No Time to Die || Spoiler-Free Review

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No Time to Die  ||  Spoiler-Free Review

Genre: Action, Spy, Thriller

Directed by: Cary Joji Fukunaga

Written by: Screenplay by Neal Puirvis, Robert Wade, Cary Joji Fukunaga, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Story by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Cary Joji Fukunaga

Starring: Daniel Craig, Rami Malek, Léa Seydoux, Lashana Lynch, Ben Wishaw, Jeffery Wright, Naomie Harris, Christoph Waltz, Ralph Feinnes




The Movie Summed Up in a Tweet

While it isn't anywhere near as bold or original as Casino Royale, nor is it as thematically unified as Skyfall - #NoTimeToDie is an often spectacular and fitting finale for Craig's fascinating run as James Bond.

Thoughts on the Movie?

Daniel Craig has had a fascinating stint playing James Bond. The blonde, Heineken drinking, "00" agent had a bold start, intentionally challenging the conventions previously associated with the cinematic icon. 2006's Casino Royale, Craig's first outing as Bond, was celebrated as the 20th canonical film in the franchise, so it made all the sense in the world to shake the character up a bit. Casino Royale, along with Craig's portrayal of Bond, showed a more complicated and nuanced hero. One that leaned towards more brutish, described by many as the more "thuggish" incarnation of Bond - one willing to get the job done at whatever price. He's very much a blunt instrument for the British Secret Service to use at their will - and he's a damned good one, at that.

After his introduction as Bond, Craig's next few entries feel pretty scattershot in quality. If you're interested in my quick thoughts on each of these, continue reading - otherwise, feel free to hop to the next paragraph. Casino Royale is a fantastic reinterpretation of the character and features the best not-so-happy ending since On Her Majesty Secret Service - something many Craig movies have since tried to homage or reference to varying levels of success. Quantum of Solace is messy, but works momentarily. Ultimately, it's a largely forgettable "filler" chapter. Skyfall is a brilliant and underpraised analysis on whether the world still needs Bond, then does the work to prove his relevancy with a whipsmart script, gorgeous cinematography from Roger Deakins, and one of the best Bond villains to date in Javier Bardem's Raoul Silva.



Then we get to Spectre, an important movie to discuss due to its positioning right before No Time to Die (thus setting up a large portion of the narrative for the final chapter), but also in its attempt to harken back to the older Bond classics. All of a sudden there were themes, jokes, and tones brought back from all eras of Bond films. This included the recontextualizing of the villainous organization SPECTRE, itself, along with the clunky and forced addition of the original "bad guy", Ernst Stavro Blofield (Christoph Waltz). For a series that has largely distanced itself from these older movies, Spectre's inclusion of awkward slapstick comedy bits, ill-fitting puns, and vaguely misogynistic overtones that would feel right at home in the Roger Moore era Bond films. Mind you this was still Craig, who turned Bond into the "blunt instrument", remaining largely humorless in his first three outings. The most confusing and rushed part of Spectre surrounded the introduction of Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux), Bond's new (and seventeen year younger) love interest. So much of Craig's Bond has been tied up in Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) and her devastating legacy's effect on him - to have him quickly fall head over heels in love with and then receive their happy-ever-after within the last two acts of Spectre feels hollow and unearned. Add in the complete lack of chemistry between her character and Bond and you have an unsatisfying chapter that left me with little to no excitement left for any future Craig-led installments.

Wherever you may find yourself in relation to my opinions on the previous Craig-led Bond movies, whether you agree or disagree - I merely bring this up to illustrate my viewpoint going into No Time to Die. Touted as Craig's final outing as Bond, I honestly found myself any real enthusiasm to get to the theater to see No Time to Die - again, primarily on account of the back-and-forth, whiplash quality of the previous entries. Was this going to be another Spectre or was this going to be another Casino Royale? Was this Bond at his best or his worst?

It turns out, No Time to Die isn't really the best or worst of Bond - and that's okay.

Directly picking up the pieces from the previous entry, Spectre, Bond and Swann are together trying to live life now that Blofield has been captured. However, SPECTRE is still alive and actively pursuing the couple, sewing seeds of distrust in the two. After a surprising ambush in Matera, the arrival of a new biological super-weapon, a new competing "00" agent played by Lashana Lynch, and revelations brought forth from a mysterious new villain - Bond will face his most trying mission yet as he's forced to reexamine who his real allies are.

The most important thing to know about No Time to Die before going into it is that this is very much the finale of Daniel Craig's run as Bond. Without spoiling anything, No Time to Die is asked to do a significant amount of heavy-lifting in terms of creating a compelling, standalone narrative surrounding its new villain, Lyutsifer Safin (Rami Malek), in addition to wrapping up the lingering story threads introduced in previous films. With all that narrative work needing to be done, it's no surprise that this is the longest Bond entry yet, at two hours and forty three minutes. What is surprising, is just how quickly the narrative moves along, jumping from exposition to set-piece with relative ease and momentum. I think this is in thanks to an efficient and tidy (if not slightly generic) script as well thoroughly fantastic, though never "showy" direction from Cary Joji Fukunaga.



