The traditional heart and soul of the Bond movies may be getting colder and darker, but the gimmicks, tempo, and excitement are intact.
Rather than the film having any particular strengths in characterization, dialogue, or suspense, its merits come largely in its action, ably advanced by fledgling Bond director Lee Tamahori ("Along Came a Spider," "The Edge"). There are some superb action sequences here that make the whole venture worthwhile. Naturally, we find the usual whizbang hardware like automobiles that can disappear into thin air (although making an Aston Martin Vanquish disappear seems grossly extravagant) and finger rings that can shatter the hardest glass. Various chase scenes involving hovercraft and supercars are thrilling, amusing fun, but the best action sequence, surprisingly, involves two men fighting it out with swords. Now, that IS ironic. In a film filled with the latest technological marvels of invention, the most intense action comes when two guys fight it out face to face with nothing but old-fashioned swords. The filmmakers should take note and follow Thoreau's advice: "Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity!"
One cute bit in the new film: While in Cuba Bond picks up and examines a copy of "A Field Guide to Birds of the West Indies," a gag that undoubtedly flies over the heads of 99% of the viewing audience. Author Ian Fleming chose the name for his superhero by picking the most commonplace one he could find, that of the writer of the bird book in question, who at the time was a neighbor of his, James Bond.
Video:
They say not to judge a book by its cover, and in this instance I'd say not to judge a film by its first few minutes. The North Korea segment that opens the movie is purposely dull in color and ragged in appearance to add an extra degree of harsh reality to the proceedings and possibly to tie it in with the later cold and frigid landscape of Iceland. The disc's transfer, in a wide, anamorphic screen size measuring a ratio approximately 2.17:1 across a normal TV, looks at the beginning about the same as I remember the picture from a movie theater, the delineation slightly fuzzy and the hues dark and subdued. Later, however, about a half an hour in, the image quality clears up considerably, and it reminds us of the best Bonds of the past--bright, sharp, clean, and well contrasted, free of moiré effects, halos, or excessive grain.
Audio:
As you would expect of a new Bond outing, the sonics are spectacular. The audio choices are Dolby Digital 5.1 EX or DTS 5.1 Surround, the Dolby Digital I listened to sounding fabulous with its full range and deep impact. All channels blaze away, and the room literally rocks from the starting shots. The inevitable helicopter flyover makes its appearance early on (like one of Hitchcock's old cameos), perhaps to get it out of the way as quickly as possible. The background track, containing sound effects and music, is loud and intense but not so much so that it interferes with the spoken word or makes one rush to turn the volume down. With its wide frequency and dynamic scope, the soundtrack is one of the most impressive I've heard in quite a spell.
Extras:
This is the first Bond movie to get a two-disc Special Edition. I'm not sure it's worth it, but such sets appear to be all the rage nowadays. Disc one contains the widescreen presentation of the film with its various audio tracks. It also contains two, separate commentaries, the first with director Lee Tamahori and producer Michael G. Wilson, the second with star Pierce Brosnan and co-star Rosamund Pike. Then, there's something called a "MI6 DataStream," a trivia track that provides continuous on-screen informational notes. Thirty-six scene selections conclude the first disc's amenities, with English, French, and Spanish for spoken languages and subtitles.
Disc two contains the now-mandatory bonus collection of supplementary materials. It begins with a group of short documentaries, "Inside Die Another Day," that can be played in individual segments or all at once. Together they last about an hour and twenty minutes and provide the usual background information, cast and crew interviews, and behind-the-scenes data. The next section is called "Mission Deconstruction" and contains pieces on "Scene Evolutions" (storyboard comparisons), "Inter-action Sequences" (multi-angle explorations), "Title Design" (opening credits breakdown), and "Digital Grading" (an effects featurette). Following the "Mission" business is a component titled "Equipment Briefing" that explains some of the gadgets and gizmos in the movie. After that, there's an "Image Database" with photo galleries of the cast, special shoots, locations, stunts, and vehicles. Finally, there's a "Ministry of Propaganda" element that includes Madonna's "Die Another Day" music video, the making of her music video, the making of EA's video game "007 Nightfire," some DVD-ROM things, two teaser trailers, one theatrical trailer, and a few TV spots. It's all tied up in a slim-line package, a fancy slipcase, and an informational booklet insert.
Parting Thoughts:
Even mid-tier Bond is better than most other action movies, and "Die Another Day" does offer its fair share of excitement. The dreariness of the opening segment is offset by the thrilling later escapades and by Ms. Berry as a thoroughly engaging co-star. I mean, one could be watching another "XXX" or "Transporter" and not having nearly as good a time.
