Licence to Kill

After enjoying Dalton's first Bond film, The Living Daylights, I quickly wanted to follow up with his only other Bond film, Licence to Kill. 

It also marks the very last Bond film of which I've never seen before. After this, I'm well-versed in the Brosnan and Craig era films, which I'll continue to review, but will be looking at with a different lens than films I've never seen before. 

By the end of 1989's Licence to Kill, I'm convinced that Timothy Dalton just got a weird end of the stick. He joined Bond during a come-off of largely lackluster entries and a "competing" entry in the early/mid 80s and tried to considerably shift the tone to be more serious. On top of that, Dalton had the fact that he wasn't their first pick (Pierce Brosnan was) hanging over him, and in 1989 there was the competition of many other blockbusters such as Lethal Weapon II, a new Ghostbusters, Batman, and the final Indiana Jones. 

Unlike now, where the Bond films are a significant event (largely thanks to their quality), this wasn't necessary the hype that surrounded them in the 80s. Licence to Kill would be the final Bond film for some time, thanks to legal disputes, and by the time production on the next one rolled around, Dalton had moved on from the role, sporting the shortest tenure of any Bond not named George Lazenby. 

Right off the bat, Licence to Kill is a shockingly dark film, especially for James Bond. Within the first half hour, the bride of Felix (US agent) is killed on the day of her wedding and Felix is fed to sharks by drug dealers, losing an entire leg. I'm not particularly sensitive to this sort of thing, but it's so noticeable how much the tone has shifted in this new film that I'd almost argue they went too far - though it does set the film up for a mostly-straightforward revenge tale. Because of his personal connection, Bond is put on ice (we all know how well that works) and he seeks to dismantle Franz Sanchez' operation. To be honest, the plot gets a little muddy by the end where a religious cult is introduced as a front for the drug operation, seemingly only there to have a role for Wayne Newton to cameo in as its leader, BUT the goal here is clearer than in Living Daylights as the uninspiring/messy plot of that film was one of my biggest complaints. 

Could there have been more of their relationship in future films? 

"Hug him like you mean it, dammit!"

Also an improvement over the previous film - but perhaps only slightly - are the supporting characters to Bond. Pam Bouvier is the most capable Bond girl in quite some time and even though she's introduced way too late, she makes an impact. Similarly, Sharkey is an early character that reminded me of the Bond friends of old, and Q (the wonderful Desmond Llewelyn) gets some fun screentime in the field, much to my delight. On the villain front, Robert Davi's Sanchez isn't all that memorable despite his dark ways, but he has some moments (again, better than the previous film). Also effective here is Benicio del Toro as Sanchez's slimy henchman, Dario, who is fun to watch in such a young role. He's not particularly memorable outside of the actor recognition, but hey, sometimes that's part of the fun!

Dalton himself is still a solid, more realistic and less silly Bond. Human emotion and interaction is a well-orchestrated element of his Bond and I'm convinced that with more Bond films to his name, he could have been one of the bests. He has enough swagger that it's still Bond - and the ridiculously overt womanizing is long gone - and he can hold his own in the action scenes because he's younger than the geriatrics playing him earlier in the 80s. In a weird way, he seems to lack some confidence that likely comes from being in the role too little, but during the more personal moments such as choosing the right girl to go after, or reacting to his maimed best friend and his murdered wife, he does better than either Connery or Moore before him largely because they rarely had those opportunities.

On the action front, I sorely missed an Aston Martin segment like Daylights had, but overall this is a fun action movie. The opening sequence clearly gave Christopher Nolan some ideas for a particular opener of his, while the semi-truck ending is a really fun, Fast and Furious-esque finale with some good stunts. Overall there's probably less action here, but what here stands out because its well orchestrated and filmed. Similarly to the plot, this is a more violent and bloody Bond featuring the aforementioned leg loss, an exploding head, and someone being trapped feet-first in a grinder. 

James Bond: Fury Road

Given how successful Craig's Bond's have been with a more serious/darker focus, I do believe that Dalton could have been an awesome Bond with a strong legacy had the timing been different. Licence to Kill is maybe too dark for Bond, but still an enjoyable 80s actioner in its own right. Dalton's Bond's shouldn't be slept on; they're both better than most of the majority of the films that came before them (outside of a couple standouts) largely because they ditch some of the more eye-rolling moments in the series' sillier moments. 

CONS

• Better than previous, but the other characters and villains here aren't as memorable as some of this series' highlights
• Almost too dark, particularly the beginning catalyst of the story
• Plot isn't anything special and Bond preventing drug rings feels beneath him. Also the religious cult aspect feels shoehorned in
• Nothing that stands out as "incredible"

PROS

• Better job at side characters than Dalton's first. We get some quality time with Q and Pam Bouvier is a strong Bond girl (figuratively and literally)
• Straight forward plot
• Exciting action, even if there's less of it. The finale is a blast
• Dalton fills the shoes of Bond well for it only being his second film. He's more human - and serious - than previous ones
• I'm still appreciating the tone of this new direction and the lack of silly moments
• Solid filmmaking all around. Action scenes filmed/edited well, and otherwise good pacing and editing

Retro Rath's Review Score | 8/10