When Daniel Craig was cast as James Bond in 2005 he wasn't a popular choice. A blonde haired, blue eyed Bond? Preposterous. James Bond should be tall, dark haired, and debonair. He'll never be as good as Sean Connery. But after the masterpiece that is Casino Royale was released, it became clear that Craig was the perfect choice to usher in a new era of James Bond. Later, I'll look back at Bonds of the past and who could be Bond in the future, but first, lets review the fifth and final movie in the Craig Bond era - No Time To Die.
Retired from active MI6 service once again, James Bond is living island life in Jamaica. But when old friend, Felix Leiter shows up, asking the retired 007 to rescue a kidnapped scientist, Bond's life takes a turn. He's reunited with old friends and foes on a hunt for a mysterious new villain with a dangerous bioweapon.
No Time to Die was such a great send off for Daniel Craig as James Bond. It was great to see a lot of the old gang back with Ralph Fiennes, Lea Seydoux, Ben Winshaw, Naomie Harris, and Jeffrey Wright all reprising their roles as M, Madeleine Swann, Q, Moneypenny, and Felix, respectively. Christoph Waltz was even back as notorious Bond villain, Ernst Stavro Blofeld from Spectre. Honestly, Spectre is kind of a snoozer and far from my favorite Bond film, but No Time to Die really elevates it, as it's almost a direct sequel. It's awesome and action packed but also emotional as Craig's Bond has been time and time again. The gunplay and fight scenes are great and the movie is well directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga. It's big and strikingly beautiful. You can definitely see the fingerprints of Phoebe Waller-Bridge on the screenplay too. The humor is subtle but she got it in there and it works. Billie Eilish's opening credits song is a banger too. It really captures the emotions that No Time to Die plays on. It's no Skyfall, but then again not many can do it like Adele.
The returning cast was of course fantastic and the new additions were mostly solid too. I liked Lashana Lynch as the new, sly 00. Rami Malek's villain was creepy enough looking, but I couldn't follow his motives. They lost me a little bit there and I think he was wasted in the movie. Of course, if you have read this blog at all you know I'm going to gush over Ana de Armas. She got about 10 minutes of screen time teaming up with Bond in Cuba as Paloma, but man if she didn't absolutely own those 10 minutes. She was under used, we needed more Paloma! Any more though, and she would have stolen the whole movie. Oh, to be one of the guys getting kicked in the face by her...
No Time to Die wasn't as much about James Bond the spy as it was about James Bond the man. Before a time jump in the movie, Bond is trying to settle into a normal life with Madeleine Swann in Italy, but there's always something that pulls him right back into the thick of it. This time it's an attack by mysterious assassins. The opening car chase scene through Italy in the Aston Martin with skids and machine guns in the headlights sets the tone for the whole movie. Every bullet feels like a threat to break the glass, while on the inside of the car it feels as though Bond will break emotionally with Swann. Craig's Bond has always been more vulnerable than others and that was evident the most in No Time to Die, as the superspy tries to get a normal life outside of having a license to kill. Some don't like Bond being anything more than a superhuman escape that seems to be invincible in a gunfight, but I do. It works and action movies have changed over time to develop deeper action heroes. One knock on No Time to Die is that it's long. Like 163 minutes long. That's plenty of time to die.
Overall No Time to Die is my 3rd favorite Craig film behind Casino Royale and Skyfall. That's no slight either because those two are nearly perfect movies. No Time to Die is an epic and emotional farewell to the BEST BOND. That's right folks, Daniel Craig is subjectively the best Bond there has ever been. Many will say Sean Connery and that's fine. Connery set the bar high. He oozed class, charm, and charisma as Bond, making it one of the coolest characters in cinematic history. But Craig saved the Bond franchise after Pierce Brosnan nearly killed it. Craig's Bond movies are a lot more dark and stripped down than previous entries. Connery's Bond was an escape - he was just constantly doing cool stuff, never in any kind of danger. Craig got shot, hit, and nearly killed more than any Bond. He changed the whole character, and for the better, in my opinon. There's more to him than fast cars, martinis, and a long line of ladies. Craig reinvented the way we see James Bond. He gave Bond a heart. While I don't love Spectre or Quantum of Solace, the issue was never Craig's performances, and there is no denying how good the other 3 movies in his collection are. Casino Royale and Skyfall are the two best Bond movies ever. Daniel Craig and Sean Connery are undeniably 1A and 1B when it comes to Bond actors.
Which brings me to my next question - who will play James Bond next? A lot of names have been thrown around. Tom Hardy, Idris Elba, Cillian Murphy, Henry Golding, Riz Ahmed, and heck I've even heard Tom Hiddleston mentioned. My two favorites are Henry Cavill and Richard Madden. Cavill would be a return to the classic Bond. Tall, classically handsome, and can rock a suit (and build PC's in his garage), but also jacked and with impeccable comedic timing. He's also a pretty big name which could be a mark against him, and he's tied up with The Witcher. He auditioned in 2005, but recent interviews suggest he might be more interested in playing a Bond villain, which I would be down for. He's a great one in Mission Impossible - Fallout. Madden on the other hand is recognizable but not a household name - yet. He has crushed it in every role he's had from Game of Thrones to Rocketman. I have no idea what his schedule will be like with Marvel after The Eternals, but he'd be perfect for James Bond.
That's a wrap on the Bond blog post. I really enjoyed No Time to Die. Get out to a theater and see it, I probably will a second time soon. If Bond gives you a hankering for more Daniel Craig, watch Layer Cake on Netflix. It's in the "Hidden Gems" section and it's fantastic. I also saw Venom: Let There Be Carnage this week. It was meh. Not much to say other than that it proceeds at a breakneck pace and there is absolutely no plot to follow, but that mid credit scene is a game changer. I did like The Guilty on Netflix, it's good if you like watching Jake Gyllenhaal yell and break things like a madman. October is the month that keeps on giving. Next Friday we get Halloween Kills and The Last Duel and then... Dune.
But for now, here's a vodka martini raised to you Daniel Craig. Thanks for giving us an era of great James Bond movies. Shaken, not stirred.
- BH
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