"Die Another Day" ends up fulfilling its job as yet another functional if not particularly innovative installment in the ongoing Bond saga. I just hope next time the producers lighten the mood a little. "Die Another Day" may be purchased separately or in a boxed set with "Thunderball," "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," "Live and Let Die," "A View to a Kill," and "Octopussy."
One cute bit in the new film: While in Cuba Bond picks up and examines a copy of "A Field Guide to Birds of the West Indies," a gag that undoubtedly flies over the heads of 99% of the viewing audience. Author Ian Fleming chose the name for his superhero by picking the most commonplace one he could find, that of the writer of the bird book in question, who at the time was a neighbor of his, James Bond.
Video:
They say not to judge a book by its cover, and in this instance I'd say not to judge a film by its first few minutes. The North Korea segment that opens the movie is purposely dull in color and ragged in appearance to add an extra degree of harsh reality to the proceedings and possibly to tie it in with the later cold and frigid landscape of Iceland. The disc's transfer, in a wide, anamorphic screen size measuring a ratio approximately 2.17:1 across a normal TV, looks at the beginning about the same as I remember the picture from a movie theater, the delineation slightly fuzzy and the hues dark and subdued. Later, however, about a half an hour in, the image quality clears up considerably, and it reminds us of the best Bonds of the past--bright, sharp, clean, and well contrasted, free of moiré effects, halos, or excessive grain.
Audio:
As you would expect of a new Bond outing, the sonics are spectacular. The audio choices are Dolby Digital 5.1 EX or DTS 5.1 Surround, the Dolby Digital I listened to sounding fabulous with its full range and deep impact. All channels blaze away, and the room literally rocks from the starting shots. The inevitable helicopter flyover makes its appearance early on (like one of Hitchcock's old cameos), perhaps to get it out of the way as quickly as possible. The background track, containing sound effects and music, is loud and intense but not so much so that it interferes with the spoken word or makes one rush to turn the volume down. With its wide frequency and dynamic scope, the soundtrack is one of the most impressive I've heard in quite a spell.
Extras:
This is the first Bond movie to get a two-disc Special Edition. I'm not sure it's worth it, but such sets appear to be all the rage nowadays. Disc one contains the widescreen presentation of the film with its various audio tracks. It also contains two, separate commentaries, the first with director Lee Tamahori and producer Michael G. Wilson, the second with star Pierce Brosnan and co-star Rosamund Pike. Then, there's something called a "MI6 DataStream," a trivia track that provides continuous on-screen informational notes. Thirty-six scene selections conclude the first disc's amenities, with English, French, and Spanish for spoken languages and subtitles.
Disc two contains the now-mandatory bonus collection of supplementary materials. It begins with a group of short documentaries, "Inside Die Another Day," that can be played in individual segments or all at once. Together they last about an hour and twenty minutes and provide the usual background information, cast and crew interviews, and behind-the-scenes data. The next section is called "Mission Deconstruction" and contains pieces on "Scene Evolutions" (storyboard comparisons), "Inter-action Sequences" (multi-angle explorations), "Title Design" (opening credits breakdown), and "Digital Grading" (an effects featurette). Following the "Mission" business is a component titled "Equipment Briefing" that explains some of the gadgets and gizmos in the movie. After that, there's an "Image Database" with photo galleries of the cast, special shoots, locations, stunts, and vehicles. Finally, there's a "Ministry of Propaganda" element that includes Madonna's "Die Another Day" music video, the making of her music video, the making of EA's video game "007 Nightfire," some DVD-ROM things, two teaser trailers, one theatrical trailer, and a few TV spots. It's all tied up in a slim-line package, a fancy slipcase, and an informational booklet insert.
Parting Thoughts:
Even mid-tier Bond is better than most other action movies, and "Die Another Day" does offer its fair share of excitement. The dreariness of the opening segment is offset by the thrilling later escapades and by Ms. Berry as a thoroughly engaging co-star. I mean, one could be watching another "XXX" or "Transporter" and not having nearly as good a time.
"Die Another Day" ends up fulfilling its job as yet another functional if not particularly innovative installment in the ongoing Bond saga. I just hope next time the producers lighten the mood a little. "Die Another Day" may be purchased separately or in a boxed set with "Thunderball," "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," "Live and Let Die," "A View to a Kill," and "Octopussy."
Average user rating (1-5):
[release]10761[/release]