GoldenEye

The tagline for GoldenEye begins: "It's a new world..." Six years after Licence To Kill, it is indeed very new, and a lot has changed on the Bond films and the biggest and most noticeable change for the films is a new producer. After sixteen films and over thirty years in the driver's seat, Albert R "Cubby" Broccoli has nothing but a "presents" credit on GoldenEye, his job being taken over by his daughter Barbara. Babs Broccoli and her step-brother Michael G Wilson (who's been doing the job for quite some time) clearly have a slightly different idea about what a Bond film is. What's ever so slightly strange, though, is that Wilson is no longer contributing to the scripting duties. And worse, without Richard Maibaum, there are no old hands on the GoldenEye script. And what's a little disturbing is that there were no less than four different writers on GoldenEye. Good...or bad?

The first most noticeable major change to the film series is a revamp of the gunbarrel logo by new main title designer Daniel Kleinman. It looks amazing, with a true three-dimensional effect. And, of course, a new James Bond - Pierce Brosnan, finally getting the chance to play the part he's desired for so long - walks in the sights, but sadly doesn't deliver quite the same punch with his casual swing to camera. OK, it's only the gunbarrel, but it's important. What's also important to mention is that Eric Serra is handling the music chores, and quite frankly, this is a very, very bad idea. From the outset Serra just doesn't get the "Bond sound". Bond has a "sound" which other composers have gotten, tweaked slightly so they can work with it, but kept it essentially the same. Serra just tosses it aside and delivers a Serra score that occasionally uses the James Bond theme in the same way that Diamonds Are Forever was a Bond film - maybe in name. You know that you're onto a bad thing when even the producers have lost faith in your composer - during the amazing tank sequence (more on this later) orchestrator Nic Foster composes the scene, replacing what Serra originally wrote. You can immediately tell the difference and immediately realise that Foster got it in exactly the same way Serra didn't. To cap it all off, Serra himself performs the closing song "The Experience Of Love" which, despite being quite a nice song, is frankly boring. That said, Serra's love theme for the movie is very beautiful and it's lovely when it comes up.

There are a lot of great things about GoldenEye, but to be frank there are some big problems, and I want to address those first, before praising the good. Aside from the music, the script is extremely clunky. There is narrative exposition aplenty which seems stuck in because essentially what happens isn't terribly clear. Unfortunately, there are some moments which need that exposition that just aren't there. Bond meets up with Zukovsky and out of the blue offers him the chance to deal explosives in return for a meeting with Janus. However, Bond has only just arrived in Russia and met up with Jack Wade; so how does he come up with this explosive deal exactly? Wade never mentions it and clearly neither does Bond. It's a bizarre piece of storytelling that is just thrown in. Meanwhile, every single Russian we meet introduces themselves using all three of their names: Arkardy Grigorovitch Ourumov; Natalya Fyordorovna Simonova; Valentin Dimtrovich Zukovsky...it just goes on. When Minister Mishkin actually calls Ourumov "Arkady Grigorovich" you begin to whither. On the other hand, it's clear that none of the writers involved where particularly keen to use the Bond traditions and, as such, decided to get them all over in the Casino scene which, aside from having Bond introduce himself and ask for a martini, sees more double entendre than has ever been seen in one film. It is quite simply cringe inducing.

And of course there is new James Bond, Pierce Brosnan. For so long, we were assured that Timothy Dalton would be returning to Bond, but after the announcement of the film, Dalton announced he felt it was time to move on, and his replacement in The Living Daylights (who ultimately had to step down) is the man to get the job. Truth to tell, Brosnan doesn't quite nail the part in this movie. Unlike his predecessors who all seem to have an understanding of what they want to do with the part, Brosnan seems curiously uncertain of where he is going. When he's smooching up to the women, he's playing Remington Steele; when he's being serious he comes across as a petulant fifteen year old, and the rest of the time he is trying to channel Roger Moore. There is a fine line between being confident and being smug, and sadly Brosnan sits on just the wrong side of this line. It's annoying, because you get the feeling Brosnan does have the potential to do a good job of the part. It just doesn't materialise in this film. However, that said, the one thing that Brosnan does bring to the role is a smoothness that sets him apart from his four predecessors. It's your schtick, Pierce!!! Work it!

