Rating: Summary: Great Action Movie, Terrible Bond Movie Review: I went and saw this movie opening night. I saw the opening logo (gun-barrel logo), and thought this is going to be great. The opening logo, and maybe the underground tunnel with the old gadgets, was as close to a BOND movie as they got. The movie lacked it's usually bond qualities. I heard the BOND theme by Monty Norman played once I believe. Femme Fatatales were certainly there, but they also lacked the BOND punch. My biggest problem was that, I had trouble convincing myself that I was watching JAMES BOND. It was just an action flick with Pierce Brosnan to me. I thought before that the other BOND'S were far-fetched, but at least they were somewhat believeable. This film was almost totally sci-fi/techno/space-age garbage. Invisible cars? Robotic suits? Ice castles? Windsurfing on a sea of ice? JAMES BOND WILL RETURN! Thank God! I'm glad this wasn't the last BOND film. Hopefully they'll bring back more of the good ol' JAMES BOND for the next film.
Rating: Summary: Never Could happen In a Million Years Review: The movie sucks from begininng to end. Bond gets from an imposibe scene escape to another, an another, an another. The Girls are Ok and Bronsan looks great, but the writing is absolutely stupid and moronic. The the scene where the plane is going down, takes like 15 minute, while the girls are playing with swords and Bond is in a eternal fight with the bad boy. Great gadgets for an overproduced "movie"
Rating: Summary: die another day Review: Well i love james bond movies and when he put my baby(halle berry) in it as a supporting actress. The woman made it even better this time around. What a sceen seeing halle come out of the ocean with that 2 piece on looking good as hell. then undressing before diving off the cliff was just to exciting. They needed to let us see more body shots in the leather outfit though but she is my girl and it will definitely be bought on dvd so i can watch it over and over.
Rating: Summary: typical bond flick with a bit more action Review: Even though I have seen all of the 007 films I have never been a huge fan of them. Most of them definately hold one's interest and then there are some that are a little drawn out. Now comes Die Another Day. When I saw the previews for this movie it gave me a little bit of hype, but after seeing the movie I am reminded of the typical 007 storylines. James Bond has to stop some terrorist from taking over the world, he sleeps with every woman he comes in contact with, he always has a new car due to destroying the car he had in the previous film, and he never loses in hand-to-hand combat or gets injured for that matter. Basically,everything seems to work out for the 00 agent. I will admit that most every bond film has been in some way more creative than the previous but if you look at all of the 007 movies you will find that they pretty much have very similar plots. After 40 years of James Bond you would think that his character would be considered to be an "outdated dinosaur" but I guess the general public just can't get enough of 007. As for me, I hope that a very unusual plot twist will take place in the next 007 movie.
Rating: Summary: One of the worst bonds yet Review: Cmon, Does every bond villian have to be a Communist? Its been Soviet Rogues for the past 40 years, Tommorow never dies featured the Chinese.Now,weve got the North Koreans. Bond is not back. Anyone who has seen From Russia with love, or Dr.no, will tell you the same. They have taken the realism to a rock bottom level, Theyve left out all hope for reality. An invisible car? A palace made out of ice? Charecters that appeared from no-where (Diamond-face), A satellite with a mounted Laser. I think this Overpowers MoonRaker in Unrealism,Might as well give bond super powers and a time machine,Thats about all you can do to lower the realism factor
