Tomorrow Never Dies

Jonathan Pryce is the evil Elliott Carver in this James Bond version with Pierce Brosnan in the role. Dame Judi Dench is M and Geoffrey Palmer (her costar from her British comedy series) is also in the film. Samantha Bond played Ms. Moneypenny. Teri Hatcher and Michelle Yeoh played his love interest. It's the same routine with exotic stunts; a romance; and adventure around the world. A typical James Bond film.

Tomorrow Never Dies is another great Bond film that's suitably thrilling, action packed and fun, even if it doesn't do anything new. Pierce Brosnan is a perfect James Bond once again and Michelle Yeoh is definitely one of the best Bond girls. Jonathan Pryce is fantastic as a reliably over the top villain. Roger Spottiswoode's direction is great with some impressively shot action sequences. The music by David Arnold is really good and the song by Sheryl Crow is excellent.

I love James Bond. I love Pierce Brosman's performance of 007.

But honestly, the video game is better than this film. Tomorrow Never Dies has some underlying messages of the power of media-gone-wrong, but nothing about this film proves memorable. I actually had to refresh my memory by Youtubing scenes to remember what happened in this movie.

2/5. Good action but forgettable in the era of the late 90s/early 2000s action movie boom.When I first watched this film, I didn't like it. Revisiting this film, I learned to appreciate it more as a true installment in the franchise.

The first film without Albert Broccoli (RIP) that was true in spirit to his vision of James Bond.

Tomorrow Never Dies (such a silly name) is a modern retelling of The Spy Who Loved Me with some changes to make it more fitting for a modern audience. It's my honest opinion that this film should be revisited and reexamined.

Pierce Brosnan's portrayal of a more stylish, sleek, and tongue-in-cheek Bond is there. Action is satisfying and locations are exotic. Instead of a malevolent USSR or SPECTRE, we get the capitalist bogeyman as the antagonist. This makes the film much more relatable to today's world.

Tomorrow Never Dies is a world where mass media has gotten too powerful and tries to start WWIII. Though I find it hard to imagine a media mogul buying a top-of-the-line stealth cruiser without anyone noticing, themes still echo today. Elliot Carver (Jonathan Pryce) is an excellent hybrid of Steve Jobs' visionary idealism with Rupert Murdoch's ruthlessness. An artistic difference from the USSR or the evil shadow empire of SPECTRE.

The anti-Bond strongman of Stamper (Gotz Otto) was an enjoyable portrayal that echos of Robert Shaw's performance of Red Grant in From Russia with Love. Though a bit more expressive, Gotz had an intimidating appearance on screen.

Another aspect that I enjoyed about this film is the role of strong female characters. Early on we get M's flawless clapback of a general. Also, the Bond girl in this film, Wai Lin (Michelle Yeoh) plays a strong female counterweight to Bond. She acts as a non-passive character, acts independently of Bond, and is strong/smart enough to hold her own.

Of course, there are some faults. Besides the title name makes no sense, there are some things I wished the film developed more. TND could have built more upon the media causing mayhem for views (something we can all relate to in 2020). Also, I was saddened to see that Paris Carver's (Teri Hatcher) and Dr. Kaufman's (Vincent Schiavelli) characters were not developed. They could have been much more interesting characters.

But, it's a Bond movie. It's meant to be enjoyed more than examined for deep thinking.

3.5/5. Good movie but with some flaws. Still a good watch many years after

James Bond (Pierce Brosnan) heads to stop a media mogul's plan to induce war between China and the UK in order to obtain exclusive global media coverage.

The Bond films are both hit and miss as well as an acquired taste. And each time there is a new Bond, people readjust and some people just will not move on. Personally, I think Brosnan was a great Bond, and I actually think this is one of the best films in the series, contrary to popular opinion.

Much of the series is either about Soviet issues or post-Soviet issues. This one, however, is about global media dominance. Now 20 years old, it seems more appropriate than ever with its satellites and cell phones. This movie could have been made today with only the most minor of adjustments.

A far cry from Goldeneye, but It doesn't necessarily deserve all the hate it receives either. Tomorrow Never Dies is a fast paced affair, and an easily agreeable time-waster, but it's not the follow-up Goldeneye deserved, either. It's much too daft for the heavy plot that it has. The main reason this movie is entertaining is the spectacular stunts. It has some great action set pieces, which managed to make the time pass nicely. Michelle Yeoh makes for a refreshingly unique Bond Girl, due to her actual Martial Arts background. I dug the chemistry with her & Brosnan. Speaking of Brosnan… He is very good as Bond. He has charisma and wit to spare. He's not quite as good as Timothy Dalton, but he is excellent nonetheless. Johnathan Pryce is decent as the villain. He is fitfully menacing and did the job overall. Teri Hatcher's character is a bit disposable, but she was good in her role. Desmond Llewelyn & Judi Dench are as classy as ever

Final Thoughts: Instantly forgettable stuff, but it manages to be an effective time-waster. It's not a great Bond film, but it is an OK action film. I didn't mind it at all.

5.6/10