No Time to Die (2021)
3/4
From the iconic gun-barrel sequences to the memorable theme songs, James Bond is one of the key movie franchises that resonates with me deeply and will always have a special place in my heart.
This is why I’m glad to report that Daniel Craig’s fifth and last James Bond film, No Time to Die, successfully brings our current Bond era to a spectacular conclusion. It’s a bit uneven, mainly due to its weak villain, but it’s still a great Bond movie.
This is Craig’s best performance as the character since Casino Royale, which helped revolutionize the gritty reboot era. I’ve been a huge fan of Craig as Bond ever since Casino came out and I dare say this is the movie where he really captures the essence of who James Bond is, which is not as easy as it looks, especially once the womanizing part of the character is removed.
I also enjoy the female perspective that was put in the movie. We all know that Bond by design is a womanizer. This element is made crystal clear whether you are watching a Bond movie or reading one of Ian Fleming’s Bond books. But this Bond movie was tailor-made to show that the producers of the franchise are more than willing to turn things up a notch and adjust the franchise to today’s standards. No Time to Die does just that by introducing a character like Nomi, a brand-new female double O—the first one ever—played by Lashanda Lynch. She is just stunning in this movie and is by far one of my favourite new characters in the franchise; I’m really hoping to see her more going forward.
I really did not care for Rami Malek’s character Lyutsifer Safin in the film. It’s not that I disliked Malek’s performance, but we really don’t see that much of him in the finished film. It truly feels like almost 75 percent of his stuff has been cut out of the film. For example, we never learn anything about why our main villain is wearing that Chinese origami mask that he is wearing in the film’s trailer. The film skips over important elements like his backstory and evil goals, and doesn’t even touch on how he got his facial scars. Malek does his best with what he is given, but the villain’s characterization needed a lot more work.
Regardless, Craig’s last outing as James Bond brings an exhilarating and deeply emotional end to the Craig era and, for the most part, it delivers a very exciting film.
Thank you for your service, Craig, Daniel Craig.