Rating: Summary: "So you live to Die Another Day?" -James Bond 007 Review: The 20th and most fantastic movie to enter the series in a long time! Packed with evil villians, sexy girls, gadgets galore and the classic one-liners from the most famous spy of all time- it doesn't get any better than that. First the villians- Gustav Graves is a snotty, arrogant and show-off to the public and is bent on world domination with his super weapon- the Icarus. He duels 007 with fencing swords and lives in style in his Ice palace in Iceland. Zao is the henchmen who is scarred with diamond shrapnel and has a personal goal to kill 007. And, finally is my favorite character in the movie- the stunning Miranda Frost! She is the athletic, cunning, mysterious, extremely sexy ice princess that gives Bond the ice treatment in her regard to her extreme hate of him. a world-class fencer, and collaborator with Gustav, she battles with Jinx aboard the Antonov plane, and ultimately meets her end. (Darn!, I really liked her, She really is hot!) The other main Bond girl is Jinx, who works as a team with Bond, and battles along with him. David Arnold gives his finest perfromance, with his best 007 soundtrack ever! Madonna gives the most different, but one of the best title songs ever also. This film has many references to the past because of the 40th anniversary of the films. Here are a few--- -look for 007 holding the book Birds Of The West Indies by James Bond. -007 steals a grape a la` Thunderball -the WWII cigarettes poster that Domino loved from Thunderball -Duke of Wellington statue in teaser a la` like the picture in Dr. No -fencing club called Blades, like the gentlemen's club in many 007 books -Jinx entry like Honey Ryder in Dr. No -MANY past gadgets in Q's lab from past Bond films. -Q's quip to 007, "Here's your new watch, this will be your 20th I believe." Ha Ha Ha. Also be on the lookout for the classic cameo of Michael G. Wilson in the film as General Chandler. Madonna also does a cameo as fencing instructer Verity in the Blades Club. A long awaited film, that I have had the pleasure of seeing, and GOD! it is one of the best in the series!!!
Rating: Summary: At the risk of reviewing the film after actually seeing it: Review: After reading a string of reviews from people who had never seen Die Another Day (hey thanks!), I wanted to see it anyway. Who can say no to James Bond? Every Bond movie comes down to action, setting, girls, cars and gadgets, so we might as well rate it based on these. Action: almost frantic, for 2 1/2 hours. Hovercraft chases, car chases, a riveting sword fight, gun fights in aircraft, gun fights in an ice palace, car gadget fights on ice, etc. -- you get the idea. If you liked Driving Miss Daisy, this isn't your flick. But Bond is Bond, and somehow it works. The action crowds out almost all character development, but I would recommend the old Ian Fleming books if you want to explore that side of the most famous secret agent. Setting: Gritty North Korean military camps, Cuba and an especially arctic portrayal of Iceland. I always like to leave a Bond movie feeling like I've vacationed in a few spots. Die Another Day works. A gorgeous movie on the big screen. Girls: Two love interests, Halle Berry being the more interesting interest. Nothing too risque in the sex scenes, so bring the kids if they're already accustomed to the violence. The dialogue is atrociously corny, one one-liner after another. Brosnan can get away with it. Berry won't be winning any awards for this. Sean Connery and Timothy Dalton were darker. Roger Moore was always rather flip. Brosnan seems to have edged toward the Bond-as-wiseacre in Die Another Day. Cars: An A++. Was there ever anything better than an Aston Martin for 007? The gorgeous Vanquish (with invisibility, rockets, and the other options you won't find at your local Jag dealer...) is perfect Bond, updated. Berry's Thunderbird makes the briefest appearance, and gets upstaged by everything else. It felt like a commercial spot (shock!). Lots of Land Rovers, as Ford gets its money's worth, and a diabolocial Jaguar Racing Green XKR convertible with rocket launchers -- well, you get the idea. A tad high on the commercial aspect, but not ruinously so. Gagdets -- John Cleese is wonderful as Q, even if the late Desmond Llewelyn will always be Q. I won't spoil it for you, but watch for some older Bond props. Bond's new ring, watch and the accessories on his Aston Martin are marvelous. You cringe knowing the car will never make through the film. Overall, Bond fans will love this. Students of cinema won't. The plot isn't much, the dialogue often weak and the characters thin. The title song was vapid compared to almost any Bond title I can remember. It may be the worst one yet -- pop candy with a hint of rap. No reason to avoid modern artists, but this one doesn't work. David Arnold's score usually does, with many cues borrowed directly from The World is Not Enough (really a very good soundtrack) and even a snippet of 'London Calling', in case Bond ever listened to The Clash. How can I not recommend James Bond? Leave reality behind for a couple of hours and have fun.
