The007franchise has been going onfor over 60 years now,with the first coming out way back in 1962. Over the course of its 25-film run, there have been some really amazing flicks featuring a few different actors. Of course, with the good comes the bad, and there have been some pretty unimpressive installments over the years, too. Each decade of the franchise is special in its own right, with new film technology paving the way for more interesting action sequences.
The 90s era consists of three films, all starringPierce Brosnanas James Bond, who made the era his own with the films' distinct visuals and unique style. But as with any series, they all vary in quality. While Brosnan starred in four films as Bond, only three came out in the 90s, and these too, vary in terms of how good or bad they are.
3’Tomorrow Never Dies' (1997)
Directed by Robert Spottiswoode
Tomorrow Never Diestakes 007 to East Asia, wherein heteams up with Wai Lin(Michelle Yeoh), a Chinese spy who is assigned to the same case by her respective agency. While the action and storyline are just fine, the film suffered in its relationship between the two characters. Bond and Wai Lin should be an interesting dynamic to watch unfold, but sadly, it came off as kind of awkward, as the two didn’t really have any chemistry together.
Tomorrow Never Diesfollows a villainous media CEO who wants his company to reach every country in the world. However, the government of China will not allow his news channel to be broadcast there, so he attempts to orchestrate a war between China and the United Kingdom, with the governments of both countries intent on stopping him. This is what leads to the two agents teaming up, despite coming from different organizations. To be honest, it’s kind of a ridiculous plotline, because it’s hard to believe that some media mogul would actually wind up starting a war between two hugely influential nations like that, no matter how big the company is. Disney is the largest media company in the real world, and it seems unrealistic for them to do anything on that big of a scale.
Michelle Yeoh is an amazing addition to any movie, andTomorrow Never Diesis certainly no exception, however, she could have brought a lot more to the table had her writing been a little bit better. She’s an interesting character, she just doesn’t really do a lot of interesting things. As for Brosnan, this was his second time playing Bond, and delivers the role perfectly fine.But overall, the movie is pretty mediocre on top of being clunky and awkward.
Tomorrow Never Dies
2’The World is Not Enough' (1999)
Directed by Michael Apted
The World is Not Enoughis another entry in the series that is kind of “meh.” But it’s also kind of underrated, because there are a lot of really interesting set pieces and characters. Namely, the femme fatale Elektra (Sophie Marceau), who comes off as both a romantic interest and a villain for Bond, which isn’t a new dynamic for the series, but a fun one, all the same. The movie also takes place in a lot of interesting locations and has an impressive scale to it.
Taking place in the Caucasus region, Bond is assigned to stop a nuclear submarine on top of protecting an oil heiress from her kidnapper, a villain named Renard (Robert Carlyle), who is actually kind of an interesting villain on account of his gimmick: he is physically incapable of feeling pain. This is due to a botched assassination attempt, which left a bullet lodged in his brain, which has disabled his pain sensors. It’s a cool prospect for the series, because how is Bond supposed to stop someone who can’t feel agony, and who can keep going despite his wounds?
Unfortunately, the movie suffered in adding Dr. Christmas Jones (Denise Richards)to the movie. Richards actually won a Razzie award for her role in the movie, because Jones is, frankly,a terrible character, and one that was pushed through development hell. The writers recast the role numerous times, and didn’t seem to know what they wanted with her, resulting in a character that came off as being too much all at once. But the movie also felt the same in a lot of other regards.Above all, it’s pretty average, but at the higher end of average.
The World is Not Enough
1’GoldenEye' (1995)
Directed by Martin Campbell
GoldenEyewas the first Bond film in six years, and was Pierce Brosnan’s debut in the role. And man, did he deliver. Right off the bat, he makes a jaw-dropping entrance bybungee jumpingoff a gigantic hydroelectric dam. Brosnan is also accompanied bySean Bean, who plays the film’s villain, Alec Trevelyan. It also happens to be the debut ofJudi Denchas M, who is arguably the best portrayer of M in the entire series.
This film takes bond to Russia and Central Asia as the titular GoldenEye superweapon is launched into space. The weapon itself is an EMP bomb, which is capable of disabling all electronic devices within its blast radius. Obviously, this would pave a way for a war due to its devastating capabilites, so Bond is assigned to stop it from being launched or going off. Following the relative box-office disappointment ofLicence to Kill(and the resulting six-year absence of the character on-screen),GoldenEyeis notable for bringing Bond roaring back in a techno thriller with state-of-the-art special effects throughout.
The storyline and the action in this movie are absolutely outstanding, showing the struggle for personal revenge between Britain’s greatest superspy and an agent gone rogue. It’s also fondly remembered for the hit 1997 video game, and for its stellar performances from its all-star cast.This movie took a whole new turn for the franchise, and it still stands as one of the series' finest achievements.
KEEP READING:Every James Bond Movie, Ranked By Rewatchability
