Mr Movie | ‘No Time to Die’ disappoints in its predictability
“No Time to Die” missed the perfect opportunity for the franchise to finally do what it has needed to do for decades.
That’s die.
James Bond’s first appearance on film was in 1954. Barry Nelson played him as an American spy working for the Combined Intelligence Agency.
In 1954 I was 5-years old. I was 13 when the James Bond movie franchise started in 1962 with Sean Connery starring in “Dr. No.”
Since then five other (or six if you count David Niven) not very interesting, actors have played the part. And other than actor changes, better special effects and movies that are longer, not much has changed in the last 67 years. If anything, he’s gotten long in the tooth and — frankly — boring.
Like a lot of you, I quit caring much about Bond after “Goldfinger.”
“No Time to Die” is the 25th Bond offering and the fifth — and last — with Daniel Craig starring as the world’s most famous spy. Other than Connery, Craig is the best Bond of the bunch but movie-wise, all he’s managed to do right is “Casino Royale.” It piqued my interest because it was a throwback to the 1960s when Bond used brains more than gizmos to save the world.
Since then Craig has been forced into the same save-the-world crap that Pierce Brosnan, Timothy Dalton, Roger Moore and George Lazenby were made to do.
“No Time to Die” has Bond retired from 007ing. Another super villain is using advanced technology in an attempt to take over the world. This time it’s a DNA adjustment that kills off rival bad guys, good guy spies and if all goes well, soon, everyone else.
To stop him, Bond comes out of retirement and is shocked to find a new 007 in his place. It’s a lady. He also finds the woman he loves just might be in league with the devil.
I mention old scratch because the villain’s name is (big yawn here), Lyutsifer.
This is the first Bond flick for Primetime Emmy winner, Cary JoJi Fukunaga (TV’s “True Detective,” “Beasts of No Nation”). His sets, effects and costuming are nothing special, and “No Time to Die” looks and flows like every other Bond movie.
Craig continues to rock as Bond. Oscar winner Rami Malek (“Bohemian Rhapsody”) is cast as Bond’s bad guy and his love interest — and this movie’s Bond babe — is Lea Seydoux. They — like Craig — are forced to give utterance to dumb dialogue that pushes a plodding, overused and predictable plot, forward.
Fukunaga co-wrote the script with Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, who did “Spectre,” “Skyfall,” “Quantum of Solace,” “Casino Royale,” “Die Another Day” and “The World is Not Enough.” He also gets help from Phoebe Waller-Bridge who won three Primetime Emmy for “Fleabag.”
The involvement of Purvis and Wade explain the film’s 2:45 length and its total lack of tension. All plot problem solutions end up in an impossible to believe car chase, or a series of explosions, or bad guys blowing everyone away.
Why worry? You know everything is going to be just fine and — like all the other Bond films — Fukunaga, Purvis, Wade and Waller-Bridge promise Bond will be back.
That’s unfortunate.
Rated PG-13 for mature themes, violence and some language. It’s playing at the AMC Classic Kennewick 12, at the Fairchild Cinemas Pasco, Southgate and Queensgate 12s.
Rating: 2 1/2 out of 5
Tri-City International Film Festival
TRIFI, the Tri-City International Film Festival, is happening virtually again this year. And again this year, the promoters have collected a terrific number of horror, sci-fi and fantasy shorts, documentaries and feature-length movies.
My favorite part of TRIFI has always been the 72-hour challenge. Ambitious movie-makers from around the area are challenged to shoot and edit a movie within certain parameters within that time frame.
That alone makes it worth the price of the ticket.
This story was originally published October 8, 2021 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Mr Movie | ‘No Time to Die’ disappoints in its predictability."