Secret Agent Triple X just sent in this ooooooooohhhhhh so brief report on TOMORROW NEVER DIES from London. But stay tuned cause afterwards an eye- patch wearing spy-god is coming in live from the city of angels.
Just saw the new Bond movie and by all accounts IT IS GOOD. Brosnan still can't move like Connery (I'm biased) but he settles in. Hatcher is wasted (both plot and looking), Yeoh fabulous, Pryce good (needs a better tagline than 'delicious'). Dame Judy Dench and Samantha Bond get best lines. Loads of action, fun and less ridiculous crap than others. My boyfriend says it is the best Bond since Dr No. It is good, that's for sure.
Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD and AICN fought the good battle against the NRG and AIM to see this screening of TOMORROW NEVER DIES. Using skills he learned with his howling commandos, Nick sent in an EXCELLENT review of the film below. There are some spoilers, but dammit, this film is about a whole package not a trick here or there. Enjoy, you should likey...
The Concept: When international media tycoon CARVER (running a CNN-like media empire with a touch of USA Today thrown in for good measure) stages an incident--the English think the Chinese have attacked them, and vice versa--Bond is sent in clear up the misunderstandings and expose Carver in 48 hours.
The Skinny: Fun. Much better than GoldenEye, but not necessarily a genius Bond film, lots of people are going to have a great time with this one.
Brosnan: While Brosnan spent time in the last Bond film making everyone forget about Timothy Dalton, he spends this film vaulting past Roger Moore in sheer coolness. Brosnan doesn't necessarily do anything but exude that Bond charisma, but he does it effortlessly. Some of the quips in this film fall flat, others hit, but it really makes no difference because Brosnan is such a pleasure to watch. A little more characterization is handled in this one (due to a background with Teri Hatcher's character), but nothing outrageous.
Teri Hatcher: A minimal role, with a workman-like execution. Not a big Teri Hatcher fan myself, I liked Michelle Yeoh better. Interestingly enough, her role is not the typical "Bond girl."
Michelle Yeoh: Fans of Jackie Chan and Michelle will be a bit disappointed by the lack of over-the-top theatrics (Michelle really only just kicks some guys in the face here, among other things), but your date (yeah, like you film geeks would have one!) will get a kick out of seeing a pretty girl kick some butt. Shoots machine guns with the best of the boys, and plays very independent. Lack of a straight-ahead Bond girl in this movie is its biggest departure, and is well-handled indeed.
Jonathan Pryce: Fantastic! He's a ridiculous, over-the-top villain who leaves teeth marks on the scenary, but a classic one at that. Hilarious, and giving it his all, he's totally entertaining. Another high point.
The Direction: Well-directed, with some spaces of outstanding cinematography and production design. This Bond film is one of the best looking ever. Some slow-mo at the end deviates outside of typical Bond into almost Woo territory (if only for a second or two).
Plot: Typical Bond, without some of the GoldenEye wackiness I hated so much (like Bond flying into an airplane). Some moments really click and coalesce into great stuff. Other moments just clunk along. With a better sense of pacing and a tighter editing job, this could have been classic Bond. But I'm probably being over-analytical. In short, this is the kind of Bond movie that megaplexers want to see.
The Stunts: Did you like the tanks from GoldenEye? Forget all about them. This Bond heaps in a fighter jet dog fight, a helicopter, a motorcycle, rappelling off a building, and a BMW car fight. The set pieces are milked to the max, and are very memorable. Big fun.
The Credits: The most sensational and inventive credits since Seven. Eye-popping. And sexy.
In a nutshell: Bond is back--now not relying on the novelty of a new actor playing James Bond and some explosions, this new Bond movie delivers the classic dose of espionage action and eye candy. Entertaining and better than GoldenEye. Now what are they going to do to better this?