Additionally, the new mystery surrounding Safin's relationship to Swann is engaging and fun to unravel - giving more depth to Swann's characterization and providing a solid driving purpose for Craig's Bond this time around. Safin, outside of a very memorable entrance that brought to mind horror villains such as Michael Myers, is sadly underwritten. His connection to Swann and his initial ambitions are instantly relatable and make sense, but when Safin begins setting his sights on the larger picture, he promptly becomes a nonsense spouting megalomaniac that wants to burn the world down because of: "people's innate yearning for oblivion", or whatever that means.

The action and the set-pieces are all great to top-notch, each one offering something very different in terms of choreography, ideas introduced, solutions, and even in the editing. From the grand and sprawling, top-notch car/bike chase through Matera to the tense finale through Safin's Poison Garden island, there's something for all action fans in No Time to Die. That the film can navigate between all these set-pieces, while introducing new characters, killing off established characters, and introducing game-changing revelations - it's simply mind-blowing. Top all that off with a wonderful, sweeping, and emotional score from Hans Zimmer and you've got a Bond film that is doing so many things "right".

I've been waxing poetic about a lot of what No Time to Die had to offer, but it wasn't a perfect experience. No matter how long they went on, something that never worked for me was the inclusion of the "classic" Bond one-liners. Much of the more reaction based humor worked really well here, such as Bond's exasperated reaction to three grenades falling next to him after just barely managing to deal with one only seconds before. The one-liners, however, were eye-rollingly bad, which in itself might have actually been a variation of a pun included in No Time to Die - one henchman outfitted with a "robotic eye" quickly became a source of never-ending groaners from Bond and company.

Equally off-putting is the inclusion of Lashana Lynch's new "00" agent, who serves as a tease at the idea of impending change to the Bond formula. It's an interesting idea and could have served as a thematic launching point for Bond's continued grapple with relevancy in a world with Mission Impossible, Fast and the Furious, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and DC Extended Universe (DCEU) - mining that for potential just as Skyfall did. The script isn't nearly ambitious here, and the messaging behind the inclusion of this new "00" agent is messy at best. To have Lynch play such an antagonistic and contentious figure, especially when playing off against Craig's grumpy, old man Bond leaves little excitement to be had in their Spy vs. Spy dynamic. It should be said that Lynch's character eventually won me over by the end of the movie, but by that point I had been thoroughly displeased with her character's brash and antagonistic attitude throughout the first two acts of No Time to Die. Furthermore, there just wasn't enough done with her character to really demand a return from the character, which is disappointing considering the role's potential.

Overall, No Time to Die is a thoroughly engaging finale that does enough work to pay off the many overarching and unresolved story threads from the previous Daniel Craig entries. It's a chapter that makes bold decisions and choices on a moment to moment basis, featuring several highlights and standout action and character beats. It's a twist-heavy narrative, where the twists, even if too foreshadowed and obvious, serve the greater purpose of the film - sending off James Bond on a high note that ultimately redeems and completes his hero journey. That No Time to Die works this well in spite of the unenviable position the franchise was left in thanks to Spectre, is miraculous to say the least. Where you ultimately fall on how successful these third act choices are, will depend on your expectations of Bond movies. I will say that by the end of No Time to Die, the film had done enough of the work to have evoked genuine, earned pathos out of me. While it still isn't anywhere near as bold or original as Casino Royale, nor is it as thematically unified as Skyfall - No Time to Die is a spectacular and fitting end to Craig's fascinating run as James Bond.



Standout Scene

I love a lot of what Bond brings to the table, but call me basic, because well-executed Bond action scenes are cinematic bliss to me. One of the highlights for me is the fun (but entirely too brief) meet-up between Bond and Ana De Armas' CIA agent, Paloma. Following a fun reveal from Blofield, this action scene pairs Bond and Paloma together in a nifty set-piece that serves as a fitting display for their contrasting fighting styles. The choreography and the practical effects work are simple and surprisingly effective, with the chemistry between the two being the most light and flirty moment Craig's Bond has had on screen.

Standout Performance

Many of the actors in No Time to Die are returning players who do great work with the little time they're given. Daniel Craig, Léa Seydoux, Ralph Feinnes, and Rami Malek are given the most screentime, but I can't really say that their work here is that outstanding. Whereas Daniel Craig felt like he was sleepwalking through much of Spectre, he does feel like he's trying here, thanks to the new depths given to his character. Still, this isn't his best performance as Bond. Additionally, Malek gives a suitable effective performance as Savin, but he's not given much to do at all here.

If I had to choose, I was probably most drawn to the performances from Ana De Armas (mentioned above in the Standout Scene section) and Billy Magnussen - the latter plays the fresh, rookie CIA agent Logan Ash. Both actors brought an energy not typically found in James Bond movies, and No Time to Die comes to life when either of these two are on the screen.

Standout Quote

Mallory: "The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time."

Pairs Well With...

  • On Her Majesty's Secret Service [1969]

  • Layer Cake [2004]

  • Casino Royale [2006]

  • Knives Out [2019]

Film-FTW Rating  ||  8 Stars - “Great / Memorable”

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