The Living Daylights

The Living Daylights (1987)

Director: John Glen

Writers: Richard Maibaum, Michael G. Wilson

Cast: Timothy Dalton, Maryam d'Abo, Jeoron Krabbe, Joe Don Baker, John Rhys-Davies, Ark Malik, Andreas Wisniewski, Thomas Wheatley, Desmond Llewelyn, Robert Brown, Caroline Bliss

Synopsis:

After organizing the defection of Georgi Koskov (Krabbe), a top KGB General, James Bond (Dalton) is sent to investigate a supposed Soviet plot to kill British and American agents. Once Koskov is recaptured by the KGB, Bond must get to the bottom of the Russian plot, while at the same time tracking down Koskov. Bond soon uncovers a secret smuggling operation in Afghanistan, which could have dire repercussions for the Mujaheddin, Afghani guerrillas fighting against the Soviet occupation of their homeland.

First Impressions:

 I was 11 years old and my family was moving across the country. While spending a few days in Toronto, my parents wanted to see a movie and this was the one the picked. I was familiar with the series having seen most of the Roger Moore films on video, but this one was the first time I'd seen Bond on the big screen. As I'd mentioned, I'd seen most of Roger Moore's outings as Bond and I had even seen one or two of Connery's films by that point. I'd always enjoyed the series but even at 11 years old, I knew they were a bit silly and not to be taken too seriously. This film changed that viewpoint, though, as this was a harder-edged Bond, a more serious Bond and I liked it. This is the movie that got me really interested in the character and it convinced me to giver the rest of Connery's films a go and I realized that Bond wasn't the silly, charming rogue that Moore portrayed him as most of the time. He was, for all intents and purposes, a hired killer and to my adolescent brain, that was just the coolest. This film has always sat atop my list of favorite Bond movies and Dalton, to this day, stands as my favorite Bond actor (I'm probably the only one). I do frequently revisit this film but it has been a while since I watched it last. Hopefully, it won't be too much of a disappointment. 

Story/Direction:

"Stuff my orders! I only kill professionals. That girl didn't know one end of her rifle from the other. Go ahead. Tell M what you want. If he fires me, I'll thank him for it."

This movie contains a number of key milestones in the Bond franchise. Of course, it's the first film with Dalton playing the role, but it was also released on the 25th anniversary of the film franchise. In addition, it was also the last Bond film to be focused around the Cold War. I've always felt that Bond worked best during that era, mostly because the Cold War was the perfect backdrop to espionage movies. After more than a decade of Roger Moore's Bond foiling outlandish plots, this film attempts to take Bond back to his roots as a spy, rather than a superhero. The plot really harkens back to the days of Connery, when the Russians were up to no good and it was up to Bond to stop them. It was definitely a departure from the Moore Bonds and it's probably why the film didn't resonate as much with audiences at the time. They were just too used to all of the light-hearted silliness that came along with the Moore films. 

Personally, I like the way this film tells its story. It's more serious for sure, although there are some funny moments, they're much more subtle than what we'd see with a Moore film. The ploy covers themes that were relevant in the world at the time (drugs) and really doubled down on the fact that Bond's actual job was to kill people for the British government, something that got lost with the Moore films, as well as the subsequent Brosnan outings. But really, this film, as well as Dalton's second outing, really brings Bond back to the gritty, hard-edged killer that he was written as in the novels. I always like to say that Dalton's two Bond films did what the Craig ones did, it's just that audiences weren't ready for it yet. 

Acting:

So, since this is a Bond film, and all Bond films follow a certain formula, I'm going to do things in this section a little differently. Instead of picking through a few notable performances in the movie, I'm going to look at three roles, The Bond, The Bond Girl, and The Villian. So, let's get cracking. First up:

The Bond: As mentioned, this was Dalton's first outing as James Bond and I think he's one of the best to play the role. Ah, who am I kidding, he is the best. Like I said, these movies did what the Daniel Craig movies are doing now and Dalton was a huge part of that. While some critics criticized Dalton for lacking charm and humor in the role, I applaud it. James Bond is not a nice man. He's cold, he's violent and he's effective. Dalton sought to bring back that edge to the character and he succeeded marvelously, however, he also brought a vulnerability to the character. While Dalton's Bond, like the rest of them, escapes from one outrageous situation to another, I actually believed this Bond could be hurt and that raised the stakes for me.

