Die Another Day
MGM, 2002
Directed by Lee Tamahori

$$$$

James Bond is back in Die Another Day, a very fun movie that returns to the outrageously silly tone of the '70s Roger Moore Bond films.

Recent 007 outings, like 1999's The World Is Not Enough, aimed for a grittier, more realistic feel. But in hindsight, that aim may have been a bit misguided. After all, how realistic can a movie be when the hero is James Bond? Maybe the producers have finally embraced Bond's outlandishness. By the time -- half-way through "Die Another Day" -- when John Cleese's Q introduces Bond to his new invisible car, any attempt at realism has already vanished. And that's a good thing. This time around, the movie is a big, loud, over-the-top comic book.

The tone, however, is not the only thing that's changed. This Bond film delivers a lot of firsts for the franchise. For starters, Halle Berry becomes not only the first Academy Award winner to play a Bond girl, she's also the first African American to play Bond's primary love interest (amazing it's taken 20 films for that to happen!). Also, for the first time, we see one of Bond's missions end in failure -- the opening action sequence concludes with Bond's capture (also a first) and for the first time, we see him held prisoner for longer than five minutes. This leads to another first -- the first time we've seen Bond with a long, scraggly beard. He grows the facial hair while spending 14 months in detention at the hands of North Korean interrogators. Scenes of Bond's torture at the hands of his captors are intercut with the opening titles -- and that's the first time there has ever been any narrative scenes during the opening credit song. Later, Bond winds-up in the middle of a sword fight for the first time (it's hard to believe with all the weapons he's used in 20 films, this is the first time they thought to have him in a sword fight!). Bond also surfs for the first time (again, unbelievable that he hadn't gotten around to that) and he obviously enjoys it so much, he ends up doing it twice in the movie.

Director Lee Tamahori also breaks ground in more subtle ways by simply adding some basic filmmaking techniques to the mix that have heretofore been absent from all Bond films. For instance, early-on, while Bond is in the hospital recovering following his capture -- we see a flashback to his torture. It may not seem remarkable when you watch it, but it's the first time in 20 Bond films that there's ever been a flashback scene. Tamahori also employs a liberal use of slow-motion -- another standard technique that no other Bond director has fully exploited. Other times, Tamahori speeds up the image up for effect. These aren't radical departures -- just little flourishes, but they give the movie a freshness that certainly could have been lacking. (Even the opening gun-barrel logo has been jazzed-up. This time when Bond fires at the camera -- a bullet actually zooms out towards the audience!)

While "Die Another Day" innovates, it still manages to stick to the formula like glue. Of course, that means there's an action sequence about every 20 minutes. And, as in all the great Bond movies, the villain is a billionaire madman. This one has a lair carved out of ice, and his dastardly plot involves launching a giant mirror into space that can shoot a death ray down onto Earth. (In other words, it's what Dr. Evil would call -- in finger quotations -- a "laser".) There's also some entertainingly preposterous stuff about a secret clinic off the coast of Cuba that does DNA transplants in order to give people completely new bodies. It sounds about as plausible as that invisible car -- but who cares?! It sounds perfect for a James Bond movie.

"Die Another Day", which arrives on the 40th anniversary of the film franchise, doesn't just honor the formula -- it's also busy paying homage to other Bond films. There are noticeable touches like the bikini that Halle Berry wears, which is modeled after the one worn by Ursula Andress in "Dr. No". Also, Bond pays a visit to an underground facility where all of his old gadgets are stored -- including the jetpack from Thunderball. Later on, Bond reuses another old Thunderball prop -- the miniature oxygen tank.

There are other homages as well, like the scene in which Berry's character is strapped to a table as lasers threaten to cut through her. It's a nice update of a similar scene in Goldfinger. There's another nice inside joke when Bond goes undercover as a bird expert. (Bond creator Ian Fleming named his spy character after an ornithologist.)

The movie is also boasts one of the better casts ever assembled for a Bond film. Pierce Brosnan is, as always, just what the doctor ordered. He should play this character until he's in a walker. As for the leading lady, Halle Berry is one of the most memorable Bond women ever. Her character of Jinx, is sexy, funny and dangerous -- she's Bond's equal in every way (it's no wonder there's talk of spinning her character off into her own movie). Toby Stephens hams it up nicely as the baddie, Gustav Graves. And Michael Madsen is a nice, edgy addition to the franchise, playing a slimy CIA official.

Die Another Day fully delivers everything we expect and like from a Bond movie -- but does it in a fresh way. What else can you ask for?
(c) Copyright 2002