Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)
A movie review by Michael J. Legeros
Copyright 1997 by Michael J. Legeros
(UA)
Directed by Roger Spottiswoode
Written by Bruce Feirstein
Cast Pierce Brosnan, Jonathan Pryce, Michelle Yeoh, Teri
Hatcher, Gotz Otto, Judi Dench, Desmond Llewelyn,
Samantha Bond, Geoffrey Palmer, Joe Don Baker
MPAA Ratings "PG-13"
Running Time 120 minutes
Reviewed at The Six Forks Station Cinemas, Raleigh, NC (15DEC97)
==
One of the more monotonous entries in the 35 year-old (!) series, TOMORROW NEVER DIES is long on action but short on style. (And suave. And sex appeal. And...) Brosnan, Pierce Brosnan is back, looking good and acting a world more relaxed than his first Bond at-bat, GOLDENEYE. Though still far from the cool cucumber that Sean Connery was, Brosnan appears well on his way to eventually outperforming Timothy Dalton, Rog- er Moore, and ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE one-timer George Lazenby. Too bad, then, that 1997 finds the role retooled, from secret agent to super (action) hero. (Gotta feed the international audience...) Babes, bon mots, and battling wits? Fuggedaboudit. This year's Bond spends most of the movie in motion, fighting the bad guys on land, on sea, and in the air. (The plot involves a media mogul, played by Jonathan Pryce, who wants to start a world war to improve ratings.)
The opening, involving a stolen fighter jet at a "terrorist arms bazaar," is engaging enough, but quickly displays that director Roger Spottiswoode (AIR AMERICA, TURNER AND HOOCH) isn't exactly a master of mayhem. His sole inspired sequence is a parking-lot car chase, with Bond driving from the *back* seat of his customized BMW. (You know, the one from the TV commercials.) Other problems range from the obvious (no one behaves as if WWIII is imminent) to the insidious (the high-tech sets look too much alike). (Composer David Arnold's persistent quoting of Monty Norman's original theme is annoying, as well. And, jeez, did the miniatures have to look so obviously like miniatures? At least Judi Dench is back, as "M.") For a holiday blur of explosions, automatic- rifle fire, breaking glass, and twisted metal, this is the movie for you. Just don't expect to leave feeling either shaken or stirred.
Grade: C
-- Mike Legeros - Movie Hell http://www.nonvirtual.com/hell
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