to Quantico, a crooked cop aids Sanchez in his escape for a reward of $2,000,000. After Bond departs Felix's house, Sanchez's goons kidnap Felix, rape and murder his new wife, and maul him with a shark. The authorities are informed, along with James Bond, cancelling his flight back to London, and the search is on to find Sanchez. When Bond arrives at Felix's house, he discovers that Felix is not in fact dead, but seriously injured with a note reading: "He disagreed with something that ate him." Furious, Bond informs the Americans but nothing is done. It is as if no one wants to take care of the situation and overlooks it. Well, Felix is Bond's best friend and he will do whatever it takes to get to the bottom of this. What are friends for?

While tracing clues throughout Florida, Bond discovers that Sanchez is no longer in the States but in his home country of Isthmus City (fictional South American Country) that he is in complete and utter control over, even with a fixed president and rigged elections. Soon, M goes to Florida to find Bond, telling him that he needs to let this situation go and leave the Americans to "clear it up." Bond refuses and tells M that he is resigning from the Service. To this, M denies Bond's resigning and instead revokes his license to kill. Escaping, Bond is now on the run from his own boss. This is something we've never seen before in a Bond movie: people on his own side trying to kill him.  Bond arrives to Isthmus and attempts to meet Sanchez.

Robert Davi as Franz Sanchez

When 007 reaches Sanchez's casino, he meets with him and they have a pleasant conversation while Bond can think of nothing else but to kill him for what he did to his friend. Looking for work--which isn't all that far from the truth since he is no longer part of MI6--Sanchez allows Bond to join his organization and trusts him enough to allow him to stay in his large mansion. James Bond is in! If this was an official mission he hit the jackpot! He now has the perfect chance to kill Sanchez. How does he do it? He does it by framing those loyal to Sanchez by making it look like they were indeed ripping him off, while all Bond has to do is watch while the pins fall one by one. You see, Sanchez isn't just a textbook Bond villain who wants to take over the world. What makes Sanchez so unique is that "loyalty is more important to [him] than money." If you double cross Franz Sanchez, you're done. So, as long as you do what he says, he will repay you greatly, but if you do something wrong, you're out of the picture permanently. He also has a henchman, Dario, played by a 22 year old Benicio del Toro. Keep an eye out for him throughout the picture! 

Q comes all the way from England to help 007

Now, this movie is not without humor or fun. When Miss Moneypenny discovers that James is missing, she sends out Q while he's on leave. Q arrives, has some gadgets for 007 and sticks around. This film marks Desmond Llewelyn's longest performance in the role. There are some great gags here and there and even though this isn't like previous Bond films, that does not mean it is void of elements that make a Bond film a Bond film.

Dario discovers 007

One of the men that Sanchez has hired for a cover operation is Milton Krest played by American actor Anthony Zerbe. His death is the ultimate death of all involving his head imploding in a decompression chamber. In order to keep the film from an R rating in America, the scene where you actually see his head implode with blood splattered all over the glass was cut. You need to get the original edition for the movie to see such a horrible scene. And to be honest, Dalton is the only Bond that could pull it off. It is not pretty and every time I watch that scene my heart pounds. It is intense. 

A grinder...what a way to die.

The climactic scene in this movie is just amazing! It involves tanker trucks used to transport drugs without detection. Bond is finally discovered when Dario recognizes him from an earlier encounter. Listening to a tour of how the drugs are concealed  in gasoline, Dario puts a gun to 007's back and tells him to be quiet. After a small quip from Sanchez, "You keep the gas, as a bonus. And if there's a problem with customs, no evidence." Bond starts a fire and sends people screaming. His cover blown, even though he still goes by James Bond, Sanchez realizes that Bond is trying to kill him and demands to know who has sent him. Punching him and putting him in a conveyor, Dario hangs over Bond and spits on him while cutting the rope used to tie him to the end of the belt, leading to a grinder right below. Pam Bouvier (Carey Lowell) shows up and shoots Dario and Bond pulls him from underneath him and another gross scene occurs. He is crushed alive! Catching up with Sanchez, Bond, with the help of the beautiful Pam, flies a plane over and manages to steal a tanker. Bond is now in control of one of the tankers and catches up with Sanchez for a fight to the death. When the final truck is knocked down a hill, Sanchez is about to kill Bond for his betrayal. "You could have had everything." Bond re

James Bond after burning drug lord Sanchez alive.

plies, "Don't you want to know why?" Showing him a cigarette lighter that Felix had given him during the wedding, Sanchez puts two and two together and realizes that Felix was Bond's friend and before he can say anything, Bond sets him on fire and a huge explosion occurs with a mix of the gas from the fallen tanker and Bond's lighter. Now, here is where we see James Bond cry for the first time. He is torn up, bloody, and totally stressed. Having killed Sanchez, his revenge is over and he can now go back to his life as an agent. What a great story! This is Fleming's Bond!

