Review of The World Is Not Enough (1999) by Caspar R — 13 Dec 2009

The World is Not Enough is a sentiment first explained in George Lazenby's turn as Bond in 1969. It is the Latin phrase scribed across the bottom of the Bond family crest. This movie has that kind of clout.

First, Desmond Llewelyn who has played Q since the beginning of Bond's adventures, takes a moment in this movie to say a smart and subtle farewell, worthy of his character and of his great talent. May Mr. Llewelyn rest in peace and may he always live in our fondest memories.

Second, director Michael Apted finally manages to draw a performance out of Pierce Brosnan worthy of the character he's portraying. I thought it impossible, to be honest, but this is Pierce Brosnan's absolute best. He makes the character creative, witty, strong, and fun again. There are even a mix of both specialized gadgets and basic tools from the environment that serve Bond in his deadly encounters.

Much of the cast is similarly good, though. Sophie Marceau is one of the hottest (and coldest) women in any Bond movie, and her strong presence on screen is only aided by the very creatively conceived villain, Renard (Robert Carlyle), who suffers from a bullet that's slowly descending through his brain. The imagination in this movie and the actors bringing it to life, are almost flawless (that is, except for Denise Richards who is only here for one very specific reason -- another word for a donkey).

Though the movie really does grind your patience after the seventh action set piece ends and the script seems to still be threatening more, the rewards outweigh the strain. Among the action sequences, see a great speed boat chase that goes beyond the water, see Bond clip on his skis again in his brown jacket with a beauty at his side, squirm with him against the spine-crusher chair, watch M achieve fullness as a character, see a giant sawing helicopter, enjoy a cart ride through an international pipeline, and amuse yourself with a curiously perfect but unplanned undercover stint by Bond in a mine.

This is an extremely well directed movie with Brosnan's best effort to boot. It's also one of the best movies of the 007 series. The world would not be enough compensation for any Bond fan to miss this one.