 |
| This cool poster for Lee Tamahori's Die Another Day promises mouth-watering spectacle galore |
QUICK REVIEW:
Bond is captured and tortured for months in North Korea, before he gets traded out for the diamond-freckled villain Zao. Zao's boss goes to Iceland, in a new body ...
The last really tremendous Bond movie so far is the #20 in the movie series, Die Another Day, an opulent joy from beginning to end. Only Madonna's (Evita (1996)) title song and a nasty editing habit of injecting slow and fast-forward again and again weigh down slightly.
Otherwise this is a perfect mix of a modern update of the franchise and old-fashioned tongue-in-cheek Bond. Halle Berry (Things We Lost in the Fire (2007)) is incredibly sexy and sweet; Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl (2014)) is fantastic as a frosty bitch; Zao (Rick Yune (The Man with the Iron Fists (2012))) is a handsome heavy; and Pierce Brosnan (Love Is All You Need/Den Skaldede Frisør (2012)) is in his ace in his 4th and final Bond movie, which is also definitely his best.
Die Another Day is written by Neal Purvis (Skyfall (2012)) and Robert Wade (Johnny English (2003)), based on Ian Fleming's (Dr. No (1958)) character, and directed by great New Zealander director Lee Tamahori (The Sopranos (2000), TV-series). It is a spectacular action movie.
Related reviews:
Bond: Spectre (2015) - Mendes' second Bond delivers
Skyfall (2012) - The overly celebrated third pout from Daniel Craig as Bond in slick production
A View to a Kill (1985) or, Once a Gentleman, Always a Gentleman!
Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - Connery's last Bond adventure is a colorful romp
Casino Royale (1967) - The packed spy spoof frontrunner, a film very much of its time (spoof comedy - not part of the franchise)
Dr. No (1962) - Bond # 1 is one attractive package
 |
| A still from the great ice car chase in the final act of Lee Tamahori's Die Another Day |
 |
| Halle Berry in her iconic bikini for Lee Tamahori's Die Another Day, paying tribute to Ursula Andress' bikini-clad performance in the first Bond movie, Dr. No (1962) |
Watch a trailer for the film here
Cost: 142 mil. $
Box office: 431.9 mil. $
= Box office success
[Die Another Day is the 20th Bond movie, which also marked the 40th anniversary of the franchise. References to every previous film are build into the film. It was shot in 2002 in England, Iceland, Spain, Hawaii and in Norway. Berry had to undergo surgery as debris from an explosion flew into her eye. Madonna's title song, which was both Golden Globe-nominated and Raspberry-nominated (Best and Worst song nominations at different events that is), is the first title song sequence to directly reflect the film's plot since the first Bond movie. The film has more product placement in it than any previous Bond movie: 20 companies have their products in the film, which gave the production somewhere between 70-100 mil. $ but also drew criticisms, and the amount of product placement was reduced for the next film, Casino Royale (2006). Both North and South Korea took affront to the portrayal of their countries in the film, yet it still made 3.4 mil. $ in South Korea. It premiered at the Royal Albert Hall, which had been transformed into an ice castle, in London with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip in attendance, - the first Bond film premiere with the queen's attendance since You Only Live Twice (1967). Plans for a spin-off movie series around Berry's Jinx character was in development but was canceled by MGM to the franchise's English producers' resentment. The movie opened #1 in North America with 47 mil. $, grossing 160.9 mil. $ (37.3 % of the total gross) there. Its 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 59.1 mil. $ (13.7 %) and Germany with 33.1 mil. $ (7.7 %). It was the highest-grossing Bond movie, not accounting for inflation, up until the release of Casino Royale. Die Another Day is rotten at 58 % with a 6.1 critical average on Rotten Tomatoes.]
What do you think of Die Another Day?
No comments:
Post a Comment