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[FILM] Goldeneye (1995)


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The first truly modern Bond film. It involves a Russian plot, but after the iron curtain has come down. It makes use of CGI and the internet in a way that is still reconcilable today (Though as most 1990's film about Internet, it's depiction of it looks faintly ridiculous).

After the 6 year hiatus Dalton no longer wanted to portray the role so Brosnan finally got his chance.

His 007 retains some of the harder edge of Dalton, but softens it with Brosnan's own undeniable suave charm. In essence I've always found his James Bond to be a very satisfactory blend of Connery's toughness and Moore's lighthearted charm. (edging slightly more to Moore then the bald Scott, though).

Brosnan was slated to take over straight after Moore and that would have made the transition less jarring then going from Moore to Dalton did.

Goldeneye is the first film where the people who made it actually question Bond the world he inhabits. He's given some tough questions by both the lead villain and the Bond girl. Giving the film a bit of a "knowing" edge.

Overall this is a far more conventional film then LTK, which was a critical and financial dissapointment. All the familiar settings appear. The chat with M, flirting with Moneypenny, the Q scene, making contact with the Femme Fatale, trip to the villains secret base etc. All of this is a variation of what we hae seen many a time.

But this time M is a woman. Judi Dench would come to own the roleto such an extent that her departure from the seeies was given special attention in Skyfall. Het relationship with Brosnan's Bond is different then the "disapproving mother, petulant son" vibe she developed with Daniel Craig. But from the moment she appears on screen she commands a certain respect and effortlessly fills the shoes still left since 1979 by Bernard Lee.

Moneypenny is different too. Updated for the 90's she's no longer obviously pining for 007 and gives as good as she gets. Q here is of course still Q. Desmond is like comfort food and his scene in thsi fim is more over the top then usual. But quite a delight.

Izabella Scoruppo plays the lead Bond girl. And also here there was been a change. For the first a substantial part of the story is told from her POV, before she meets up with Bond.

Natalya Simonova is actually rather a well developed and interesting character. Given more to do then being just window dressing and Scorupo does well ever with the more dramatic scenes.

Famke Jansen plays the most memorable Bond girl in the film though. Kickstarting quite a successful career, Jansen plays the best femma fatale since Thunderball. Her Xenia Onnatop...on a top? is a deliciously over the top sexual, yet super-dangerous baddie who crushes a man's pelvis like a beer can and seems to get aroused while being thrown about.

Sean Bean makes for an excellent villain for this new kind of Bond, Calling into question 007's loyalty while plotting to lay waste London. Bean affects a posh English accent, but always exudes an air of thinly concealed menace.

The last 5 films were directed by John Glenn, who filmed everything as bright as possible, which gave those films a very dated, workman-like look. Thankfully director Martin Campbell and DP Philip Meheux do a much more interesting job here. This is a very nice looking movie. Often film in rich dark tones and giving it a depth that the Bond films haven't had since Moonraker.

Especially the scenes in Russia, often making use of "end of an era" metaphors like broken communist statues really stand out visually.

Campbell does a very solid job directing this film. Updating Bond to the 90's while still keeping it recognizably Bond. The stunts are all uniformly good. Though none of them are up to Casino Royale level, which Campbell was once again entrusted to usher in a new era, and knocked it out of the park.

The score...

Well I tried to be open minded. But as a "normal" score it's really rather pedestrian. cheerless synth work recalling Brad Fiedel and rather involving orchestral music. It's all juts quite workmanlike and functional.

As a Bond score it's actually quite a disater. I'm no Barry fetishist. So I've been able to enjoy the works of Martin, Conti, Hamlish and especially Kamen. All who added their own voice and style to the series and created something that was their own, yet still a Bond score. Serra's Goldeneye fails at that. His gunbarrel sounds awful, his action music is uninvolving and the romantic stuff seems too chaste. The famous tank chase was re-scored by someone else, so we actually hear the Bond theme there, but even that cue isnt very effective. It just sounds like a quick and dirty scoring job consisting of various statements of the Bond theme.

Goldeneye isnt a horrible score, but it never enhanced the movie, adds to the excitement or mystery or sex. It's just there. The most boring Bond score ever!

The title song is good though.

So this is a good Bond film, just for some reason I've never loved it as much as it's weaker older bothers, or the newer ones. All the familiar elements are there, and they have been convincingly placed into a more modern world. It looks like a Bond movie, it feels like a Bond movie. Beautiful actors, exciting action scenes, beautiful locations. Let somehow it's always left me cold.

Also, they put 007 in a BMW, which is just fucking wrong!

** 1/2 out of ****

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