The Living Daylights (1987)
Overall Rank- 7th
This is one of my favorite Bond films. I also think it is Timothy Dalton’s best performance as Bond. I realize that he only played the part for two movies, but of the two, I like this one best.
I feel like this movie is a combination of two movies. Likely due to another double nature of one of the villains. The first half of the movie is set up for the wild events that follow. I tend to look at it as “before Bond goes to the desert” and “after Bond goes to the desert.” Before he goes there are some great chase scenes, particularly the one where he and the girl use her cello case as a sled. The car on skis is also a nice touch.
The second half of the film has an incredible high flying stunt that was performed by real stuntmen. This is where my respect for the Bond films comes from. Unlike most action films (particularly the new ones), Bond films use real people to pull off incredible stunts. Since the beginning of C.G.I effects, many action movies have strayed from real people doing real stunts. This new reliance on C.G.I is the main reason I did not like Die Another Day. To me, a Bond film is at least 99% exciting stunts. To use C.G.I takes away some of my respect for the series, even though I enjoy most current movies with C.G.I sequences. It is just breaking a precedent of high quality, realistic stunt, and that is what does not appeal to me.
I particularly enjoy Maryam d’Abo’s portrayal of leading lady Kara Milovy. Kara is one of the only Bond girls that captures my attention without saying a whole lot. This shyness is one of her appealing characteristics.
The villains are not particularly interesting. General Koskov and Brad Whitaker are two very basic villains. This would be my only real complaint with the film, the lack of a standout villain.
Overall I highly recommend this film as it is definitely Dalton’s best effort as Bond. The characters and action are intriguing, and this remains one of my favorite Bond films to watch.