Review of The World Is Not Enough (1999) by Cameron J — 14 Jan 2012

You never realize how much Pierce Brosnan and Charlie Sheen kind of look alike until you see Denise Richards hanging out with Brosnan, and you never realize how bad of actress Denise Richards is until you this film. Okay, she's not as terrible as everyone says, but she's still pretty weak and unfitting. Don't get me wrong, she's pretty hot, so I don't completely mind her being here, but you'd still get a better Bond girl if you went with her then-future groom, and hey, Charlie Sheen's gotten so crazy, they should have given him some lipstick and slapped a blonde wig on him, because he's destined to become Charlize Sheen eventually. ...Well, I've got four sentences left in the opener, so I guess I better go with the same "Add Time" plan I've been using for this series since "Goldfinger": The opener, which is fourteen minutes long! Wow; it's so long, that you would think that it has nothing to do with the main storyline. Yeah, I know that sounds backwards, but these cuttable and irrelevant opening missions are just too darn long, and it doesn't help that the writers rarely even give us the common courtesy of development for those missions. Well, this time, the relevant openers are back to set up the story... and that's about all the story you get. No, the film isn't on a "You Only Live Twice" level of underplotting, but there are definately some flaws, and I've been complaining enough already, so I may as well keep going.

Okay, now, the plot is completely absent, but there is maybe too much action, which isn't to say that the action isn't great, because it is, as I'll get on later, but there is a bit too much of that action in this, which is something you could say about "Tomorrow Never Dies", but there was still enough tightness and organic incorporation with those action sequences that it didn't taint the momentum of the substance in the story. Okay, that situation is rare, but still there, nevertheless. Of course, then you actually get to the story and substance, and suddenly want them to get back to the action. No the film isn't that slow, but it does hit its dull spots, as well as the occasional jarring narrative shift that throws you off a touch. ...Okay, the film isn't nearly as flawed as everyone says, but around this time, story substance had found its place in the "Bond" films and the series has become better for it, but director Michael Apted realizes that a little too well. On paper, the style-with-substance aspects of the film are as smooth as butter, but Apted executes both substance and style so intensely on their own two very different scales, and it's that inconsistency - occasional though, it may be - that keeps the film from being a real thrill. However, when I said that the series has become better since it began incorporating more substance, I wasn't just blowing smoke, and while this film is flawed, it's just another "Bond" installment saved by the good grace of material and grows stronger and stronger as it progresses, which isn't to say that that's not consistently good for a number of reasons.

There's either too much action or too much substance, but the difference is that when there's too much substance, things get a bit slow. Too much action, on the other hand, can be pretty awesome, and sure enough, after Apted dulls you down a touch, he quickly wakes you back up with some awesome action. The film opens up with knives, guns and slick rope getaways, almost all in the perimeter of one room, and a little bit after that, Bond gets into a dynamic armed speed boat battle. Let me just say that those two scenes, alone, tell you that contemporary filmmaking sensibilities don't just go into making substance greater, but style, something that this film has plenty of, and it's all complimented by sharp cinematography, excellent production designs and sharp visual effects. Of course, as you would probably expect, there is a certain something that needs to be mentioned, and that is, of course, well, you know: Robert Carlyle. Now that's a great, compellingly effective Bond villain. No, but seriously though, the real power is our man, Pierce Brosnan, back to give us more charm and mystery, as well as more humanity, emotion and layers than ever to not only make a more compelling Bond, but one of the few "genuinely" excellent performances in the role, and if all else fails, you can always rely on him to pick up the momentum of the film and make it engaging.

Overall, Michael Abted's style is ocassionally becomes so prominent to the point of losing steam, while his substance occasionally becomes so prominent to the point of dulling the film down, but with a still enjoyable story being spiced up with awesome action, as well as another compellingly human, yet still very charming performance by Pierce Brosnan, "The World Is Not Enough" is left a mostly entertaining, yet consistently enjoyable new addition to a more substance-driven "007" series.

3/5 - Good.