License To Kill
1989
Director: John Glen
Starring: Timothy
Dalton, Robert Davi, Carey Lowell, Benicio del Toro, Talisa Soto
Rated: PG-13
Why don’t you wait
until you’re asked?
Why don’t you ask me?
~Exchange between
James Bond and Pam Bouvier
STATS
Kills: 6
Girls: Lupe Lamora,
Pam Bouvier
Car: Lincoln Mark VII
LSC
Locales: Miami,
Republic of Isthmus
Odd Villain Trait:
Dario is an lunatic with a silver tooth and a switchblade
Song: “License To
Kill” performed by Gladys Knight*
Other notable song:
“If You Ask Me To” performed by Patti LaBelle
Director John Glen finishes out his tenure as director of
the James Bond franchise delivering the film he was trying to make with his
first effort (For Your Eyes Only). The film takes a much darker and gritty
course than any preceding 007 entry. The
script and direction plays in favor to Timothy Dalton’s strengths as James Bond
that would make Ian Fleming smile if he were around to see it. In a summer movie season packed with more
colorful large scale pictures the initial reaction to License To Kill was not that of a positive one, and audiences did
speak with their wallets.
Once again, the James Bond franchise takes it inspiration
from other sources. This time, the film
fits right in line with the “hard R” violent action pictures on the 1980s. The violence is bloody and it looks like it
hurts. If you add some curse words,
there wouldn't be much separating it from them.
Also, Sanchez’s home base and operations come right out of the Brian
DePalma film Scarface. And at times the movie really looks and feels
like you’re watching Scarface. The meetings between Bond and Sanchez capture
very much the vibe Tony Montana and Alejandro Sosa’s first meet up.
This style also plays benefit to Timothy Dalton’s Bond. The guy already felt comfortable with his
place as Bond in the last film, but here he elevates it. The character of Andrew on Buffy the Vampire Slayer definitely had
it right, the man truly is an overlooked gem of the series and it’s a shame
this would be only his second and final appearance. He takes the cold gruff of Connery and builds
his character out of it. He doesn’t
really carry the swagger or smoothness of Roger Moore and Sean Connery, but you
really buy this guy as a secret agent able to muscle out of sticky
situations. Maybe Dalton is more in line
as the “action hero James Bond” as his type.
By the end of the film, we also get to see Bond more beat up and
bloodied than ever before. So far in
this series, he IS the closest representation to the literary character we’ve
had (although, looks-wise, he’s more handsome than the pages describe).
Another benefit to the Dalton era is that he did as much of
the stunt work as was allowed. This
really brings an extra layer of thrill to watching it. It’s a challenge to try to find Dalton’s
stuntman when watching an action sequence.
The biggest highlight comes early on during an underwater escape that
winds up in him harpooning a plane and barefoot skiing behind it. Many of the action scenes in general just
give that real vibe you don’t get anymore.
And the violence and blood level are taken up many levels as well. This is the first Bond film to get a PG-13 rating
as well.
Its almost criminal that Robert Davi as Franz Sanchez is
never in discussion when great Bond villains are the subject. This man is incredibly scary and dangerous. He is also pretty ruthless. Sanchez is a very dark and disturbing
individual when it comes to disposing of those who cross him. And when he thinks he’s been betrayed, he
becomes a loose canon. When Bond
befriends him in an attempt to infiltrate and learn more about his operations,
you are just sitting and praying he doesn't discover Bond’s true motivations. He may lose his cool, but he’s always in
charge and no one dare step in front of him.
The character of Sanchez and his operation is a successfully executed
version of Dr. Kananga from Live and Let
Die.
The Bond women in this one aren't as strong as the lone one
in the last outing, but they aren’t any slouches either. Lupe Lamora is a much better rendition of
Andrea from Man With The Golden Gun. She’s stuck with Sanchez due to his obsession
with her, but wants out bad. And I don’t
believe Bond to be in love with her, but sleeps with her to earn her trust and
assistance to help him take down Sanchez.
While she’s not perfectly characterized, Cary Lowell’s Pam Bouvier comes
off as extremely likable and charming.
For the first time, Bond sleeps with 2 women and it results in a love
triangle with emotional consequences. I
do enjoy that while Bouvier is a little bit school-girl upset, she is still is
able to push it aside to accomplish the mission at hand with class. None of her feelings toward Bond cloud her
ability to take on the mission.
One of the only missteps in the film, and I’ll allow it
because I like the character, is the over usage of Q. He appears to help out Bond, but sticks
around and feels shoehorned in to the plot and action. His quipping and goofiness feels a little out
of place in this dark revenge story.
They probably felt they had to put him in somewhere, and decided he’d be
there to give a break from the tension, but in the end, he just doesn't work.
The summer of 1989 was a big summer of franchise releases at
the box office. Tim Burton’s Batman, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Ghostbusters II, The Karate
Kidd Part III, Lethal Weapon 2, Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason
Takes Manhattan and A Nightmare on
Elm Street 5: The Dream Child all came up to bat that summer. Somewhere lost among all this was License to Kill. While grossing $156 million worldwide, the
movie was on the lower end of the Bond intake.
Budgeted on $32 million, it only managed to gross $34 million in the US. This film really isn't near as bad as this
box office is suggesting. Its quite good
and much better than most of those franchise films that out-grossed it. However, you have a dirty, violent gritty
Bond film that just isn't the fun family get together at the movies.
All the previous entries you could take the
kids to and everyone would have fun. License to Kill was far too adult. It turned off the family going crowd and
didn’t have the hard R rating to attract the action crowd like a Lethal Weapon. It was just sifting in its own little corner
not attractive to any core audience. The
summer is a place for big movies like a Bond film, but this one was far more
suited for a November release (which, not surprisingly, is where they would
move to). Unappreciated on its initial release, License To Kill stands the test of time far better than most of its
predecessors. It’s a welcome change of
tone for the series. A lot of people
knocked it when it came out due to “straying too far from the path”, but why wouldn't you want that (as long as the film is a competent acceptable piece of
good entertainment). This was the 16th
film in the franchise, heaven forbid we give something new a shot.
Timothy Dalton gives a top notch Bond
performance to compliment his already superb debut. The filmmakers give us a story driven and
somewhat original story to follow. It’s
gritty, violent and has a narrative and action pieces that are both engaging
and genuine. You don’t see movies like License To Kill made anymore. It’s a real treat to throwback to this era,
which this film surprisingly still holds up strong even being a byproduct of
it. Sadly, Timothy Dalton’s James Bond
era is only this one-two punch. Looking
back, hopefully more will take a look and appreciate him and the films in this
short lived tenure. James Bond would now
go on its longest hiatus (six years), losing Dalton along the way, before
lighting up movie screens around the world.
Brandon Peters will return in Goldeneye
Follow me on Twitter – www.twitter.com/@btpeters
E-mail – naptownnerd@gmail.com
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*Eric Clapton made a title song for the film, but it was
rejected by the producers.
2 comments:
The problem with this film was the terrible acting of the secondary characters. Felix Leiter and his wife shot this film in the foot at the start, and the dueling semis kind of finished it off. But Anthony Zerbe blowing up was awesome!
This was the first time an actor repeated the role of Felix Leiter. And while David Hedison was in the comedy relief mode of Felixes in "Live and Let Die", here he was quite competent and you feel a real friendship between him and Bond. It made the revenge all the more believable. I always liked Timothy Dalton's Bond and wish he had done more. I also wish they had kept the movie's original title "License Revoked", but it was felt Americans were to dumb to get it. As it turned out, the whole movie went over their heads.
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