Post by ©DURANMANIA Board Team on Jun 24, 2004 0:10:13 GMT -5
Date of Release
World Premiere – The Royal Film Performance 18th November 2002, The Royal Albert Hall, London.
the story
After undergoing a painful gene therapy, which transforms his facial characteristics from Oriental to Caucasian, North Korean Colonel Tan-Gun Moon, as Sir Gustav Graves, plans to use ‘Icarus’, his secret satellite laser-emitting weapon orbiting in
space, to destroy the minefield in the Korean Demilitarised Zone, enabling the takeover of South Korea, thereby uniting the country and Japan and China to form
a new unstoppable superpower.
Bond’s Women
Giacinta ‘Jinx’ Jordan (Halle Berry)
Bond’s Enemies
Colonel Tan-Gun Moon/Sir Gustav Graves (Will Yun Lee/Toby Stephens)
Zao (Rick Yune)
Dr. Alvarez (Simon Andreu)
Mr. Kil (Lawrence Makoare)
Vladimir Popov (Michael Gorevoy)
Peaceful (Rachel Grant)
Miranda Frost (Rosamund Pike)
Bond’s Allies
Miranda Frost (Rosamund Pike) [but – she’s a double agent!]
General Moon (Kenneth Tsang)
Falco (Michael Madsen)
Mr. Chang (Ho Yi)
Raoul (Emilio Echevarria)
Charles Robinson (Colin Salmon)
‘M’ (Judi Dench)
Miss Moneypenny (Samantha Bond)
‘Q’ (John Cleese)
Bond's Car
Aston Martin V12 Vanquish
Ford Chevrolet Bel-Air (Whilst in Cuba)
Villain's Car
Jaguar XKR Convertible
Bond’s Gadgets
Omega watch which emits laser beam cutter
Underwater breathing device (First seen in Thunderball).
Main Title Music
‘Die Another Day’ performed by Madonna
End Title Music
‘Die Another Day’ performed by Madonna
Music Score
David Arnold
Production Design
Peter Lamont
Art Director
James Hambidge
Mark Harris (II)
Fred Hole
Neil Lamont
Simon Lamont
Jim Morahan (II)
Stephen Scott (I)
Alan Tomkins
Main Titles Designer
Daniel Kleinman
Screenplay
Neal Purvis & Robert Wade
Editor
Christian Wagner
Director of Photography
David Tattersall
Director
Lee Tamahori
Producers
Barbara Broccoli & Michael G. Wilson
Filming Locations
Pinewood Studios, London, England
Aldershot, Hampshire, England, UK
Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, England, UK
Cádiz, Andalucía, Spain
Finland
Heathrow Airport, London, England, UK
Holywell Bay, Cornwall, England, UK
Iceland
Jokulsarlon, Breidamerkursandur, Iceland
London, England, UK
Maui, Hawaii, USA
Scotland, UK
South Korea
Spain
The Eden Project, St Austell, Cornwall, England, UK
Budget
$142 million
Worldwide Box Office
Over $414.5 million
REVIEW: Quite possibly the most hyped of all the Bond films, Die Another Day is essentially two movies in one. Fans of classic Bond films will revel at the slow character development, Bond's early reliance on his own skill and knowledge, the inside jokes and references to prior movies and the capture/torture sequence. Those who crave pure, nonsensical action sequences will find their glee with the movie's final scenes both in Iceland and aboard Graves' jet.
In the beginning of the movie, Bond really seems to be returning to his Fleming roots. He has to rely on his own wit to get himself out of situations, not Q's gadgets. In fact, Q does not even make an appearance until halfway through the film. Also back are some nuances that have been missing since the Connery era. During the pre-title sequence, Bond takes the diamond smuggler Van Bierk's sunglasses and puts them on while flashing a wry smile at the man. Another example is when Bond infiltrates the DNA clinic; when he runs through a patient's room he stops for a moment to take a few grapes from the bowl by the hospital bed. He emerges from the room nonchalantly popping the grapes into his mouth, just like in Thunderball. It's things like this that make Bond who he is: a suave, sophisticated gentleman agent.
Where Die Another Day fails is in trying to combine this classic Bond element with a modern action film. The final sequences in Iceland and aboard Graves' jet contained enough action for the entire movie, if it were spread out evenly. The film would have been better if it had left the plot at Bond's investigation into his betrayal and then looking to even the score between him, Zao and whomever the MI6 turncoat is. This alone is a fascinating plot that, at first, seems to be the focal point of the film at first. However, perhaps out of fear that moviegoers would not accept this retro-Bond story, the movie takes a turn for the worse with the convoluted subplot of the Icarus satellite and the aforementioned ending scenes.
In an effort to appeal to everyone, the frantic final 45 minutes of the film reveal that Gustav Graves is actually General Moon, the North Korean General presumed dead in the teaser sequence. Miranda Frost, the better of the two Bond girls, actually works for Graves and that his plot is, in reality, the invasion of South Korea and Japan in an effort to make North Korea the foremost superpower in the world. Had these final 45 minutes been the focal point of the entire movie it might have worked better. Instead, this tacked on plot dilutes an otherwise fine movie.
In conclusion, Die Another Day should have ended in Iceland with Bond killing Graves, Zao and Frost in the Ice Palace. Had the credits rolled at that point, the absurd CGI stunt could have been excused and the movie could have gone down as one of the best in the series. Instead, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli brought us back to North Korea for perhaps one of the lowest points in the last 40 years.
Giacinta ‘Jinx’ Jordan (Halle Berry), James Bond (Pierce Brosnan)
Colonel Tan-Gun Moon/Sir Gustav Graves (Toby Stephens)
peace & love
SLIM K
