Day 17 - GoldenEye (1995) - Film Review

Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Izabella Scorupco & Famke Janssen

Screenplay: Jeffrey Caine & Bruce Feirstein

Directed By: Martin Campbell

Certificate: 15

Now here's a film that had some expectations to live up to... When I mentioned to anyone that I would soon be watching 'GoldenEye', they would wax lyrical about how good it is, plus it shares the same name as the widely acclaimed 'GoldenEye 007' game that followed a couple of years later. The plot of the film begins with Bond and fellow agent Alec Trevelyan on a mission to infiltrate a Soviet chemical weapons plant in 1986. Whilst Bond successfully destroys the facility and escapes, Trevelyan is caught and killed. Nine years later, the new head of MI6 sends Bond to investigate an electromagnetic pulse attack in a remote region of Siberia, accomplished using old Soviet-era satellite technology named GoldenEye. Investigating the Janus crime syndicate, who are believed by MI6 to be behind the attack, Bond discovers an old friend from the past is out for revenge.

At the time of writing this, and from my own personal circumstances as a kid born in the late 90s, there's a solid case to be made that 'GoldenEye' is the first properly "modern" Bond film. The six-year gap between 'Licence To Kill' and 'GoldenEye' is to this day one of the longest between films since the series began back in 1962. Plus with a new actor at the helm, from what I've seen this is generally where a whole generation had their first experience of James Bond. Again, from a personal point of view, 'GoldenEye' is the first film where I was already familiar with more than just one or two of the actors, what with Pierce Brosnan, Judi Dench, Sean Bean, Samantha Bond and even a young Alan Cumming.

'GoldenEye' is an impressive revitalization, and one that was needed considering the radically different political landscape compared to the last film. By now the Cold War (which had so often provided the backdrop for the Bond films) had come to an end, and the implications that has on this film are noticeable. The opening titles see communist flags, and statues of figures like Lenin and Stalin being gunned down and smashed up to the tune of Tina Turner's great R&B-tinged 'GoldenEye' theme. With this radically different political context, there were genuine doubts among some as to whether the Bond series should even carry on. The film is incredibly self-aware of this too, with M now played by Judi Dench calling Bond a "relic of the Cold War". 'GoldenEye' does a fine job overcoming this hurdle and recognizing the need to adapt, and while you could feel attempts to modernize for contemporary audiences in Roger Moore's last couple of films and Timothy Dalton's two, this is easily the greatest shift forward from the past. 

Having said that, while this is a more modern brand of Bond and plenty of things are given a shake-up, that's not to say there are no connections to the past. For instance, Desmond Llewellyn is still here as Q and is always a welcome presence, plus the famous Aston Martin DB5 makes it first reappearance in many years. The opening also put me in mind of the very first time we were introduced to Bond in 'Dr. No', with both films refraining from showing the man in question for a bit and building up a sense of anticipation. We also have a Bond girl given a ridiculous name again, with... Xenia Onatopp. I sh*t you not. Not only does she have that... remarkable name, she's a baddie who seems to take pleasure in crushing her victims between her thighs. I'm not sure if this is amazing or the fantasy of a horny teenage boy that made it into the script. I really don't know, but her presence alone is proof that the series is not about to break away from the kind of hyper-sexualized female characters of the past. To be fair, Famke Janssen relishes the role and makes her into a far more compelling character than she might've been on paper. She has a lot of fans and I can definitely see why, and while we can say what we want about her, one thing's for certain - we won't be about to forget her anytime soon.

Elsewhere, the casting of Judi Dench as M is probably one of the best things that the film introduces to the series. Despite being a presence in almost every film, there's been very little to say about the actors who've played M up until now. But by casting Dench, the first woman to take up the role, suddenly there's a friction there due to her status as a female authority figure. Her first on-screen appearance is preceded by someone speaking ill of her, and there's a mutual distrust but also appreciation between her and Bond. MI6 in general has quite the makeover too, and the new sets make it feel like a proper headquarters now. And of course we have not just a new M, but a new Bond too, and what can be made of Brosnan's take on the role? General reception to Brosnan seems pretty positive on the whole, but initially I felt more ambivalent. I was reminded of how I felt at first towards Roger Moore in 'Live & Let Die', where there wasn't a whole lot I could say at the time, but there was definite potential. However as the film went on, I began warming up to Brosnan. He has a smooth, silky charm about him, but it's in the action sequences where he began to shine and he plays them with a ferocity in his eyes. The entire tank sequence, and later the train is one of the best sequences of every Bond film I've seen so far. It's punch-the-air levels of satisfying watching Bond rip up a whole town with a tank as he pursues his target.

Someone who I gravitated towards from the get-go was Trevelyan, played by Sean Bean. He's yet another great villain and I've felt a bit spoiled with how many good villains we've had recently. Of all of them, he's probably the villain with the most intimate knowledge and relationship with Bond thus far, and there's a great rapport between Bean and Brosnan. Bean plays Trevelyan with a good mixture of charm and petty obsession with the past, and to an extent he's a dark inversion of what James Bond could've been. Trevelyan has a history as a descendant of the Cossacks, a group who were repatriated to the Soviet Union after having opposed them during WWII. The repatriation is a complicated topic that I'm no expert in, but like the partition of India, it's another example of the British screwing over other countries and peoples. It's a pretty good inclusion for a Bond movie, especially considering that Bond himself is almost a symbol of British authority. While it's scarce, 'GoldenEye' does at least imply that Bond's loyalties may be somewhat misplaced. Trevelyan might well be the villain, but his motivations at least make some sense and he's indirectly a threat of Britain's own making. And having him reveal his family backstory to Bond amid a graveyard of old Soviet Union iconography would almost be on the nose if it weren't for the fact that the scene looks so darn good.

After a healthy amount of time away, I can imagine 'GoldenEye' must've been quite the treat for fans of the franchise. It may not completely live up to the hype surrounding it (translation: 'The Living Daylights' still has my heart), but it's a really great film nonetheless, and eventually a brilliant debut for Brosnan. When I get round to rankings by the end of this marathon, expect to see 'GoldenEye' in, or at least incredibly close to my Top 10.

7/10

NEXT TIME - Tomorrow Never Dies