Now, the advertising campaign for this film is quite a let down and perhaps one of the reasons why not as many people saw this compared to Dalton's previous outing as 007. During production, the title was changed at the last minute from Licence Revoked to Licence to Kill. Now, there is a lot of different speculation as to the real reason it was changed, but the most common and reported reason is because when MGM did a survey, most Americans thought it was referring to a revoked drivers license as opposed to James Bond losing his license to kill. In addition, another speculation is that most Americans didn't know what "revoked" meant. Now, I'm assuming it was the first reason. I could see how people could assume it would refer to a drivers license. But...come on now. You should just look it up and find the meaning for yourself. There have been other James Bond titles such as Thunderball or Octopussy that to the casual viewer must sound ridiculous. I supposed the reasoning for that is because they were titles from the Fleming novels. In this case, both titles Licence Revoked and Licence to Kill are original titles and the first not to be used in a Fleming book.

Renowned artist Bob Peak who did artwork for the first six Star Trek films, Apocalypse Now, and even The Spy Who Loved Me, did amazing new and original illustrations for Licence Revoked. Again, it would have been something never seen before in a Bond film. Check these out:

 Rejected artwork by Bob Peak for Licence Revoked

 

Now, why they felt they needed to change the artwork and total campaign due to a last-minute title change I will never understand. The artwork is the artwork. The text and letters come in later. Studios need to realize, that illustrated movie posters are still artwork. They only become a poster when fonts are added to them along with the cast and crew. Other than that, it is just a piece of art like any other. At the same time, once you are an artist working for such a large corporation like Disney, or MGM, it is now in the hands of the studio and they basically own your work. That being said...it was a shame to do a half-assed job on Photoshop such as this:

Now, if this doesn't say half-assed, I honestly don't know what does. This is the British poster used for the film. Note the title change from "Revoked" to "To Kill" and the lack of originality used. These images are just cut and pasted and this does not bring the viewer into the film. The color scheme is unimpressive and it looks very tacky. Not the smartest choice to cut down costs for the production.

That being said, Licence to Kill is one of my all-time favorite James Bond films because it is the most quotable, violent and action-packed film in the series. It's hard to believe that people consider this to be one of the worst movies. It has action, suspense, beautiful locales, gorgeous women, subtle humor and gadgets while still containing an element of grandiose. It is realistic, believable and leaves you on the edge of your seat waiting to find out what will happen next. Will James Bond survive on his own? Has he met his match? It leaves you wanting more. Now, some feel that the locations in the film are bland and not exotic enough or that it feels like James Bond meets Miami Vice. I can certainly see that point of view. You need to remember though that at the time this movie came out, it had much competition with films such as Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Lethal Weapon 2, Die Hard (1988), Batman, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier and Ghostbusters II; all summer blockbusters and Bond had to compete with that. So, by making Bond a bit more down to earth and not a Roger Moore every-hair-in-place-coming-out-unscathed, something more was needed. It was time for James Bond to be up in the big leagues with American action movies and make it more current and to the times (according to the producers). In addition, it was getting more and more expensive to film in England so for the first time this Bond film was produced in Churubusco Studios in Mexico City and filmed in Mexico along with Florida. So, it felt like more of an American film with a British actor in the role. At the same time, over looking this, it is a Bond film and I think it captures the spirit of James Bond. I highly recommend this film.

As mentioned before, this is Timothy Dalton's second and final turn as Agent 007. In this short amount of time, Dalton certainly made the character his own. Serious at times, deadly and of course suave, Dalton read all of the James Bond books written by Ian Fleming and really wanted to depict that onto the big screen. In the long run, James Bond is an assassin and a killer and his license to kill status is what allows him to do so without getting into trouble with the law. Not as much time for the ladies as Roger Moore had, it was all about the mission with Dalton. In this case, it was all about revenge and friendship and how far people will go until a debt is settled, even if it isn't authorized. Now, some say that Timothy takes the fun out of the character, but you have to remember, Roger Moore was such a drastic change from the original character, it became almost ridiculous and totally out of context where the only relation to the books was the title. That's not who James Bond is. James Bond is something that every man wants to be and at the same time know that it can take a toll on you. Bond is not a superman, he's not an alien, he's human and yes, he does have time for the girls, but it is for the good of the mission. That does sound a bit harsh, but that is what the character was originally written to be. Just as Roger Moore didn't want to copy Sean Connery, Timothy Dalton sure as hell had no intention of copying Moore. I'm glad that Timothy was Bond and his films still live on to this day! The only reason why people prefer Craig now, is that Dalton came way before his time. The audience wasn't ready for a ruthless and dark Bond. Now that it's all about action movies and dark stories, people are now ready for this image of 007 that HAS been seen before and in a more classic and sophisticated way. Timothy Dalton is "son of Connery, father of Craig."

