Wuchak
6
By Wuchak
_**A different kind of Bond**_
Released in 1989, "Licence to Kill" always struck me as the most atypical Bond film. In this one James (Timothy Dalton) goes rogue after a good friend's bride is murdered and the friend is half-eaten by a shark. Stripped of his authority, Bond vengefully goes after the responsible drug lord, Sanchez (Robert Davi).
The opening act drives home that "Licence to Kill" is a more serious and brutal Bond flick. Although there's still a lot of "yeah, right" moments, the comedic edge of past Bond films is all but gone. And the violence is so savage and merciless compared to past films that it almost comes off shocking.
In addition, the spectacular globe-trotting locations are absent in favor of a more one-dimensional setting -- the Florida Keys and Mexico (where the film was shot). Although they do fine with these limited locales, the change is noticeable.
The women are below par as well. Carey Lowell works best as the "Bond girl," but she pales in comparison to, say, Lois Chiles, Luciana Paluzzi and Claudine Auger. Talisa Soto is also on hand as Sanchez' girl and, briefly, Priscilla Barnes.
The opening stunt sequence is alright, but it's unmemorable compared to past Bond films, like "The Living Daylights," "The Spy Who Loved Me" and "Moonraker."
Furthermore, there's an under-developed subplot about a cult guru and the film seems overlong at 133 minutes.
But the movie scores points with effective villains (it wouldn't be right to say "good villains", would it?), particularly Davi and a young Benicio Del Toro, both cruel and sadistic.
FINAL SAY: The fun might be over, but at least they tried something different to stir things up. Unfortunately, it didn't quite work. "Licence to Kill" performed weakly at the box office and ranks with the lesser Bond flicks. Still, it's interesting as an atypical part of the series -- darker and grittier, albeit still comic booky. Plus Dalton is striking as the vengeful protagonist and, if you can hang around till the final act, it's totally kick-axx.
GRADE: B-
CinemaSerf
6
By CinemaSerf
I was just not a fan of Timothy Dalton's "007" and so can't say I was looking forward with much enthusiasm to this. Sadly, it didn't surprise - it's a really far fetched, frankly rather unpleasant, outing for Ian Fleming's deadly agent that sees him on the trail of an evil drug lord who fed "Felix" (David Hedison) to a shark whilst doing away that man's new wife. What now ensues is just a series of unremarkable set-piece escapades that have precious little jeopardy to them. Anthony Zerbe just doesn't cut it as the supposedly menacing "Milton Krest" (surely a milk-shake?) nor does Robert Davi as baddie-in-chief "Sanchez". Not that it's unusual for a "Bond" film - but this one really does play a bit too much to stereotype without any of the fun; the tongue-in-cheekiness or any charisma at all from the star very much on the wain here. As adventure films go, it is entertaining enough - there are gadgets; but the banal dialogue grates after a while and this one somehow appears much less "British" than many of it's forebears - certainly it is grittier and more violent. Adequate, but I would not say anything for the far classier and engaging Connery or Moore to worry about.
GenerationofSwine
10
By GenerationofSwine
Man, del Toro was only 21 in this film and still makes a showing as one of the most lethal Bond baddies in the history of the franchise.
And for those of you who are obsessed with Bondlore, this is the 007 film that references the events in OHMSS which proves that Bond is one person and not just a "title" like the people who are trying to completely rewrite the franchise to inject modern politics over story and fun.
Anyway, moving on, this, like The Living Daylights, the closest Bond to Flemming's 007 and the closest Bond to the cold blooded assassin of the early Connery films to-date. So it has always come across as odd that so many people that love Connery 007 hate Dalton.
It's also a break away from MI6 and shows Bond going out on his own to avenge Felix, who is the US counterpart to his character.
It moves away from a lot of the 007 tropes in story alone, but it also tells a completely different story with a Bond that is far closer to the source material than anything we had seen before.
So I can certainly understand the hate, but, personally, I think it's one of the best 007 outings we have had thus far.
