Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)

Touches You

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

To all those who have watched it: I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

James Bond (Pierce Brosnan) heads to stop a media mogul's plan to induce war between China and the UK in order to obtain exclusive global media coverage.The Bond films are both hit and miss as well as an acquired taste. And each time there is a new Bond, people readjust and some people just will not move on. Personally, I think Brosnan was a great Bond, and I actually think this is one of the best films in the series, contrary to popular opinion.Much of the series is either about Soviet issues or post-Soviet issues. This one, however, is about global media dominance. Now 20 years old, it seems more appropriate than ever with its satellites and cell phones. This movie could have been made today with only the most minor of adjustments.

Tomorrow Never Dies sort of repeats the You Only Live Twice story line, though with some notable differences. Brosnan is more relaxed in the role, though he's still not great with quips (though the quips and one-liners he has got as Bond have been abysmal on the whole, so it's not really his fault). Michelle Yeoh is the most robust Bond Girl ever, and the only one who's almost a match for Bond. She's far more competent than Barbara Bach's agent XXX, for instance. Of course, Yeoh isn't a sex pot so the relationship is far less sexual than ever before. Teri Hatcher is forgettable as the other Bond love interest, and she's the one participating in the ongoing weakening of Bond which started with Brosnan's arrival: here, he was afraid when things got serious between them and ran away. Yeah, right. Luckily, there's no character arc where Bond has to overcome yet another psychological trauma this time. Jonathan Pryce is a brilliant actor, and throws himself in the part of evil media mogul Elliot Carver (who was based more on leftist/spy Robert Maxwell than on right-wing fiend Rupert Murdoch). However, Carver isn't really a strong enough opponent for Bond. Perhaps the movie would have worked even better if a Chinese general had been the main villain and Carver the secondary bad guy. Anyway, the action is top notch, with a great teaser, a fun back seat car chase filled with gadgets, a great motorcycle chase (gadget-free) in Vietnam, and a very lengthy and protracted final battle aboard Carver's stealth ship. I would have preferred Bond and Wai Lin to have had a squad of military support (a Bond movie should end like a war movie to be really successful), but they perform like a two-person army anyway. Brosnan kept getting better as Bond - unfortunately the movies got worse, with World Is Not Enough being a garbled mess and Die Another Day going so ridiculously over the top it became painful to watch.

This film isn't quite as good as "Goldeneye", but it still another fun addition to the series.Pierce Brosnan once again shines as James Bond, and Wai Lin, played by Michelle Yeoh, is quite possibly the toughest Bond girl ever. She does a lot of karate and steals the show as much as Brosnan.Elliot Carver, played by Jonathan Pryce, is a pretty decent villain. He is nowhere near as intimidating as some of the best Bond villains, but he is certainly passable. His goals were a little more realistic than most Bond villains. His henchmen is just another Red Grant clone.The story, while not the deepest, has a lot of intriguing elements with Carver writing disasters in his newspaper and making them happen. The media angles makes a lot of sense these days. The locations work, especially Thailand.This film is up there with "Moonraker" as one of the most relentlessly action-packed entries in the series. We get a spectacular opening sequence, a chase in a parking garage with Bond using his remote-control BMW, a wicked motorcycle chase, and so much more.This is a very solid if slightly by-the-numbers entry in the series. There is rarely a dull moment, and there is enough action for several movies. Another fun Bond film.RATING: B

What can be said about "Tomorrow never dies"? For sure one thing: it's one of the best movies ever made. Pierce Brosnan did a very good job. Also the villain (Elliot Carver) is brilliant, not to mention his sidekick Stamper, who plays the role as sidekick how it should be played. Also the two women in the film (Way Lin & Paris Carver) play an important role. Also the storyline is very well thought out. I especially like the way the mass media is used to try to conquer the world.Also Q plays an important role, as this film brings some great gadgets along with it (the best is of course the 7 series BMW). But also the gadgets in Lin's Chinese office deserve a mention.Also this film doesn't lose it's excitement, as it keeps the spectators on the edges of their seats from start to finish. Some other Bond movies (especially the older ones) tend to get a little boring because of their written out plot divergences, whereas this Bond film doesn't have a single boring period in it.That said, I think this film is the best one we've seen Pierce Brosnan in. One of the best Bond films and an all time Bond classic.