Review of Licence to Kill (1989) by Tanya K — 06 May 2009

(No. 16).

As every man has a breaking point, Bond reaches his after the Brutal attack on Felix and his new wife, which so eerily resembles his own tragic wedding day, and Dalton's return as a vengeance seeking rogue agent holds all the punch and anger that one would expect from a man who has been desensitized to death. The story is tight and layered with an interesting little subplot of the fake evangelist. Robert Davi gives us one of the creepiest, and most believable, villains in drug lord Franz Sanchez, reminiscent of old-school big money, glamour and honor. Explosive action sequences keep us at the edges of our seats, culminating in a dynamite semi-truck chase through a valley of death. It's unfortunate, therefore, that with all that's going for it, the weakest points are the two women, especially American agent Pam Bouvier, whose reactions to what's going on around her feel completely inconsistent an unnatural. The exotic Lupe Lamora, as Sanchez's unwilling lover, is interesting until the third act when she suddenly falls for Bond for no rhyme or reason. In fact both the women's falling for him feels rushed and mechanical, and about as passionate as if they were holding a sign reading, 'Insert sex scene here.' Still, it's an interesting change to see Bond succumb to his emotions, showing that there's still something very human in him.