The Movie Mob
8
By The Movie Mob
**License to Kill transformers Bond from a goofy punchline to a vengeful unstoppable force, turning the franchise from whimsical to gritty and producing one of the best films of the series.**
License to Kill marked a major shift in the franchise away from the campy, goofy, and almost family-friendly Roger Moore Bind films to something darker and more brutal. Timothy Dalton’s Bond is savage and emotional, using only his wits to track down an elusive drug lord and devising an elaborate scheme to exact revenge and cripple the entire drug enterprise. No longer are the jokes and gadgets the focus, but instead, the violence and rage of Bond and the villains he faces take center stage. Characters are eaten by sharks, crushed, exploded, and more in barbaric ways with incredible stunts and a more grounded sobering story. License to Kill finds its influence in Miami Vice and benefits from a less outrageous or fantastical story. Unfortunately, License to Kill was before its time as Brosnan’s Bond slid the franchise back to the far-fetched goofy extremes of Bond. Thankfully the Craig era returned to what Dalton began with a nuanced and volatile character in a more believable world of spies and danger. License to Kill is one of the best in the Bond franchise and shamefully underrated.
drystyx
7
By drystyx
This 007 film stays true to its motif.
This begins an era of "no fun" 007 films, where the wit is very minimal and every scene is whiplash brutal.
However, unlike most later 007 films, this one stays true to its design. It doesn't try to "contrive" the story. Instead, there is a flow.
One interesting aspect is that we see something worse than "death", as is pointed out earlier, with David Hedison getting brutal treatment in his recurring Felix role.
We see the beginning of an era where evil is in charge of the world. No longer is there anyone to be trusted outside of a few men like James and Felix.
There is a "darkest before the Dawn" scenario here, but it isn't "contrived" the way later 007 movies do it.
There is a lot going for this one. Unfortunately, it set the style for "no fun in 007 films", which ultimately saw the writing and directing get worse and worse. But this one works. Bond is still a genuinely okay guy, and that's what always keeps 007 films going.
CinemaSerf
6
By CinemaSerf
I was just not a fan of Timothy Dalton's "007" and so can't say I was looking forward with much enthusiasm to this. Sadly, it didn't surprise - it's a really far fetched, frankly rather unpleasant, outing for Ian Fleming's deadly agent that sees him on the trail of an evil drug lord who fed "Felix" (David Hedison) to a shark whilst doing away that man's new wife. What now ensues is just a series of unremarkable set-piece escapades that have precious little jeopardy to them. Anthony Zerbe just doesn't cut it as the supposedly menacing "Milton Krest" (surely a milk-shake?) nor does Robert Davi as baddie-in-chief "Sanchez". Not that it's unusual for a "Bond" film - but this one really does play a bit too much to stereotype without any of the fun; the tongue-in-cheekiness or any charisma at all from the star very much on the wain here. As adventure films go, it is entertaining enough - there are gadgets; but the banal dialogue grates after a while and this one somehow appears much less "British" than many of it's forebears - certainly it is grittier and more violent. Adequate, but I would not say anything for the far classier and engaging Connery or Moore to worry about.
kevin2019
8
By kevin2019
"Licence to Kill" is unquestionably a very unusual Bond film in every conceivable way imaginable. The larger-than-life villains of the Sean Connery era with their outrageously extravagant plans to blackmail the whole world are completely gone and these elements have been replaced with a much more down to earth approach and in this instance it has resulted in the film resembling a regular crime movie, but don't fret too much. There still remains at least some instantly recognisable remnants of the beloved Bond trademarks to be found amongst all the violence and minor league swearing with some remarkably thrilling and expertly produced action sequences - especially those involving the Kenwood tankers. However, when such conventional Bond fare as this is placed alongside some of the other elements (chief bad guy Sanchez being turned into a flaming human bonfire by Bond) it does often make for extremely uncomfortable bedfellows, especially coming so soon after the long running Roger Moore era where a good deal more of the violence was a lot less graphic.
