Plot:
Elliot Carver (Johnathon Pyrce) is a media king who proposes to start World
War III in a sick attempt to boost his ratings and Bond (Brosnan) is sent out
to investigate and put a stop to Carvers' threatening plan before it is too late.
Not much more is needed in the understading of the plot. It moves fairly quick
and is filled with action, suspense, and unlike "Goldeneye", well developed
drama.
Bond meets up with an old fling of his, Paris Carver, Elliots' present wife
(Terri Hatcher) while on the mission and as expected, old flames burn new,
leading to problems that Bond has to face and resolve as only he can. This is
one of the better relationships in the series as it is proof that there is emotion
behind Brosnan's character, a characteristic not found in 95's Goldeneye. This
relationship represents certain classic Fleming relationships where the women
are used for more than just sex. It was nice to see that level of development in
Hatchers' character.
There were however a couple of flaws that kinda made the film a little less
apealling. Although I enjoyed Elliot Carvers' charcter, I was dissapointed with
the henchmen. Why can't modern Bond films find henchmen who aren't
always trying to depict Arnold Schartzenneger in one way or another? Red
Grant had the attitude, Oddjob had the hat, and Jaws, the teeth-all of whom
were classic. But now, just like in "Goldeneye" and "Lisence to Kill",
henchmen are "blessed" with automatic weapons and state of the art torture
devices that just don't work. A solution to this problem, De-modernize Bond
and the Henchmen will also de-modernize, back to the classic form. However,
let's face it, without these Q-enhanced gadgets, Bond would not survive in this
changing world. I like the new Bond very much, but I would like to see a
classic movie made where a PPK and a bottle of Vodka are the only friends
that Bond has; again though, I don't expect it will happen anytime soon,
especially embarking on a new century, full of ideas and wonder.
Performances:
Brosnan was great. He is quickly becoming one of my favourites, but we'll
have to wait a couple years before he can compete with Mr.Moore! His
portrayal of Bond was spectactular and so much better than his low key
performance in Goldeneye, which was still for some reason unknown to me, a
great movie. He has comfortably settled into the character and hopefully, more
of Pierce Brosnan will be seen in the future. Terri Hatcher and Michelle Yeoh
were also very good. It was unfortunate that Paris could not have been in the
film for longer, but Michelle Yeoh helped the movie along it's somewhat
slower 2nd half. At first I didn't like Judi Dench as M, But I now think that she
can do a good job and handles the athouratative position quite well. Q is
great, as always, and Joe Don Baker is no Felix Lighter, but HIS CIA
equivelent also does respectably well.
A great fast track from the David Arnold Sountrack
Conclusion:
All in all, this was one of the better acted films in the series, and the
combination of a strong and dramatic plot, well scored music, well justified
action, and all around fun, make Tomorrow Never Dies one of the best Bond
films in years. It's quickly moving up towards the top of my "favourites" list.
� 1997 [email protected]
Get your own Free Home Page