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Ranking James Bond Films: #20 – “Die Another Day” (2002)
Die Another Day was the first Bond movie I ever saw…and nostalgia doesn’t hold up.
“James Bond is sent to investigate the connection between a North Korean terrorist and a diamond mogul, who is funding the development of an international space weapon.”
Director: Lee Tamahori
Writers: Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Bruce Feirstein, Ian Fleming
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Halle Berry, Toby Stephens, Rosamund Pike, Rick Yune, Judi Dench, John Cleese
Release Date: November 22, 2002
IMDB
Die Another Day was the first Bond movie I ever saw. I watched it with my old friend Cullan, and then rewatched it a bunch of times. I was nervous about the rewatch because I had sentimental feelings toward this espionage adventure.
That said, even old feelings of personal nostalgia can’t prevent the fact that Die Another Day is a very poor 007 experience. Brosnan’s farewell to the character amplifies the corniness, revs up the CGI reliance, and bends suspension of disbelief past Bond levels of acceptability.
The plot of Die Another Day is not half bad. North Korea, the demilitarized zone, and potential international conflict are enough, but it wouldn’t be a Bond venture without an insane space weapon program. Gustav Graves, who again, on the surface level, is okay as a bad guy, has an absurd backstory built-in of DNA therapy. Every villain needs a lair, but a perfect temperature-regulated ice castle seems more fitting for a children’s story than an adult international mystery.
Die Another Day goes too far in all the choices it made.
What the movie does have in its favor is the fact that it’s Rosamund Pike’s feature film debut, and for that, the world is a better place. There is also the undeniable Halle Berry scene of her coming out of the ocean, which forever changed many lives. So perhaps it’s not all bad, but much of it is terrible.
STANKO RATING: D
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