Review of The Living Daylights (1987) by Drew O — 05 Oct 2011

With Roger Moore's progressing age (he was 57 in A View to a Kill), it was clear that a change in the Bond actor was needed. An just in the nick of time. Moore delivered sub-par film after sub-par film during his entire tenure (with a couple actual good ones). Bond needed to get away from the camp and lighthearted-ness of the Moore films and get back to his novel roots. Enter Timothy Dalton. A dedicated fan of Ian Fleming's masterful pieces of work, Dalton delivers the most faithful Bond yet to Fleming's vision.

The Living Daylights was a solid debut for Dalton. A complete change of pace from its predecessors, we are given a darker and more serious film. A it succeeds on every level. The story is much improved compared to Moore's, with less focus on the over-the-top gadgets and action and more on the spy part of Bond's life. Not since From Russia with Love has a Bond film had this kind of spirit. Not an exciting, special effects filled action film, but rather a tension building spy thriller. And like From Russia with Love, this approach proves to make quite an entertaining adventure.

The Living Daylights has many things going for it. Like I just mentioned, its FRWL style is a warm welcome return for the series. The film also has great action scenes. The plane fight with Necros as well as the opening sequence are a couple of the better scenes from the entire series. John Barry's score (his last for a Bond film) is also my personal favorite from the series, as is a-ha's theme song. Dalton is my favorite Bond, because he is the closest to the books. If you loved Fleming's work and dislike the work of Roger Moore, The Living Daylights is a great entry into the franchise. It's such a shame that Dalton only did one more film after this one.