And that's pretty much the negatives of the film. Because, outside of that there is an awful lot of great stuff in the film. The pre-title sequence is wonderful, with no less than two absolutely amazing stunts taking place - the brilliant leap off the Russian dam and Bond driving a motorcycle of a cliff to catch a plane that is falling. The plane stunt occurs just before the title sequence which is a wonderful sequence incorporating CGI. On top of that Tina Turner delivers an amazing rendition of Bono & The Edge's theme song, which just highlights how horrible Serra's score is.
There is essentially no former cast members in this film, though Desmond Llewellyn does reprise "Q", but sadly this is not a wonderful performance, with Llewellyn and Brosnan doing what appears to be Carry On "Q". However, Samantha Bond becomes the new Miss Moneypenny, and there is an attempt to make her just a little more independent, but it does seem to make her just that little too independent. Michael Kitchen plays Bill Tanner, and its a brilliant performance that is exactly the way the character should be played. He has a relaxed relationship with Bond, and is clearly, like the rest of the MI6 staff (now located in the correct MI6 building in Vauxhall) is trying to impress his new boss.

Judi Dench steps into the shoes of "M", clearly a new character, and one who sees Bond as outdated and not entirely essential to her new regeime. This is a good move, as it's nice to see Bond as an old-fashioned character struggling to fit into the new world of spying. Dench brings a whole new quality of class to the Bond movies, and her scathing relationship with Bond, is exactly the way the Bond/"M" relationship should be played. You can't help but be excited by Dench's casting - and once again, like Bernard Lee, she gets an "and" credit in the title sequence! However, I don't like the idea of Bond referring to "M" as "M" rather than ma'am - it seems a little insubordinate.

Meanwhile, the rest of the casting is simply superb (with one possible exception, so we won't dwell on Joe Don Baker as Jack Wade). Tcheky Karyo plays Russian Defence Minister Mishkin and brings a small part to life, stealing the two scenes he is in, which is particularly impressive as both of those scenes also feature Gottfried John as General Ourumov, who injects a sense of brilliant desperation into his character. Perhaps the thing that makes Ourumov brilliant is his facial expressions which are always just a little off-kilter, and always give the feeling that Ourumov can't quite believe what he is seeing. However, Ourumov has very little patience for fools under his command as he ruthlessly shoots one of his men dead after ordering them not to shoot at gas barrels. It's a wonderful moment. Alan Cummings plays the other henchman, Boris Grishenko, a computer geek who has his own catchphrase. Cummings is great in the role and you can't help but hope he makes it through to the end; though he has a rather nasty moment with the leading lady. The other cameo part - of sorts - is former KGB agent-turned-Russian mobster Valentin Zukovsky, played by Robbie Coltrane. Frankly, he steals the entire movie. He delivers everything with a twinkle in his eyes and one gets the feeling that Coltrane is having the absolute time of his life playing this larger than life ally of Bond. I can only hope and pray he will return to the series.

Roll on the Bond girls, with Bond apparently becoming somewhat monogamous in this movie. There are two girls - Izabella Scorupco and Famke Janssen as Natalya and Xenia Onnatopp, respectively. Xenia is an absolute fruitcake, a villainous henchman who gets off on violence. She is one of the best henchmen the series has ever seen, killing her victims by crushing them with her thighs, but is so hot you can't help but root for her (pardon the pun). Scorupco, on the other hand, is stunning, her figure highlighted by what could be regarded as a somewhat gratuituous moment when she walks on a beach in nothing but a white bikini (cue a curious crotch shot). Natalya is an interesting Bond girl, resourceful like many of the others, but there is some good acting from Scorupco when she witnesses Bond massacre a group of soldiers. Both girls are standouts.

Finally, on the casting front, comes Bond villain Alec Trevelyan, former agent 006 as portrayed by Sean Bean, who just missed out on getting the role of Bond in this movie. It's great in the opening sequence to see another 00 agent in the same light as we often see Bond - usually 00 agents are shadowy figures who get killed, inspiring Bond to seek revenge of some sort. Somehow 006 makes a deal with Ourumov (either in the few moments he got caught, or beforehand, which indicates that both he and Ourumov have an absolute callous disregard for the grunts) and becomes the surprise villian later in the film - which would be a huge surprise if the trailer hadn't let everyone know that the movie would be about 007 fighting 006. This, of course, is not he fault of the movie makers, rather the trailer makers who made a huge blunder with this one. Sadly Bean tends to eclipse Brosnan most of the time, and brings a lot more passion to his part than Brosnan brings to Bond; though his claim that Bond has no loyalty towards his friends is a little off base after LTK. That said, though, the final fight between Bond and Trevelyan is one of the most vicious we've seen in the series to date.

