Review of GoldenEye (1995) by George B — 29 Mar 2015

The first and best of Pierce Brosnan's four Bond pictures. Bond becomes involved in a plot involving ex-Soviet expats and the powerful and deadly laser from space, the Goldeneye. The stories are never the strong part of Bond pictures or what people remember them for.

It's all about the characters and the action sequences and this film delivers on both. Directed by Martin Campbell, he brings a level of physicality to Bond no seen in previous films and brings the action into the modern age of action films, though still staying true to the James Bond film ethos.

Campbell came back to directed the excellent reboot "Casino Royale" and I really do wish he'd had the opportunity to direct more Bond films. However, I do have to say I was very enamored with Sam Medes entry.

The other behind the scenes contribution who I'd wish came back was composer Eric Serra, who kept some of the main themes, but completely scrapped the John Barry style and did something completely fresh and new.

I love the John Barry scores, but I would have loved to hear more Bond themes in Serra's style. As for the characters, Brosnan is the quintessential Bond, Judi Dench brings a new twist to M, Alan Cummings (in the first thing I remember seeing him in) plays a wonderfully easily and funny henchmen and Famke Janssen dials up her villainous henchwoman up to 11, going full Isla, She Wolf of the S.

S. You also get Joe Don Baker and Robbie Coltrane in memorable supporting parts and even Minni Driver in a very brief scene as a Russian nightclub singer. Regarding Brosnan's interpretation of Bond, I'll make the argument that he is the second best Bond after Connery, being able to combine both badass and suave.

Roger Moore was suave but never a badass. Daniel Craig is a badass, but comes off as a thug playacting at being a gentleman, which is kind of how they've written his incarnation of Bond. The other Bond are not really worth mentioning.

Regarding the film's story, it brings Bond into the modern geopolitical world and less of a cartoon world of Blofelds and Goldfingers. Still, the action is definitely cartoony and over-the-top, just as a Bond picture should be, though it's done with a straight face and not in the jokey manner of the latter Roger More films.

Izabella Scorupco plays the good Bond Girl of the film and is pretty if not memorable. My main the complaint is that this film lacks a good villain. There's some evil Russians, but no larger than life figure, which is a Bond trope that I do enjoy.

And I would be remiss if I did not mention this film's connection to the classic N64 game. There is no way that I can now watch this film without harking back to my post-grad/pre-responsible adult days playing this game with friends hour upon hour.

For full disclosure, this probably also makes me partial to this film as well. But that aside, I do think this is an awfully fun film that is one of my favorite Bond pictures.