The Bond Girl: There was only one Bond girl in this outing and it was Kara Miovy played by Maryam d'Abo. Unfortunately during this era of Bond films, many of the Bond girls weren't particularly interesting and Kara was no different. To put it mildly, she's useless. Her only real point is to look frightened or amazed at whatever it is Bond does and occasionally shout "James!" That's not to say that d'Abo wasn't good in the film, I mean, she did fine at what she was given to do. It's just that she wasn't given much.

The Villian: There are a few villains in this film and I don't want to give too much away by writing about the main ones, so I'll cover the villains' main henchman, Necros, played by Andreas Wisniewski. Necros is, again, a departure from previous films in that he doesn't really have a gimmick. Okay, well I guess he does listen to the Pretenders on a walkman a lot (remember those), but he doesn't have metal teeth or a voodoo deity or anything like that. Wisniewski plays the character in a very understated way, which is probably due to the fact that he had very little experience acting at the time. But all in all, he does a pretty good job with the character.

Visuals:

When it comes to visuals, Bond films certainly have their own distinct style, which is usually evident right from the get-go. I'm referring, of course, to the infamous opening credit sequences, which at the time were done by Maurice Binder. These sequences definitely harken back to the franchise's origins in the 60s, as they're often a bit psychedelic and full of random images of guns and dancing women. While the title sequence has (thankfully) evolved over the intervening years, these old-school ones from Binder are still an important part of the franchise and it would be weird if they weren't there.

Another hallmark for Bond visuals is the exotic settings, which this film has in spades. Bond goes from Czechoslovakia to Tangiers to war-torn Afghanistan. By this point, the Bond crew had been working together for more than 20 years and it was a well-oiled machine. As a result, the film looks great as fart as the backdrop and production design goes. Although, one thing I found a bit odd, was director John Glen's choice to frequently do a quick zoom in on actor's reaction shots. Maybe it's just me, but it made the film seem like less of a blockbuster and more of a made for TV movie. However, since that only happens a few times, I was willing to overlook it.

As far as SFX go, there isn't a ton, apart from the standard explosions and gunfire common in every Bond film. There isn't really much to comment on here. They all look like explosions and most explosions look pretty much the same.

Score/Music:

The music represents another milestone in the series, as it was the last film in which John Barry did the music. Barry was a stalwart in the franchise, having done the music for every film since 1963's From Russia With Love. Barry is as big of a part of the success of this series as Connery, Moore or any other crew member. The score here is pretty great, despite being interspersed with 80s-era pop synth, which dates it a bit. Although, now that I say that, it also really reinforces the era that it takes place in and adds to the Cold War in Europe feel.

Another factor to the music of the Bond films is the title song, which in this case was performed by A-ha. Again, the song is very much of its time and even if you'd never heard it before, you'd immediately guess it was from the 80s within the first few bars of the song. That didn't bother me all that much, as I like 80s music and think that this song is one of the more underrated entries in the film's long history. In addition to A-ha's contributions to the soundtrack, The Pretenders also do a few songs which are also quite good. 

Action:

Whether its a good Bond film or a bad Bond film, the one thing the series has always done well is action. The franchise has always been able to wow audience with often spectacular action set pieces and this film is no different. The film treats us to a ton of great scenes, including a fight atop a jeep speeding down a narrow road on Gibraltar, a winter chase scene through the country roads of eastern Europe and a spirited foot chase through the streets of Tangiers, to name just a few. It also includes one of my favorite action sequences in the series in which Bond fights an evil henchman while clinging to a cargo net hanging outside of a flying plane. Like or hate the Bond films, you have to give credit to the series' stunt team, they know how to do their job well. 

Final Verdict:

This still ranks up there as one of my favorite Bond films and Dalton remains my favorite actor in the role. I know, I'm definitely in the minority on both those counts but I don't care. If you're a fan of the Craig Bonds, it might be worth you while to check out both this and Dalton's other outing, you might enjoy them.