And so we get to the details of the movie. The stunts are universally spectacular in the film. We've already established those in the title sequence are amazing, but later in the film there is a tank chase which involves trashing St Petersburg, as well as driving an armoured train into said tank. It's truly incredible and you feel the pain everyone goes through when they get hit. Also of note, and perhaps appropriately given that sadly the man responsible, Derek Meddings, died after the film was made and gets the dedication, is the modelwork of the film which is simply spectacular. There are moments of modelwork in the film you would honestly believe where filmed live. It's simply breathtaking, and is so wonderful that Meddings final film is the absolute best example of his work.

The Aston Martin DB5 turns up again for an entertaining little chase in through the mountainside, but Bond's car for the movie - apparently gadged enhanced - is a BMW Z3, which sadly appears...once. And is used for Bond to drive to meet Jack Wade. Utterly, utterly pointless. On the other hand, there is a curious reference in the film to Bond's parents, which is a nice nod to Fleming's novels.

Then there are the gadgets, principally the explosive pen that goes off after four seconds of being armed by three clicks. Clearly Bond has absolutely no faith in "Q"'s gadgets at all as, when given the pen by "Q", he arms it and puts it in "Q"'s pocket. That said, though, he seems completely justified as it doesn't go off. Then..."Q" puts it on a dummy and does the same thing...which results in an explosion. This pen is, quite frankly, bizarre. Try to keep track of the clicks in the final scene and you'll notice it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. Why on Earth does Bond think it will go off when it does??

At the end of the day, GoldenEye feels like a Sean Connery movie, directed by John Glen and starring Roger Moore. It's a mix and mash that doesn't work for Brosnan, and ultimately just doesn't really work.

Favourite Bond: 1. Timothy Dalton; 2. Roger Moore; 3. Sean Connery; 4. George Lazenby; 5. Pierce Brosnan

Favourite movie order: 1. The Living Daylights; 2. On Her Majesty's Secret Service; 3. Dr No; 4. Licence To Kill; 5. A View To A Kill; 6. Live And Let Die; 7. Thunderball; 8. For Your Eyes Only/Octopussy 10. The Spy Who Loved Me; 11. GoldenEye; 12. From Russia, With Love; 13. Goldfinger; 14. You Only Live Twice; 15. Moonraker; 16. The Man With The Golden Gun; 17. Diamonds Are Forever

Favourite Bond girl: 1. Carey Lowell/Pam; 2. Claudine Auger/Dominio; 3. Diana Rigg/Tracy; 4. Carole Bouquet/Melina; 5. Izabella Scorupco/Natalya; 6. Barbara Bach/Anya; 7. Maud Adams/Octopussy 8. Mie Hama/Kissy; 9. Daniela Bianchi/Tanya; 10. Ursula Andress/Honey; 11. Jane Seymour/Solitaire; 12. Maryam D'Abo/Kara; 13. Lois Chiles/Holly; 14. Honor Blackman/Pussy; 15. Tanya Roberts/Stacy; 16. Britt Ekland/Mary; 17. Jill St John/Tiffany

Favourite Bond villain: 1. Robert Davi/Sanchez; 2. Donald Pleasance/Blofeld; 3. Gert Frobe/Goldfinger; 4. Christopher Lee/Scaramanga; 5. Jeroen Krabbe & Joe Don Baker/Koskov & Whittaker; 6. Christopher Walken/Zorin; 7. Louis Jordan & Steven Berkov/Kahn & Orlov 8. Adolfo Celi/Largo; 9. Sean Bean/Trevelyan; 10. Michael Lonsdale/Drax; 11. Yaphet Kotto/Mr Big-Dr Kananga; 12. Julian Glover/Kristatos; 13. Joseph Wiseman/Dr No; 14. Lotte Lenya/Klebb; 15. Telly Savalas/Blofeld; 16. Charles Gray/Blofeld; 17. Curt Jurgens/Stromberg