Director: Martin Campbell
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Isabella Scorupco, Sean Bean, Famke Janssen, Dame Judi Dench, Joe Don Baker, Robbie Coltrane, Alan Cumming, Samantha Bond, Desmond Llewellyn, Gottfried John
Plot: When an attack occurs at a Russian satellite base occurs and the controls for an orbital EMP system is stolen James Bond follows a lead to the underground arms dealer Janus. Unbeknownst to him Janus is really the presumed dead 006, Alec Trevelyan, whose death Bond had felt responsible for.
Review: The time that passed between Licence to Kill and Goldeneye was the longest amount of time between films in the Bond franchise. When Goldeneye was put into production the world had become a different place. The Cold War had come to an end, the media had become globalised and computers were behind everything. The world in which 007 had made his mark and carried a social relevance had become history. Fortunately the producers had also spent the time thinking about where the series had found itself and what it should become. Enter director Martin Campbell, who uses Goldeneye to reinvigorate the franchise (something he’d later do with again with Casino Royale).
There’s plenty of good things to say about Goldeneye, but nothing stands out as much as the casting. Pierce Brosnan had been offered the role in the 1980′s ahead of Timothy Dalton, but the ensuring clusterfuck of contracts that followed prevented it from happening. It’s easy to see why, as he slips into the role like a hand into a glove, naturally charismatic and cool. More than anything else he looks as though he’s having a great deal of fun. Considering that Bond has long been considered the ultimate male fantasy role it’s nice to see that it actually is fun to be James Bond – something Dalton never seemed to grasp during his grittier adventures.
Joining Brosnan is an almost total replacement of the usual support staff. Samantha Bond is the first person to capture the Bond/Moneypenny dynamic since Lois Maxwell. Joe Don Baker returns to the series on the side of good to play Walt, a loud mouthed CIA agent, and Robbie Coltrane as a gruff ex-KGB contact. Desmond Llewellyn continues to deliver the perfect level of exasperation as Q after forty years in the role. Best of all is Dame Judi Dench taking on the job of M – more than just dispensing exposition she gives Brosnan a brilliant personality to clash with. Russian actor Izabella Scorupco plays a hapless programmer drawn into Bond’s world and provides an interesting love interest (even though a generation of gamers hate her on sight for her tenacity to run in front of bullets).
On the side of evil we have Sean Bean as Alec Trevelyan, the former 006 agent turned terrorist. Most of the highlights of the movie come from the dynamic between Bond and Trevelyan having been former allies driven apart by their past. Gottfried John plays the slimy and corrupt General Ourumov in order to give the enemy a face before Trevelyan is finally revealed and is certainly more than a disposable sidekick due to the highly expressive performance. Famke Janssen made her career from Xenia Onatopp, a purely psychotic character who gets a sexual thrill from causing and receiving pain and Alan Cumming is awesome comic relief as the invincible Boris.
With Campbell at the helm the action is fast and imaginative. The opening sequence of Bond bungee jumping down the dam is one of the most memorable in the series, leading to a highly explosive sequence that comfortably announces that the new Bond is going to deliver the goods. From a downhill car race to rampaging a tank through Moscow the action never stops being fun. Even in the current age of slick, computer effects driven action and digital cameras these sequences are just as thrilling due to the snappy editing and well planned stunts.
The story is straight forward by any action movie. Some bad guys with an agenda steal something valuable and hold the world to ransom with it. It does the job. What sets Goldeneye apart from the herd is the smartly written characters and bombastic action sequences. A very welcome return to form for the worlds greatest spy. It remains one of the few Bond adventures that can have fun without sacrificing the grounding and story.
Score: NINE outta TEN