Rating: Summary: Die Another Day will live forever Review: Lee Tamahori should be the official Bond director. This movie had everything a Bond fan wants, action, sex, fast cars, etc. At first I was reluctant having stated that Roger Moore was my favorite Bond, but now has been bumped to two for Mr. Brosnan. Brosnan looks the part, PERIOD!!!! The camera angles are great, the use of slow motion shots and speed up angles as I call them are great. Special effects are wonderful and the stunts are very Bondesque. People have been told to watch out for things from old movies, just keep to the obvious, you don't want it to overshadow your pleasure in the greatest Bond film ever. John Cleese as the new Q is great!! The kiss with Moneypenny and Bond...hilarious. GO SEE DIE ANOTHER DAY!!, by the way, product placement isn't that bad, it's not like Brosnan, et al. sit and do commercials, plus of course Bond goes for name products, he only likes the best.
Rating: Summary: Is Half a Bond Movie Better than None? Review: DIE ANOTHER DAY is like watching two different consecutive movies. The first hour is very good and we see our hero get involved in and out of some situations we thought we would never see on the screen. Bond is not infallible but he is resourceful and loyal and will not be deterred from seeing duty and justice served. The second hour reverts to the superhero version of Bond this time aided by gadgets and computer generated effects that defy all credibility. The second hour is not even an issue of the viewer's suspension of disbelief but rather it is a question of why the film took such a curious turn. The second hour of DIE ANOTHER DAY visually looks like a combination of BATMAN AND ROBIN and TRON. I expected to see Arnold Schwarzenegger come breaking through Gustav Graves' ice palace as Mr. Freeze at any moment. Toby Stephens as Graves looks like he stepped off the set of TRON wearing some virtual reality getup emitting computer generated electrical energy and other outrageous mayhem. This is not the stuff James Bond films are made of. All the hype really didn't help this film. Halle Berry as Jinx has one of the smallest parts of any Bond girl to date. Jinx has very little screen time, character development, motivation or any thing else to do for that matter. John Cleese as the new Quartermaster at least looks more at home than many of the other regulars. David Arnold's score goes over-the-top with the rest of the movie in the second hour. Is half a Bond movie better than none at all? Just barely! One closing thought: Madonna's cameo as Verity the fencing coach wasn't bad all things being considered. Also, her main title song went appropriately well with the film's opening.
Rating: Summary: THE BEST JAMES BOND MOVIE EVER? Review: Halfway through DIE ANOTHER DAY, I turned to my companion sitting beside me in the movie theater and I asked him, in all seriousness, "Is it possible we are watching the BEST James Bond movie EVER?" Better than From Russia With Love? Better than Goldfinger? Better than On Her Majesty's Secret Service? Better than The Spy Who Loved Me? Is it possible for #20 to be #1? I held my breath for the rest of the movie as scene after scene worked a Bond magic I haven't felt in years. I got a little nervous when I felt the narrative getting overwhelmed by the action in Iceland, but then that amazing climax kicked in and I'm breathless again and when DIE ANOTHER DAY is over I'm sitting in my seat absolutely stunned. I decide then and there that it was, indeed, the BEST James Bond movie I had ever seen!! Okay, breathe, breathe... For those of you interested, I'm going to briefly bullet point my thoughts and reactions to the major sections and elements of the movie. (Mega SPOILERS ahead). Pre-titles: A surprise here. For such a good Bond movie, I thought the pre-titles sequence was nothing special. I feared a re-hash of the TND pre-titles, and it was. I also didn't care for that washed-out overly saturated look the DP gave the whole sequence. Bond movies are not supposed to look that way. Stop trying so hard, I thought. But then there was something about Bond hanging on the bell after the hovercraft goes over the waterfall that made me sit up and