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Licence To Kill (Special Edition)

Licence To Kill (Special Edition)

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: See you in hell sanchezzzzzzzz!...
Review: Licence to Kill is the most serious of Bond movies. The film starts off with a powerful drug lord getting captured by Felix Lighter, Bond's associate. On the same day Felix gets married and the drug lord escapes, with a little bit of help from the police.
Later that night Felix is about to really enjoy his wedding day when the Drug lord kidnaps him and kills his wife. Felix is then tortured and left for dead but Bond finds him and vows revenge.
Timothy Dalton stars as Bond for the second time and is great. He shows all the emotions like anger and sadness to love and happiness. The film is the only Bond movie to date to recieve a 15 certificate and when you watch the movie you will know why, some of the scenes have graphic content.
The bond girls are strong and do not need saving at all. Robert Davi is brilliant as the ruthless and sinister Franz Sanchez. Who believes that "Loyalty is more important than money".
All in all the movie is brilliant with good performances all round. Pierce is good but it would have been nice to see old Tim in a few more Bond movies.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Tough and different
Review: Timothy Dalton's second and last turn as 007, Licence to Kill is a clean and total break with everything Bond has done before, including the similarly rule-breaking On Her Majesty's Secret Service. In this movie, Bond resigns as a 00 agent and goes after a drug lord who has harmed Felix Leiter and his wife. The movie is hard-edged and often uncomfortable to watch, but it's exciting, and fun to watch Bond give people their comeuppance. Dalton's tough-edged take on Bond is perfectly appropriate for a movie like this.

The Good: Robert Davi makes an appropriately sleazy villain; any movie with Wayne Newton as a pseudo-New Age-televangelist can't be all bad; an action scene with trucks near the end is extremely well-done; Q is spotlighted in a much larger role; and the change of pace keeps the viewer guessing.

The Bad: the cast, of mostly TV veterans like Davi and Bond girl Carey Lowell, plus the low budget, give the whole thing a slightly B-movie feel; the Mexico set design and the music by action vet Michael Kamen both give the movie also a generic 80s action feel.

Uncomfortable and tough, but undeniably fun and exciting, Licence to Kill is a standout in the series and a great exit for Dalton.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Effective immediately - your LICENCE TO KILL is revoked!
Review: The 16th James Bond movie. Producer Albert R. Broccoli and screenwriters Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson had nearly 30 years of success behind them with 15 smashing James Bond adventures. For the next film a major challenge was faced in inventing a new story with a darker, hard-edge, and sense of danger in the character of 007! For this an epic tale of revenge, passion, and greed set a blueprint of the South American drug trade. The idea of James Bond being thrusted out of his Secret Agent Spy network, licence to kill revoked, and setting foot on a journey of revenge against the drug lord villain and his henchman. This, plus many explicit scenes, would qualify this the first James Bond film to receive a PG-13 rating. A spectacular supporting cast includes Carey Lowell and Talisa Soto as the essential beautiful Bond girls, and LIVE AND LET DIE's David Hedison returning as Felix Leiter, and many surprise appearances by popular stars today in the making. Also featured is a thrilling Michael Kamen score, and exotic locations in Key West, Mexico, Acapulco and Vera Cruz. This would be the final James Bond screenplay from Richard Maibaum, who passed away in 1991. A true Summer blockbuster, LICENCE TO KILL proves you just can't keep a good 007 series down, but why would you want to?

THE ASSIGNMENT: For the first time since ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE, there is no official assignment for Bond to undertake. After the arrest of drug kingpin Franz Sanchez in the Bahamas, Bond's good friend Felix Leiter is happily wed to his bride Della Churchill. Tragedy strikes when Sanchez escapes from prison with help from a traitorous FBI Agent and his fellow henchman. Della is murdered, and Felix horribly mutilated from being tortured in a shark-infested tank. M is aware of Bond being personally involved with Felix and Della, and takes Bond off the case. When Bond refuses, M has no alternative but to ask 007 to submit his licence to kill and weapons. Bond defiantly continues his investigation and determination to bring Sanchez down. Now a private citizen with a personal vendetta, his acting outside the secret service results in British, American, and Hong Kong services on his trail. The consequences can be dangerously unexpected!

THE VILLAINS: Robert Davi as Franz Sanchez, Anthony Zerbe as Milton Krest, Everett McGill as Killifer, Wayne Newton as Professor Joe Butcher, Anthony Starke as Truman-Lodge, Benicio del Toro as Dario, Don Stroud as Heller, Alejandro Bracho as Perez, and Guy de Saint Cyr as Braun.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! BUY IT!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The BEST Bond Film Ever Produced
Review: I have to agree with Mr. Blankenship listed below in saying that I also feel Timothy Dalton portrayed the "best" Bond; at least to say that his character was easily the most human, and the most like the character which was created by Ian Fleming in his novels. However, I can see no reason to give such a great movie any less than 5 stars. Sean Connery also delivered memorable performances as Mr. Bond, but the movies were, and continue to be, ruined by the use of ludicrous action sequences- which while exciting- rob the movie of any seriousness. What's the use of saving the world, if you do it in an entirely unbelievable way? It's Cartoonish. I would rather see Bugs Bunny save the world from the Bond villians than see most of these over- the- top movies again. "License to Kill" was terrific because the movie focused on the humanity of Bond and his quest to destroy the man who unjustly ruined his friends lives... not to say the movie was entirely lacking absurd action sequences, just to say that the movie relied on them much less than other recent productions...

