No Time to Die

The days of going to see Bond for the explosions, gadgets and cleavage are definitely over. Daniel Craig has taken Bond to a time when protagonists bleed, feel and have a finite amount of time. No Time to Die beautifully concludes the arc begun by Casino Royale and, despite a chaotic villain, delivers exactly what I expected: a surprisingly intimate and moving finale for the best Bond of all time, Daniel Craig (29/09/2021)

This time the Broccoli party played nicely on emotions. And in the role of Bond, Craig tried out the broadest range of inner developments and facial expressions not only of his five appearances in the franchise, but all of the Bond films. As an emotional viewer, I was thoroughly moved. The relationship with Léa Seydoux was nicely deepened. But what about the faulty logic in the main villain’s (Malek) motivation and behavior and the other ill-conceived things? Is it so difficult to polish the screenplay of a much-anticipated, worldwide mega-film also in this respect? A repeat viewing of Spectre the day before was helpful, and No Time to Die follows directly from it. Zimmer is excellent in the suspenseful scenes, particularly in the encounter with Blofeld (Waltz). (30/09/2021)

At this point, Bond would just like to be James (double-o seven can no longer be James due to a reason that will cause the eyes of half of FilmBooster users to start twitching). But in order for anyone to see him that way, he will have to give up his Hemingway-esque fishing in the Caribbean and return to the job that has cost him everyone he loved in the past. No Time to Die is most satisfying as a drama about a man making up for lost years and seeking mutuality. Bond tries out new roles, which gives Craig the opportunity to deliver a more nuanced acting performance. For the intensity of the emotions that he manages to arouse on a few occasion, it wouldn’t even matter that, due to its inclination toward melodrama, the film comes across as rather sedate in comparison to the excellent and unpredictable Spectre. Except, at the same time, the filmmakers responded to the dismantling of the Bond universe in the previous instalment by trying to put Bond back together again – offering everything anyone has ever loved about the character and the franchise – which in many respects goes against the effort to create an entirely intimate and moving portrait of a tormented hero. In order for us to find out how Bond resolves his dilemma, we have to endure yet more references to the events and locations of old Bond films, embarrassing characterisations, cheesy one-liners following the elimination of bad guys, and lengthy and unimaginative action scenes, which are at times reminiscent of The Fast and the Furious in their bombast, and a bland villain whose blather about his parents is only slightly more tolerable than his blather about the plants that he grew in his garden. In the end, the thing most torn here is not Bond, but the film itself, as it simultaneously runs in two different directions. Of all the Bond films starring Daniel Craig, I am least inclined to watch this embarrassing mishmash a second time. (29/09/2021)

A fitting and remarkable end to Daniel Craig’s era as James Bond — something the franchise has never quite seen before. It’s both epic and deeply personal, with action sequences that are nothing short of flawless. By the end, I even found myself tearing up — a rare occurrence for me. I’ll admit, at first, I wasn’t sure what to make of Rami Malek’s villain, but as the story unfolded, through stunning set pieces in Italy, Cuba, and Norway, it all started to click. The film’s conclusion hit me so hard that I couldn’t stop thinking about Bond for days. There’s no point in saying more until you’ve seen it yourself, but if you’re a fan of Craig’s Bond, you’re in for a treat. Also, Ana de Armas was an unexpected highlight — her role was an absolute scene-stealer. (14/10/2021)

The enormous runtime hides one feature-length Bond film, which has great action, works on an emotional level and contains a passage that ranks among the best ever (not only) from the Craig era. The snag is that there's another feature-length Bond film in that runtime, tedious, full of wadding and lame line closures after Mendes, with a dime-a-dozen villain and no hints that lead to anything substantial. A solid farewell, but not memorable. It is absolutely true that less would be more. A lot more. (30/09/2021)