James Bond will return in SPECTRE this November! 

*Today, the 12th of September would have been Desmond Llewelyn's 101st birthday! I honestly had no idea until a friend of mine informed me of the news! We lost Desmond a few days after the release of his final 007 film in 1999 and I just wanted to give thanks for his wonderful performance in the role and all his other roles! We miss you, Q! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The World Is Not Enough Review/Retrospective

"I could have given you the world."
--"The world is not enough."
"Foolish sentiment."
--"Family motto."
-Elektra King and James Bond

For the 19th James Bond film, Pierce Brosnan had his third turn at bat as the suave and sophisticated agent 007. And now, James is not just on an assignment, but a very personal one at that. I'll be discussion the plot, the characters and the experience I had when watching what is perhaps on of my favorite and most quotable James Bond films in the entire series. This was also the first one that I actually sat down and watched. The first big screen 007 adventure for me would 2002's Die Another Day.

JAMES BOND AIN'T GOT TIME FOR THAT SHIT!

"You seem to have had a small reversal of fortune."

It all starts, as most Bond films do, in a glamorous country and this is no exception: Bilbao, Spain. 007 is on a mission to discover the cause of death of a fellow MI6 agent and find out who killed him. When he enters the Swiss Bank, the manager of the bank seems to skirt the issue and act as if he has no idea what Bond is talking about. He has money ready for 007 that was stolen from Sir Robert King, a multi-millionaire who owns oil pipelines across the globe, for a report that the late-agent was killed for. Bond, however has not only come for the money to be returned, but to discover who in fact killed that agent. Bond being Bond, is stubborn and doesn't let it go resulting in the goons of this "manager" to come and take him out. After an awesome and action-packed shoot out, Bond notices that someone has escaped alive: the secretary of the bank. Brosnan sells the part in this scene and has officially made the part of James Bond his own. It is said that when an actor plays James Bond gets to his third movie, he managers to make the part his own and he is really to get deeper with the character and not just by face value anymore.
He is in that territory for no-nonsense and will stop at nothing to get the job done.

After the shoot-out, one person escapes the office but not before the police are summoned. Bond looks around to find and an exit and once he turns another corner, a gun is aimed right at him. Putting his arms up, there is a shot somewhere out of the window and the man dies instantly freeing Bond to escape. Who the heck was it that shot this person? Was it a fluke? Were they trying to aim for 007? No time to thing, Bond uses his own ingenuity and pulls out the strong for a set of blinds and ties it around his belt, and then goes to one of the bodies on the floor and ties it around his belt. Grabbing the suitcase with the money, Bond jumps out the window and lands perfectly onto the streets of Spain while the police enter into an lifeless room with only once survivor: The man that Bond ties the string to. Quite the getaway!

Q-Boat

Meanwhile, back in London, James Bond returns the money and and Sir Robert King is there to pick it up. After having a brief squabble with Moneypenny, Bond is summond into M's office where he meets King himself. It turns out that M and Sir Robert read law in Oxford together and had quite a background. After King leaves and goes to inspect his money, Bond and M have a little drink. When Bond pours himself a drink, he realizes something is not right. He has some kind of chemical reaction taking place and automatically things something is wrong. Bond exclaims, "King! The money!" Rushing through halls and corridors of MI6 HQ, it is too late and the room King is in explodes, along with the money, ripping a gaping whole that is visible outside of HQ! Looking out of the building through the reckage, Bond notices a laser sight on him and then quickly turns out of the way avoiding it. Heading into Q Branch, Bond quickly jumps into a small boat equipped with a ton of weapons and gadgets and goes after the culprit who tried to kill him.

Now, this is perhaps one of the most spectacular stunt chases in the entire series of films! Now only is it a good 14 minutes before the open credits, but it is highly entertaining and non-stop! After chasing her from the River Thames to the streets of London--yes, the boat is able to drive on land as it has boosters on the back--they finally end up at an event featuring hot air balloons. Jumping out of her boat, the secretary holds some of the people at gun point and tell them to release the balloon so she can escape from 007. Bond, managers to ram the boat on the shore and jump and catch one of the ropes hanging from the balloon and is taken mid air. With him trying to avoid bullets from the assassin, he pleads with her to make a deal. "We can make a deal, just tell me who's behind this! Who are you working for?!" As she threatens to blow up the balloon, Bond screams, "Don't do it! Don't blow us up! I can protect you! Do you understand?! I can protect you!" And with them, she simply replies, "Not from him!" She fires the gun at he gas for the balloon and it explodes in a ball of fire, sending Bond falling down only to have his fall broken by the Millennium Dome.