say, hmmm, nice Bond moment there. Then... Titles: Amazing, breathtaking, inventive, interesting, incredible! Even the Madonna song with that annoying audio drop out couldn't ruin it. Here I realized DAD was boldly experimenting with the formula without betraying it. This was Bond, but not the same old Bond and it worked beautifully. Oh, Scorpion Girl...I love you, you little savage cutie-pie. Bearded Bond/Hong Kong stuff: This was so bold, so unexpected, so unBond, and so overtly dramatic, I should have hated it. But I didn't. I loved it! Bond goes into cardiac arrest? I was stunned. The audience was stunned. The movie had us all by the throats. We're not just watching a great Bond movie here-we're watching a great movie, period. And then Bond walks into the Hong Kong hotel in his ragged condition but still with full Bond aplomb and, hey, this movie is working! Cuba: Okay, for everyone who says Timothy Dalton was the book Bond...no, you're wrong. Pierce Brosnan is the book Bond here, Pierce Brosnan is Connery's Bond here, Pierce Brosnan IS James Bond here! This is the best part of the film, in my opinion. Classic Bond. I love, LOVE, that Bond and Jinx hit the sheets right off the bat. Of course this is how it should be. I realized I've grown very tired with the Bond-has-sex-with-the-main-girl-only-at-the-end formula. I think it works much better that Bond and the main girl START their relationship with pure, animal lust, then grow to respect one another. It's Bond and Tracey. Sex first...love later. Nice. London calling: All the scenes set in London are fabulous. I loved the Blades swordfight, classic Bond and villain duel turned up to the maximum. (Re Madonna's cameo--can someone say, "Vaseline on the lens." How sad. Madonna has become Barbara Walters.) And John Cleese IS "Q". 'Nuff said. Iceland: I love the location, the ice palace, the Icarus satellite demonstration, the dragster, Miranda, etc...but I did feel the wall-to-wall action in this part of the film started overwhelming what up until then had been a very clean narrative. Jinx is captured and saved twice in the same location? Overkill. A major set-piece should have been sacrificed here to lighten the load on the storyline (and the audience). In my opinion, the big glacier surfing stunt could have been lost, cool as it was. My objection to this scene wasn't with the cheesy CGI, it's with the fact that it was SO big it played like a sequence ending climax and took away from the ice ballet car chase that followed. Yes, I got a bit lost amid all the action in Iceland, but this is my ONLY complaint. Climactic battle: Awesome, incredible, one of the most exciting Bond climaxes ever filmed! I love the Icarus satellite burning it's way through Korea as the plane disintegrates in mid-air. Loved that Miranda took the time during all this chaos to change into that sexy fencing outfit for her big fight with Jinx. And Graves died the way a Bond villain should die-big! The audience cheered. Then there was the final Moneypenny scene that had the audience almost on their feet with cheers and laughs and, yes, at that moment DAD was the BEST JAMES BOND MOVIE EVER! Now to address a few of the elements of controversy I had heard before going in. DAD goes OTT with the sci-fi element: What? How? I think DAD did what all the "spectacular" Bond films do and that's bring it right to the line without crossing it. Nothing in DAD is impossible-it's improbable, yes, but it's not impossible and that's the Cubby Broccoli edict. No probs. Jinx/Berry: Come on, she was awesome! Like it or not, Halle Berry as Jinx enters the pantheon of great Bond girls. She was also flippin' hot! Too much CGI: Nah, it was fine. Even the much-maligned glacier surfing stunt didn't bother me. Hey, I didn't let the Tarzan yell ruin Octopussy, I'm not going to let one bad special effect ruin DAD. I'm there to have fun and I did. Congrats Eon, MGM, and everyone involved with DIE ANOTHER DAY. Even if-when I come down from my high-I decide it's not the best James Bond movie of them all, it's still the best Bond movie in over a decade and one that reinvigorates the series and that's an amazing accomplishment.
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