Well friends, today, we come to an end of yet another era of James Bond, one that was short-lived, I will add. That’s right! Today, we are talking about the end of the short-lived Timothy Dalton era, where 007: Licence To Kill is the end of Timothy Dalton’s time with playing James Bond, followed by Pierce Brosnan taking up the baton for that role six years later. Imagine that! Oh, and can we just take a moment to think about the fact that this 007 movie was released during the same year that movies like Indiana Jones & The Last Crusade, and the Disney film, The Little Mermaid were released? Is that crazy, or what? Anyway, let’s talk about 007: Licence To Kill, which just reached it’s 30th anniversary last year.
Plot: After James Bond’s new archenemy (Robert Davi) gets released from being imprisoned by the DEA, Bond (Timothy Dalton) must stop him, and a group of Latin American drug lords from selling certain drugs to different nations. Can he accomplish this mission?
Well, what can one say? 007: Licence To Kill May not quite be one of the best of the James Bond films (more on that soon). However, there is still plenty to enjoy about this film. First off, one should appreciate some of the newer material that is in this film that one may not have heard of much in some of the previous 007 films. I’m not going to say what kinds of things, but let’s just say that you may like some of the new kind of writing that seems to be unlike that of the other films in this series. Additionally, some of the comic relief is very good, and spot on too. This seems to be especially true with some of the supporting cast like Agent Q. I apologize for not mentioning him in some of my reviews for this series thus far. Well, better late than never! Well, let me just say that nearly every Bond film that he’s been in, Q ends up having some of the most brilliant one-liners in these movies. 007: Licence To Kill is no exception. Truth be told, if Agent Q was not in this film series for too much longer after this movie, or at least the actor who has played him, then let’s be grateful for the movies that he is in. In addition to all of this, Franz Sanchez ends up being one of the most well-developed villains in this series. One could honestly say that Sanchez may be up there, if not be on top of some of the other villains in this series, or any action movie period. One other thing that should be noted is that some of the action is extremely phenomenal throughout this film. This is especially true when it comes to the climax of this film. Okay, I won’t say what all happens during that portion of the film. However, let’s just say that the way that the climax is well orchestrated is so creative. It would be hard for someone to not like it. Finally, it was cool to learn some very interesting information from this film, most notably with how certain machines work, as well as how certain vehicles function.
So, all of these things sound great so far, right? Well, like I mentioned around the beginning of this review, there are quite a few downsides to this film as well. First off, there were some scenes, particularly in the beginning, that were a little strange. So much so that some of those scenes might make some people feel a little weirded out. Second, there were some points where, even when someone did something really nice, and helpful for Bond, he seemed to act rather cocky, arrogant, and downright ungrateful. Maybe that was not his intention. Still, it seemed to come off that way. Another flaw to this film was that there were some points that were rather sad, and most likely unnecessary. Okay, going off of that, it’s understandable that some of those points might have been to remind people that not everything works out in the way that one might want it to. Still, since we learned that lesson in another 007 film by the name of “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” years before this film was released, was it really necessary to revisit that message again? I’m just saying. Finally, there were certain aspects of the ending that could have been handled, and/or written better.
And that’s my review for 007: Licence To Kill. Yes, it’s safe to say that this film is one of the more flawed films in this series. Still, at least one is more likely to get enjoyment from this film than with 007: The Man With The Golden Gun, or some mediocre 007 film like that, you know? That is, especially since this film seems to add a more unique spin this time around. Once again, if you haven’t seen 007: Licence To Kill, definitely see it! You may be in for yet another surprise. Well, here’s to Timothy Dalton’s last hurrah in the 007 film series. You shall be missed, even if you were in this film series for only a couple movies. So, may I, and the audience say goodbye to you, Timothy Dalton! Now, we shall welcome Pierce Brosnan in this marathon, followed by Daniel Craig sometime after that.
Final Grade: B
Matthew’s Animated & Live-Action Movie Reviews 