grimmer

No Time to Die

My first midnight screening since Endgame and… wow. James Bond dies. As someone who has seen every Bond film (and logged/reviewed them all) I’m very disappointed in how this ended. It’s not only the fact that James Bond dies, but also the manner of his death. It all feels like it could’ve easily been avoided, Killing Bond, a beloved British icon after all these years is very, very disappointing to me. I can’t help but just feel sad. However, not all doom and gloom, as the post credits do clearly state ‘James Bond will return’. Im really, really hoping they do a whole new reboot, get a new M, a new Q and a new Moneypenny. I love all the current actors in these roles, but I feel for the good of the franchise this needs to happen. Also, I would love to see a 007 Nomi spin off, hopefully this will happen. The last thing I want is that James Bond is a code name, that would be unbelievably disappointing for me.  Next, Bond has a daughter?!?! Obviously they want to expand this but I don’t know how they can. Maybe they’ll do a spin off with her as a double 0? But I really don’t know what’s next for the franchise, and I feel most people, including myself, wouldn’t really like this. It all feels a bit cheap and silly. I’d be cool to see Bonds daughter grow up to become Q, or M, instead of simply a women version of her farther. But who knows at this point. Overall the film as a whole is okay. The acting all around is brilliant. Daniel Craig is fantastic as always, and Rami Malek plays a great villain. The pacing is slow and feels a bit more of the same, but overall it’s pretty okay. The deaths of Felix and Blofeld feel anticlimactic, especially Blofeld who’s death is very poorly handled in my opinion. The save the world scenario is what we’ve come to expect, the magnitude of what could happen isn’t really explored though and the stakes feel very low. Onto what I like, apart from the acting as previously mentioned. Paloma. Sure, she’s on the screen for about 5 minutes, but her scene is probably the best in the entire film. She’s refreshing and interesting, I really think she could have a killer spin off movie. Also, the set and character designs are very well done. The score is great and theme song by Billie Eilish is beautiful. Overall the film is pretty good, if Bond didn’t die I’d rate this maybe a 6/7 out of 10. It’s no Skyfall or Casino Royale, but it’s still pretty enjoyable. Bond dying still doesn’t sit well with me though, and I feel this wasn’t a move many true fans of the franchise wanted.  Watched at midnight release, in IMAX at Cineworld, which was fantastic.

grimmer

No Time to Die

After a rewatch I can safely say this is a good film. My first review rated this two stars, as I couldn’t believe Bond died. However, after coming to terms with the death, and the post credits confirming Bond will return, I enjoyed this much more. Sure, there are still flaws with the villain and his motivation, but every scene in this is a blast. All the characters are interesting, with Polomas (Ana de Armas) scene being my favourite in the entire film. I like Bond having a daughter, and him picking up and keeping Bo Bo (the toy) till the end was a nice touch. The film also flies by, with the nearly 3 hour runtime not dragging in the slightest. It’s a very fun film which I will hopefully re-watch again soon.

grimmer

No Time to Die

After my third viewing I can confidently say this is my correct rating. In No Time To Die there is lots to love, some of the best sequences in all of Bond history. The pre-Title sequences is among the best of the franchise and Paloma seems like one of the most interesting Bond girls of the Craig era, they just need to explore her character more in a future entry. Nomi is also an interesting character, cocky but not overly annoying which is a good mix. Don’t get it wrong though this film is no Skyfall or Casino Royale. There is lots and lots of talking in this and at times it feels like too much. Safin isn’t a very good villain either, sure Rami Malek does what he can with the character, but his overall objectives seem a bit strange and blurred. The death of Blofeld is done terribly, with him just kind of dying and then the film immediately moves on. Bonds death also feels a bit uncalled for, sure it’s a nice send of for Craig but I still can’t deny how pointless it feels. I’ve seen multiple people comment on how the missiles could’ve easily been detonated over the ocean before reaching the island, Bond could’ve got off the island and then they could’ve sent more missiles and I completely agree. His death could’ve been avoided so easily but oh well it’s a film, and in all honesty it has more good than bad, onto the next instalment only James Bond.

breakfastcowl

No Time to Die

Heyyyyyyy, we did it. No Time For More Bonds. The End! Lots of good stuff here, and how about them Playstation 8 graphX! Yeah yeah, but Daniel Craig is our favorite Bond, I think. A (more-or-less) sustained single arc for a singular character, setting him apart from the shitty Bond mythos. And I liked how they slapped his emotionally compromised, flawed, failed, beaten-down brute-force persona right into the middle of a very traditional Bond-villainy backdrop. A fitting way to close it all out, on a never-ending series of "angry little men" but lighting upon a resonating reason to continue fighting them. Anything could happen to any of the other Bonds and it wouldn't break my stride... but Craig's version, and probably also Dalton's? Those two strike a little nearer and dearer.