Review of Licence to Kill (1989) by Simon H — 25 May 2008

Licence to Kill was the 16th James Bond film and the last to feature Timothy Dalton as the spy. The story is focused on Bond stopping drug dealer Franz Sanchez (Robert Davi), who attacked Bond friend, Felix Leiter (David Hedison). What makes the story different is that Bond has gone renegade from MI6. Most of the film was shot in Mexico, which I feels best suits the movie. The are some truly breathtaking scenes. The stars give their best performance, with Robert Davi giving a really sinister version of a Bond villain. The characters of M, Q and Moneypenny return. Q finally gets his due now, with a much expanded character, who delivers some of the best scene. Caroline Bliss still create a poor version of Moneypenny. Her screen time is a lot smaller than the previous adventure, The Living Daylights.

Michael Kamen provides the score this time, but although I like it, it is really a mixed bag. You may like it and you may not. The action sequences are wonderful with a fantastic tanker chase with an explosive finale. The Bond film is a lot grittier this time. This is the only Bond film to date where a villains head is seen exploding. Timothy Dalton gives the audience a troubled, violent vision of Bond which I think is one of the best. Licence to Kill is really one of the Bond films where you need to watch it, to decide whether you like it or not. If you liked the recent blockbuster, Casino Royale, there's a good bet you will enjoy this.