By Gilberto Campa
The James Bond franchise is one of the most endearing, entertaining, and profitable franchises in the world. Spanning over sixty years and having produced twenty-five films, much has been said about the series of novels by Ian Fleming that have gone on to become some of the most memorable movies and stories that general audiences have enjoyed repeatedly. This time around the latest Bond film entitled No Time to Die has a lot of anticipation surrounding the project (not just the fact that this should have been released in 2019) since it will be the fifth and final performance as James Bond from Daniel Craig, who has been portraying the character since 2006.
After originally having Danny Boyle come onto the project to direct, there was much intrigue as to what a Boyle helmed Bond film would look like. Unfortunately, due to script issues and some casting choices, the search continued for who would direct what would eventually become No Time to Die. Many high-profile names were rumored to be attached to the project as Christopher Nolan and Denis Villeneuve each turned it down, for different reasons. In a surprising choice (at least to casual film fans) Cary Joji Fukunaga who directed Beasts of no nation and wrote/directed/produced the first season of True Detective and Maniac was hired to direct Daniel Craig’s last dance.
Coming off the heels of Spectre that was a moderate hit for Bond fans (I thought it was fine) a lot of pressure was put into what this final installment in the Craig series would look and feel like. After watching it I can say with confidence that the film is one of the best entries in the entire franchise, but not for the reasons you would think. Not only is it the longest Bond film in the series coming in at a runtime of just over two and a half hours, but it also presents never-before-seen story threads and action sequences that were a breath of fresh air to see in the franchise. Being the 25th entry in the series there are quite a few callbacks and references to prior entries and moments of the Bond movies, but what Fukunaga does so well is to balance those callbacks while also painting the movie with his own brush so to say, making it completely his own. The movie starts in a way that no other Bond film has started before which gets you ready for what’s to come. Getting to the technical aspects of the movie the cinematography, set design, and camera movement all blended beautifully to create so much more emphasis and ambiance to what was going on which will keep’s you engaged to what is going on.
The cast is easily one of the best ensembles in any Bond film as many familiar characters from the previous entries come back to help Bond on his last journey. There are also some new additions that fit right into the world of Bond-like a perfect puzzle piece as Ana De Armas (the breakout star of Knives Out) and Rami Malek (fresh off his Oscar win in 2018) deliver some very entertaining and menacing performances respectfully.
The story overall felt very modern as you understand some of the motivation behind Malek’s character (Safin) but also fits very much into any ridiculous Bond villain plot from the past. One aspect of the series that always gets me excited are the opening credits as the “Bond Theme” helps to get you into the tone of the movie. Even though the song was released over a year ago, “No Time to Die” by Billie Eilish along with the beautiful title sequences was very well done.
In terms of a sendoff, I believe that fans will very much enjoy how things get wrapped up and taken care of. There isn’t any setup, mystery, or after-credit scene to look forward to, everything is left in the film, and the conclusion will be one that fans will be satisfied with. Two years is a long enough wait to experience this, so make sure to see Daniel Craig in his last hurrah when No Time to Die hits theaters.