Tomorrow Never Dies

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Director:  Roger Spottiswoode

Producers:  Barbara Broccoli; Anthony Waye (line); Michael G. Wilson

Writer:  Bruce Feirstein

Title Song:  Lyrics by Sheryl Crow and Mitchell Froom and Sung by Sheryl Crow

Opening Action Sequence:  Bond single-handedly infiltrates a weapons bazaar on the Russian border and helps MI6 spy on the scenario from its headquarters in London.  An impatient military admiral observes from MI6, and orders a missile launched towards the bazaar, in order to destroy all of the weapons.  Despite the dangers involved, the admiral refuses to wait until 007 can finish his mission.  With a missile heading his way, Bond is able to wreck havoc at the bazaar, destroy most of the weapons, and escape in a jet before the area is destroyed.

Bond Visits:  Russian border; Hamburg, Germany; Vietnam; China

Film Gross:  $125,200,000--United States; $335,200,000--Worldwide

Bond attempts to use his former relationship with Carver's wife, Paris (Teri Hatcher), as leverage in his mission.  He also teams up with Wai Lin (Michelle Yeoh), a Chinese agent who is posing as a reporter.  Bond and Lin combine their abilities, and governments, to save the future of the world from falling to Carver's media muscle.

I can't find a better way to describe this film than as a hodge-podge of missed opportunities.  Whenever the movie tries to muster up a sense of nostalgia or ingenuity, a hurdle is invariably placed in its path.  Director Roger Spottiswoode is relentlessly unwilling to take any risks with this entry into the series, and I think that's what makes the movie more than a little disappointing.  Sure, there's plenty of action, but none of it feels inspired or original in a society where action heroes are a dime a dozen.  In my reviews of GoldenEye and Licence to Kill, I wrote that the series was confidently adapting to 90's culture; Tomorrow Never Dies takes that concept and runs it into the ground.

The film opens with the flashy infiltration and destruction of a terrorist bazaar, where Spottiswoode tries to juggle explosions, hand-to-hand combat, and a deadly missile that's headed straight for our hero.  The scene is noisy and filled with the kind of bloodless violence that we've come to expect, but it doesn't work because there's almost no sense of urgency attached to anything.  The camera moves everywhere in a clumsy attempt to catch all of the action, resulting in little more than a lot of color and lights.

Jonathan Pryce is the film's primary antagonist, hamming it up as a media mastermind whose finances are his primary weapon.  For my money, Eliot Carver is one of the least threatening Bond baddies yet.  The man spends more time wild-eyed and ranting than he does giving orders or taking care of a given situation.  The best of the Bond villains are unaware of their insanity (as well as the inefficiency of their plans), but Pryce seems to be screaming "Look at me!  I'm evil!"  During the one scene in which 007 and Carver finally square off, Bond's disposal of his enemy is all too easy, mainly because Carver is too busy running off at the mouth to notice that the end is near.

Bruce Feirstein's script falters in its plot of political intrigue,and lazily attempts to tie a stealth boat, news ratings, and the beginnings of World War III into the same film.  When it does try valiantly to make timely references to mass media and those who abuse its power, the story is all too often interrupted by the director's love affair with pyrotechnics.  But in the moments where the dialogue does shove itself into center stage, there are plenty of puns (and even a bit of poignancy in the relationship between Bond and Mrs. Carver) to be shared.  These moments are few and far between, but they are there.

For all of its faults, Tomorrow Never Dies delivers where GoldenEye did not:  the car.  Upon first impression, Bond's new BMW isn't altogether as attractive as its predecessors, but this one packs a powerful punch.  For this set of wheels, "Q" includes everything but the kitchen sink, making this vehicle Bond's most innovative automobile yet.  The car is introduced with the appropriate amount of fanfare, as 007 speeds it around an enclosed parking lot, while blasting all of his newest toys at some bad guys.  This scene, paired with Bond's escape from Carver's secret laboratory, is one of the few original adrenaline rushes that the movie provides.

This installment in the Bond franchise pairs our hedonistic hero with Wai Lin, a Chinese secret agent played by Hong Kong action star Michelle Yeoh.  Yeoh makes her American debut with this movie, and her physical agility and grace is amazing; however I can't help but think that this just wasn't the right movie for her.  She would have been better served by making her debut in a movie which would have allowed her more of the spotlight.  As it is, the film just doesn't seem big enough for both Yeoh and Brosnan, resulting in minimal room for either actor to truly showcase their talents.  

Tomorrow Never Dies seems more like a muddled, run-of-the-mill action flick than a Bond adventure; its second half feels as if on autopilot, breezing by on its struggling story and its self-destructive finale.  By the movie's end, 007 starts to look a lot more like Rambo than the suave, sex-crazed agent that we've seen in years past.  Coming away from this film, one feels as if the product could have been a lot more unique if placed in more ambitious hands.  As it is, though, this one's a bit of a mess.

Grade:  D+

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