Die Another Day
Directed by Lee Tamahori.
Starring Pierce Brosnan, Halle Berry and Judi Dench.
Pierce Brosnan's fourth effort as James Bond turns out to be by far his worst, resulting in the overly cheesy and disappointing "Die Another Day." Marking a double anniversary for the series (twenty films in forty years), the movie celebrates the tried-and-true Bond formula by tossing in at least one reference to each previous installment. While it may be fun to play 'Guess That Bond Movie' for a bit, there is generally not much enjoyment to be had in this uninspired entry.
The pre-title sequence kicks things off in typical Bond fashion. 007 invades a North Korean military base and, after an exciting hovercraft chase, is captured and imprisoned for over a year. As the credits roll -- to the sub par theme sung by Madonna -- the audience sees Bond beaten and tortured. MI6 only comes to his aid because they believe that he has cracked under pressure, and don't want the North Koreans siphoning important information. The once-heroic secret agent returns to his homeland a disgrace. The intro sets a serious tone for the film, duping its audience into suspecting that a similarly themed story will follow. That's what would have made sense, but it certainly isn't what occurs.
"Die Another Day" is split into two very different films. In the first half, it's a revenge story played relatively straight with interesting plot turns and developments. Bond, without the backing of his agency, seeks revenge for his betrayal in North Korea, following a trail (with stops at Hong Kong, Havana and Iceland) that eventually leads to diamond tycoon Gustav Graves (Toby Stephens). Graves is a pretty standard villain at first glance: rich, eccentric and power hungry. In fact, the entire first hour is business as usual for the series; nothing new but enjoyable nonetheless.
The story takes a turn for the outrageous in its second half, starting with Bond's initial encounter with Graves. The two quickly clash egos at a prestigious London fencing club. Their friendly match soon becomes an over-the-top sword fight that toes the line between exhilaration and camp. In the very next scene, Bond is reinstated at MI6 and "Die Another Day" simultaneously ditches the revenge theme. Apparently, Tamahori was no longer concerned with that aspect of the story, instead preferring to prop up his movie with ridiculous gadgets and unconvincing action sequences. The series typically employs stunt men to realize its fantastic feats, but this outing amps up the CGI to a disappointing degree. Seeing a computer-generated Pierce Brosnan riding a tidal wave and dodging icebergs on a makeshift surfboard is just too much. Remember, just because you can doesn't mean you should.
Brosnan's effort in "Die Another Day" recalls that of Sean Connery in his last 007 feature, "Diamonds Are Forever." Much like Connery at the time, Brosnan has simply lost interest and sleepwalks from scene to scene. His heart clearly isn't in it, whether it be due to the corniness of the film or boredom with the role in general. He stars opposite Halle Berry, whose Jinx character is set up as Bond's female equivalent. She's an American agent working for the NSA, with an appetite for sex and excitement. Despite the good intentions, Jinx is just a poorly disguised effort to appease feminist sensibilities (not to mention, she's just plain annoying). The producers make sure that she kicks butt, yet she is still the helpless damsel in distress when the time comes.
This twentieth installment means well, and in the hands of a more competent director it could have been much better, but "Die Another Day" ultimately fails because of its indecisiveness. The film sacrifices story to make way for mindless action, but in order for the audience to care about the action there needs to be a compelling story driving it along (I guess those responsible for the movie never heard about the chicken and the egg). It attempts to pay tribute to the past, but instead combines the worst bits of the old movies. As a result, "Die Another Day" takes its place alongside "Diamonds Are Forever", "Moonraker" and "A View to a Kill" as one of the worst Bond films ever made.
Final Grade: D
