We’ve all been eagerly awaiting the latest James Bond film, No Time To Die starring Daniel Craig.
The release date has been pushed severally due to the pandemic, but we know that we will soon be enjoying the spy franchise in October 2021.
Before No Time To Die hits the cinema, here’s a recap about each of the movies:
CASINO ROYALE (2006)
IMDB Rating 8.0/10
This was the first movie in the newest franchise and definitely the best. Daniel Craig brought a new flair to James Bond; shorter, blonde, and less non-consensually sex obsessed. Whilst previous Bond franchises had characters like Moneypenny and Q, the new Bond introduced us to M, played by Judi Dench. The strict rule-following head of MI6 who tries to keep the reckless Bond on the straight and narrow.
The film was action-packed with the opening scene showcasing the extremes of parkour; it also broke the Guinness World Record for most car barrel rolls in a film assisted by an air cannon. The villain Le Chiffre, played by Mads Mikkelsen is a private banker who finances international terrorism and MI6 has to intervene. Bond ruins an exchange of money between a contractor and Le Chiffre, so the villain sets up a high-stakes Texas Hold ‘em game to raise capital. The card games are a large part of the film and highly intense.
The romance in the film between Vesper Lynd, played by Eva Green, and Bond is more romantic than sexual. All in all, it was the best new James Bond film.
Quantum of Solace (2008)
IMDB Rating 6.6/10
This begins with the immediate continuation of Casino Royale. You can’t just watch this movie as a stand-alone because the entire opening scene is a car chase involving Bond trying to get revenge for the loss of his true love, Vesper Lynd. The journey to avenge her death leads Bond to the main villain Dominic Greene, played by Mathieu Amalric, who wants to drain Bolivia of its essential resource; water.
This film is dark and gritty because of the revenge plot, so not much romantic or sexual tension is in the spotlight as in the previous Bonds. Judi Dench returns in her role as M even though we thought she was dead after a shooting. The new Bond Girl is Camille, played by Olga Kurylenko and the chemistry is out of Bond wanting to mask the pain of his lost love.
The film is the lowest rated in the franchise and Daniel Craig blamed the rating on the 2007 to 2008 Writers Guild of America strike.
Skyfall (2012)
IMDB Rating 7.7/10
After a disappointing sequel, this instalment of the film was a great comeback. Skyfall is focused on M’s character, played by Judi Dench. We begin with a look into her past and then get an emotional look into her development and why we should ultimately care about her and not just see her as the unsympathetic and strict boss. Not only do we get a glimpse into the more emotional side of M, we get to see James Bond’s childhood home which adds more humanity to the super spy.
The villain, Raoul Silva, played by Javier Bardem, attempts to destroy MI6 from within. He stole information guarding the identities of all the MI6 agents in order to expose them. Throughout the movie, Raoul seems two steps ahead because of once having been part of the spy organization. The movie is fast-paced, emotional and plays into elements of the origin story trope.
While James Bond, suffers the loss of M, the film is a great redemption to the franchise after Quantum of Solace.
Spectre (2015)
IMDB Rating 6.8/10
This is one of the lower rated films in the franchise; probably due to the many attempts to connect the Sean Connery Bond films to Daniel Craig’s and the attempts to connect the first three movies. We have two main villains and both are the most sinister we have seen; Ernst Stavro Blofeld, played by Christoph Waltz and Mr. Hinx, played by Dave Bautista.
The plot sees James Bond following a message left for him by a now deceased M; the unclear message leads Bond on a journey to uncover the evil organization Spectre, which has been around since the Sean Connery era Bond.
The narrative of the movie is may be confusing to follow because of the many attempts to connect prior films, but Spectre makes it up by the amazing cinematography.
No Time To Die is Daniel Craig’s last Bond film and the trailer reveals that we won’t be short of action, classy cars and suave suits.
James Bond ‘No Time To Die’ will premiere in Kenya on October 1st 2021 courtesy of Fox Film Distributors. Check out Westgate Mall and Garden City Mall for screening times.
