Nice interview with the Broccoli producers, the director, and Daniel Craig as to how and why the film came together and just how long they've been planning "that ending": 'No Time to Die' Ending: Daniel Craig, Filmmakers on James Bond Finale - Variety They had some interesting ideas and some good comments, and I agree with much of what they have to say.
I saw it last night. I’ve enjoyed most of the Craig-era films, but I’ve never been a particular fan of Craig himself as Bond - he mumbles his lines and I don’t think he has a lot of charm or charisma. I do like the Craig-era iteration of Moneypenny and Q. And Paloma was fun - we should have seen more of her. But how many times can Bond quit or go rogue before they get tired of him and just figure out a way to work without him? One thing I really liked about the pre-Craig Bonds was that there was some continuity between them. So you could have Roger Moore’s Bond visiting Tracy’s grave or Brosnan’s Bond playing around with gadgets that Moore’s bond once used. I never warmed to the idea that Craig’s Bond takes place in a different continuity, even though that’s the way new actors in established franchises are handled these days. And my guess is that’s what they’ll do with the next one. I hope the next Bond gets to go on missions and not have to deal with so many personal demons or quit his job all the time. But then again, I’m in an older demographic now and these movies aren’t made for me.
And in Casino Royale...and in Spectre and of course in No time to die. One has to wonder why and how a retired employee of Her Majesty keeps a fully equipped vehicle (definitely not his personal car, as seen at the end of Spectre) that's property of MI6 and uses it for travelling abroad
I meant with MI6 not claiming their car immediately, that's imho one of the major plot holes in the movie.
Ah, yes, well they made a sort of joke out of it by showing Bond repeatedly stealing cars from Q, disobeying orders, and generally getting away with it.
Yeah, but the recurring joke could make sense (albeit barely in the context of the "serious" Craig films) with 007 getting away with stealing cars while he was on active service at MI6. Keeping a company car that's also a weapon worth a lot of money has no sense once he's retired. He's using it for tourism while an agent of MI6 on active service may need it... By the way, I've seen the disc and it's really demo material. That makes eve more annoying the fact that I saw a faulty projection at the theater.
I turned it off after about 40 minutes—I simply couldn’t endure two more hours of…well, let’s just say I’m not a fan of that genre so I don’t offend those who are and liked it.
I liked it more than I thought I would, yet the ending sucks and it just wasn't all that fun to watch. Maybe it'll improve over time, but I'm ready for the series to get out of this overly-serious era and move back into something a bit more fanciful like Goldfinger or The Spy Who Loved Me.
I really dont get all the hate for this movie, its a perfectly GOOD Bond movie, as good as most of the others and better than quite a few ! Im in the camp that thinks GOLDENEYE is 1 of the best, as is CASINO ROYALE, (i also like spectre & skyfall a lot)) however im not a huge fan of craig, he does a fairly good job of it but its all his 'off stage' moaning whilst banking a HUGE pay cheque that has helped put me off him and i agree hes not really charismatic ! BUT with all the negativity and moaning i was expecting this movie to really suck and yet i find it a pretty damn good movie, im not sure it will hold up well 20yrs from now but it was kinda good to see him become a father and then to actually Die ! i DONT think rami malek is a very good baddie, he was a real good freddie mercury but i dont think he cuts it as the big bad guy ! nor did i like the new 007, i think that was a box ticking exercise - black feisty female cutting bond down to size - didnt work for me and not because shes either black or female, i just think shes a terrible actress ! however, i do think Idris Elba could make a good Bond, he was awesome as/in Luther you want a black 007 - hes the man imo sometimes i think people expect to much, its really a fairly standard but decent Bond saga ! Though i still think the BOURNE movies bury quite a lot of BOND movies !
My favorite James Bond "with" Daniel Craig is Casino Royal and No Time To Dies... All I can say is.. James Bond is not dead..!
I was able to see the film essentially for free on demand, and after seeing it I was glad I didn't pay for it. The producers succeeded in destroying the most important and fundamental aspect of the character who has been at the core of 25 films over 60 years: Bond was invincible. No matter how bad the odds or seemingly impossible the situation, he would always triumph. There had been tragedy in his life before - notably at the end of OHMSS and Casino Royale - but we always knew that James Bond would return. That was at the core of his legacy. We did not need or want to know how he would die - but now we do, and by killing him they have taken Bond from superhero to tragic figure. How frankly stupid it was to indulge Daniel Craig his self-centered wish to 'go out big' by taking the character with him. The producers have said they don't know where they will go from here. Nice work. This is the one Bond film I will never watch again. Of course, there is the dreary theme song, sung by that flavor-of-the-day hit singer who sounds like a teenage girl with a sore throat. Fitting.
I'll eventually post a more thorough review for anyone interested, but to quote Leonard Cohen, "Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye" (...and while I'm on the subject, Cohen might have even provided a cheerier opening song than Billie Eilish's emo-girl moaner). Bond's death - no need to wave my arms and yell "spoiler alert", I guess - is not only wrong for the character and the films, it's also wrong for the audience. Disrespectful, even. If the plan was to "Kill Bond, Now" then commit - the producers should have the courage and the conviction to end the series right then and there. Make it mean something. Instead, they kill Bond, shamelessly pilfer music from a previous 007 film (The Craig Era being a reboot, the inclusion of John Barry's music from On Her Majesty's Secret Service is a cheap shot, reeking of on-the-nose sentimentality) then hedge on their bet by ending the credits with JAMES BOND WILL RETURN. You know, back to business as usual. Killing Bond feels like the last trick the producers had left to play - "What HAVEN'T we done to Bond?" - a ploy stinking of desperation rather than inspiration. How about Bond having a kid? How about Blofeld dying? Felix Leiter dying? Bond dying? Plot points to check off the "to do" list before Daniel is out the door, without any real emotion or weight (except for Leiter and mostly because Jeffrey Wright's damn good). And why should an audience get emotional over the death of James Bond when they're told he'll eventually be back at the multiplexes? Even Jesus had the good sense to not ruin a good exit by telling His Apostles "See You On Sunday". EON's swiped a lot from the MCU, but one thing they missed was commitment. When Tony Stark died - he stayed dead. ...and to what end? Reboot the series again? Was the Daniel Craig Era so distinctive it demanded wiping the slate clean? I thought Craig was a fine 007, but Barbara Broccoli is the only person on Earth who believes another actor can't step in and fill Craig's expensive shoes. An oversimplification, but more Bonds have been "Not-Sean Connery" than "Are Sean Connery" and audiences are used to the gambit. Hell, audience speculation about "Who will be the next 007" is built into the model. A frustrating end to a frustrating era.
I hear you, but the bigger divergence as you briefly mention is that he had a daughter. Once that happens, you're in totally unchartered territory for 007 and all previous rules are off the table. The real reason these films are a draw--action, cars, boats, planes, fighting--is better than previous iterations. The way the franchise had stumbled from actor to actor before, without an overall arc in each actors' set of films, was more annoying to me than the arc they came up with for the Craig tenure. At least in the flow of CR>QoS>Skyfall>Spectre>NTtD there was a sort of overall beginning, middle and end--although not much of a middle as Craig's Bond went from a newly minted double-0 in CR and QoS to an over-the-hill has-been in Skyfall and Spectre. The finale was fitting, I thought. I also don't agree with you that there was no emotion to it. I'm a sucker for films where the dad sacrifices himself to save the daughter--maybe because I have a kid. But the theme gets me every time. It worked here very well in turning me into an emotional mess. Queue up Louis Armstrong - We Have All the Time in the World (excellent choice) and roll the credits.