Main Title sequence by Daniel Kleinman in the tradition of the late Maurice Binder

Now, when I first saw this movie, I was totally blown away by the action and suspense used here! This all happens in the course of 14 minutes! It like a mini-movie. But that is what every James Bond pre-title sequence is about. It is a small action-packed set piece used to get the audience intrigued and pulled into the story. Sometimes the pre-titles sequence can have nothing to do with the story that follows, or sometimes, like in this case, it can have a lot to do with it and will just continue where it leaves off. Great film is about to come on with one of my favorite opening themes in the entire series. One of them, meaning I have a lot more, but this is one of them. By the looks of this sequence, you can see that "oil" is the main theme and that this is going to be a far more personal film than some that have come before.

Now, we enter the story in Scotland. There is a major funeral occurring and it is the death of Sir Robert King. Observing the event in a sling, due to his injury with the hot air balloon, James spots the eye of a young women dressed in black whom is mourning the events: Elektra King, the daughter of Sir Robert.

007's new ride: BMW Z8

Since the London branch of MI6 is no longer safe, the team moves into their Scotland location. So, Q and his gadgets are there now and he is in fact seeking retirement. He has appointed a new fellow to follow in his footsteps as the Quartermaster of MI6 and introduces 007 to his new car, a BMW Z8 with special features as always. After a few jokes here and there, Q bids farewell to Bond and his last pieces of advice is to "never let them see you bleed." Bond says, "And the second?" "Always have an escape plan." With that, Q pushes a button which sends him under the floor and that is the last we see of the great Desmond Llewellyn. After 17 films, his days of doing the James Bond films are over and he has had a long run!
Meanwhile, as the story continues,  Bond, who tries to look deeper into the information on Elektra King is unable to due to there needing to be a clearance level. When Bond confronts M about it, she tells him that there is a personal connection with Elektra and herself. You see, Elektra was kidnapped by a terrorist named Renard and Sir Robert tried everything he could to get her back. He even goes to M and is told not to pay the ransom. They all thought they had time on their side and to use her as bait. But it was to no success. Eventually, Elektra is released by killing two of her captors and heads back home. But, you see...after the death of Sir Robert, there still is an investigation that needs to be fulfilled and Bond needs to stop Renard from getting his hands back on Elektra.

Elektra King played by Sophie Marceau

Bond is sent in to visit and tell Elektra that she is of utter importance and that she is required to have Bond's protection to which she says, "I'm going to finish building this pipeline and I don't need your help." Bond doesn't give up and invites himself to check the servey lines with her. After they get to the top of the mountain in Azerbaijan, a crew of parahawks come down and try to kill her. Bond lures them asside and then manages to kill all of them manuverting in the snow. Bond is a major expert at skiing. Bond takes Elektra to a casino where he meets up with an old friend, Valentine Zukovsky. Offering to play a game of cards, Elektra wants to play a high draw and bet against a million dollars. Then, when Bond tells her she doesn't have to do this, she replies: "There's no point in living if you can't feel alive." To this, Bond gives off a look of puzzlement. When she loses the money, James Bond says, "Elektra, this is a game I can't afford to play." Then, later that night, Bond and Elektra have a nice of romance and now it is up to him to leave her while she's sleeping and continue on his mission to stop Renard.

Now, here is where the story gets far fetched. He bumps into a nuclear physicist by the name of Christmas Jones played by Denise Richards...of all people, and then has her lead him to Renard. Under the disguise of a Russian scientist, Bond spots Renard and threatens to kill him, only for him to say, "There's not point living if you can't feel alive." Bond is struck at this, because this is the exact same thing Elektra King tells him in a casino. A fight erupts and Renard gets away. How could he have used her exact words? This doesn't make any sense.

The film continues and eventually it is discovered that Elektra King framed her own kidnapping and began to fall in love with her captor. She wanted the oil and all it's conquest for herself and felt that her father didn't care for the family, but only the money. She is responsible for the death of her father. When Renard said he would not do anything to hurt her, she uses radiation on herself and some of her ear is missing! This woman is truly twisted. She ends up doing the entire staging and all the stress her father and M goes through is for nothing. She is the one that turned Renard, not the other way around. It wasn't Stockholm Syndrome after all. She did this to herself and that is what makes this film stand out on so many levels for me. Eventually, James Bond shoots Elektra at point blank range and says, "I never miss." The true secret agent is back and this time we are getting into the Timothy Dalton territory of focus for the mission and not for the jokes.

I personally consider this to be Pierce Brosnan's best effort as James Bond and would find myself watching it countless times back in the day. It would be a long four years before the next adventure would take place. Since this was the first James Bond film I had seen in it's entirety, this film will always have a special place for me and I highly will enjoy watching it over and over again. A high recommend and GoldenEye is a close second!



James Bond will return...