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Why It's #2
The first Bond movie I ever saw comes in second. Goldeneye is one of those rare ones where all the pieces just come together so magically. Nobody knew how Bond, let alone Brosnan, was going to be recieved. It had been six years since the last adventure and a lot of stuff happened in between, which made many question whether people still needed James Bond around anymore. After all, there was no more Soviet Union, one of the main driving forces behind the Bond Novels and suave espionage in the 60's in general- essentially, there was no more bad guy to go after anymore; "Women of the 90's" wouldn't stand around and be seduced by a charmer; it seemed as though action movies had gone in a new direction since 1989 you had your shwarzeneggers, stallones, van dams, all reaching enormous popularity and they always carried machine guns the size of new jersey. Bond's reliable ppk seemed like little more than a pop gun in comparison.
Basically, Goldeneye HAD to be good, otherwise it would spell the end for Bond movies forever. The fact that Timothy Dalton, who was still under contract after all those years, turned down the role at the last second, wasn't the right foot on which to start things out. Regardless, producers needed a new bond and they needed one fast. Enter Brosnan. Well, it wasn't just out of no where like that. For years, he had lobbied to be the next bond. Ever since the Roger Moore era. Brosnan's first wife played Count Lisle in For Your Eyes Only and he dropped by to visit her on several occasions. Producers remembered him for the next Bond. When Moore left, Brosnanwas immediately called and given the job. It seemed like the perfect fit, after all, his current show, Remington Steele, was sinking and getting cancelled, so it all worked out perfectly right? Wrong. The media hoopla got so huge around Brosnan, that the network decided to bring Remington Steele back for one more season due to the sudden popularity of Brosnan, who was still under contract for one more year, hoping they'd get a hit. Instead, they ended up cancelling the show after only two more episodes. Understandably, Brosnan was very upset.
But 1995 came and the opportunity was...Golden, shall we say. Producers had a bond, but that was only half the battle. WHat about the story? Moore's introduction way back in the early 70's was goofy at best and Dalton's nearly a decade before Brosnan was played amazingly well, with a more tortured angle. Since the storyline was written for Dalton, whom everyone thought was going to reprise his role, Brosnan's Bond started off with the same personal demons that Dalton faced. Bond has to acknowledge that a huge portion of the life he's committed to his country has now all been for nothing- in a split second all those missions all those murders are meaningless. Not only that but he has to go head to head with his former partner and friend, 006. Such heavy material had hardly ever been in any Bond adventure. Would it work?
To this day, many newew Bond fans hail this movie as the best. As I said, everything fits together. Theres an actual story, enough explosions to keep the testosterone pumping, and the characters are well developed. Which reminds me, this film introduces us to the new Moneypenney (in actress only) and, more importantly, the new M. The strange thing is that producers decided to invent a new character for M- it wasn't a mere case of replacing the actor like in the 80's when Bernard Lee passed on. This time, the M, daringly, would be a woman. There's something about Judy Dench that captivates viewers. Whenever she's on the screen, you know that the scene is about her, even if Bond is already there and she enters afterwards, the second she opens her mouth and delivers her lines, we get a sence that this M means business, unlike her predecessor, who looked the other way whenever Bond had his flings and so forth. This adds another great element of complexity to the storyline. M doesnt much care for Bond, here, but she can't just fire him since he always gets the job done. Though very small, the scene in which she briefs Bond is one of the highlights.
Fortunately, they decided to keep Q while cleaning Mi6 HQ and he, as always brings in great comic relief. Natalya is great as a normal woman caught in the middle of all this chaos who acts as Bond's conscience at times. And Onatopp? The mere expressions on her face show us how intimate she feels about kiliing people. LOL it's really great. All in all, the pieces came together and delivered a well-acted, well-scripted film. Pick this one up, you shall NOT be dissapointed.
| Pre Titles Sequence |
An important sequence that establishes the spy relationship between Bond and Trevelyan and the hard decision the former had to make. Topped off with a great sequence involving a motorcycle and a jetplane, this is one of the best. |
| Credits Sequence |
Binder died during the 6 year hiatus so they brought in this new guy to take over, Danny Kleinman. Fortunately technology in digital effects had grown a lot since 1989 and what you get is a crips clear sequence filled with women and symbolism... an english majors wet dream! |
| Bond Song
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You wouldn't think Tina Turner could do much for the franchise but her raspy voice proves quite effective in this song written by Bono and the Edge. Definitely one of my favorites. |
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Bond Gadgets/ Cars |
Bond: "No, no , no . No More Foreplay. "
M: "If you don't think I have the balls to send a man out to die, your instincts are dead wrong."
Trevelyan: "Hello, James, what an unpleasant surprise."
Bond: "We aim to please."
Trevelyan: "I might as well ask if all those vodka martinis silence the screams of all the men you've killed... or if you've found forgiveness in the arms of all those women, for the ones you failed to protect?" | Well, acording to Q, this baby, the BMW Z3, was going to have all sorts of nifty gadgets like missiles and crap, but the deal with BMW didnt come in until they were almost done filming so obviously, Bond doesnt get to drive this around all that much. |