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Dalton's Exit
Review: Timothy Dalton's second and last appearance as super spy James Bond has 007 quitting the secret service and embarking on his own personal vendetta against a powerful Columbian drug dealer, played by Robert Davi. The film opens with 007 assisting Felix Leiter in the capture of Franz Sanchez(Davi). Actually, Bond is pretty much solely responsible for the capture but his participation is kept secret, presumably so as not to compromise her majesty's secret service. Thus, when Sanchez escapes he exacts brutal revenge on Leiter and his new bride Della(in fact Della's death is practically identical to the death of Bond's own wife Tracy - something many viewers didn't pick up on). Enraged, 007 nevertheless maintains his professional cool, manoeuvers his way into Sanchez's empire and begins tearing it apart from the inside.
Although this James Bond thriller lacks the sophisticated feel of previous entries and the story's rather thin, it remains one of the most strongest films in the series. The serious tone turned some audiences off but the movie is still loaded with the traditional Bond trappings, including beautiful female companions, incredible stunts and high-powered action scenes(don't miss that tanker truck finale). The movie's real success comes from the performances of Davi, as the villian who masks his vicious thug persona under a suave appearance, and Dalton especially, for conquering the difficult task of turning 007 into a hateful, vengence-seeking rogue yet remaining a heroic figure whom the audience can't help but root for.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Not Your Average Bond Again
Review: I loved this story. Unlike the other Bond films, it is more like an action drama then an action adventure. Dalton's performance is again wonderful and real. The apperence of Q on the battle field is priceless.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The other underrated 007
Review: In his two films as 007, Timothy Dalton salvaged the role from the jokey one-liner characterization of Roger Moore. Frankly, I don't think Bond would still be around had Dalton not gone back to the source material(Fleming's novels)to reinvent the character. In his(unfortunately)last outing as Bond, Dalton resigns from the service and turns rogue agent to get revenge against a South American drug lord. The gadgets are few and far between. The action is brutal and tense. The villain (Robert Davi)is one of the best of the film series. Desmond Llewelyn, as Q, has more screen time than ever before, and it's a plus. If you've read Fleming's original novels, particularly LIVE AND LET DIE, you realize Dalton had the character nailed. Fleming's Bond was a human being--he got hurt physically and emotionally, he drank, ate, and smoked too much, he had feelings. Admittedly, Dalton didn't handle the humor as well as Connery, Moore, or Brosnan. But he knew how Fleming intended for the character to be and he played him that way. Sadly, when the film came out in 1989, it had to compete with Michael Keaton's much-hyped first Batman film, the last Indiana Jones film, and Lethal Weapon 2. In addition, it was poorly advertised by the film company. With this series of obstacles, one of the best of the Bond films never stood a chance, and Dalton joined George Lazenby as the other underrated 007.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A tough, gritty Bond film.
Review: "License To Kill" is one of the most controversial films in the Bond catalog. For many, it is too violent (in a realistic way, without the comedic or fantasy elements), and does not feature a "Bondian" villian or plot. For others, however it is a return to the classic Fleming style, as seen in "From Russia With Love," and "On Her Majesty's Secret Service." Of all the actors that have played James Bond, Timothy Dalton provided the most accurate interpretation of Ian Fleming's character. That may be a different character than the one that Sean Connery played, and certainly quite different than the one Roger Moore played, but Dalton's performance as Bond in "License To Kill," and "The Living Daylights," is the truest to Fleming's novels. The Special Edition DVD of "License To Kill" is quite special indeed. A beautiful widescreen picture, crystal clear sound, and a plethora of special features (like the other Bond special editions) including theatrical trailers and documentaries on the making of the movie make it a must have. The film itself also boasts some of the most exciting action sequences and best character development (what a novel concept!) in all of the Bond films, and features some crackling dialog. If you're an action movie junkie, or like an exciting thriller this one is for you.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: BIG improvement over Roger Moore
Review: Moore simply could not make Bond seem real. Perhaps it was the appearance (blond hair) or his - how to say this politiely - advancing years in which some of the babes appear as daughters rather than gal pals. Dalton was great. It was different in that Bond was not on a government-sanctioned mission but a personal vendetta. It was exciting and yes, violent, but it did reinstill some much-needed reality back into the series. With Moore, everything - from plot to dame to prize - was a joke. Here one realizes that the spy game is more than a game - it is dangerous and dirty. Great villians but the romance side was rather weak despite the lurid (for Bond) scenes.

Super performance by Wayne Newton!!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Timothy Dalton ROCKS!!!!!
Review: Timothy Dalton has always been my favorite Bond. The Living Daylights was a movie that I watched many times as a child growing up in the 80's. I watched the rest of Bond movies later, but The Living Daylights had more magic than any other movie. Timothy Dalton's second movie as Bond was Licence to Kill, released in the summer of 1989. I was seven years old when I saw Licence to Kill in the theatres back then and it seems like yesterday. Dalton's second Bond film is not as good as his first effort for a number of reasons. John Barry(the man reponsible for making the Great music of Bond for the last 24 years)left and Michael Kamen does not mesh well with Bond. Also, the only interesting characters are the villian(Robert Davi) and Bond(Timothy Dalton). It is good that Q has a big role in this entry though. Timothy Dalton is the man who should be appreciated more by fans. His movies had originality which no other actor can say. Patti Labelle's song in the end credits is Great and makes me wish Licence to Kill was even longer than it was. I HATE that Dalton left after this movie because he would have been GREAT in Goldeneye and blows Pierce, Sean, Roger, and George OUT OF THE WATER!!


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