Information AboutDie Another Day |
''Die Another Day'' is the twentieth James Bond Film made by EON Productions and the fourth and final film to star Pierce Brosnan as Ian Fleming 's James Bond. It was released in 2002 and produced by Bond veterans Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli . It is the first film not to feature Desmond Llewelyn as Q since '' Live And Let Die '' ( 1973 ) given his death in December of 1999. ''Die Another Day'', being the twentieth Bond film and also being released the year of the Bond film's "40th Anniversary," pays homage in some sort of way to every previous official James Bond film {Link without Title} . It also additionally references several Fleming novels as well as novels by other official Bond authors. OVERVIEW The movie departs from the usual Bond formula in several ways. ''Die Another Day'' begins with an action set-piece which, instead of a comic ending, ends with Bond captured by the North Korea n army, after which he is tortured for fourteen months, depicted in a stylized manner through the title sequence. The movie also shows some attempts to improve the appeal of Bond to a younger audience, featuring two separate scenes of Bond surfing, a more contemporary Soundtrack (by David Arnold ), and extensive use of '' The Matrix ''-style slow-motion pans. Critical reaction to the film was mixed, even allowing for the typical disdain of Action Film s (and of sequels) held by many reviewers. Many saw it as a retread of old ideas from the Roger Moore era that did not mesh with more "modern" takes on the genre such as '' 24 '' and '' The Bourne Identity '', and scoffed at the attempts to appeal to a younger audience; supporters of the film counter that the so-called "retread of old ideas" was simply the film paying Homage to earlier Bond films, adding that Bond's incarceration and torture at the start of the movie sufficiently broke the pattern of recent Bond films. Some also felt that the extensive use of CGI special effects detracted from one of the major appeals of the older films—that the Stunt s, however preposterous, were actually performed. The quality of the CGI effects in some scenes was also criticized; compare the action sequence at the beginning (Bond's near-escape in Northern Korea using Hovercraft ) and the parachute-assisted surfing stunt about halfway through the film. Marketing for the film was also criticized by some fans. In previous Bond films (with the exception of '' On Her Majesty's Secret Service '') the actor to portray Bond is undoubtedly the top-billed star with all other actors in a supporting role; however with ''Die Another Day'' Bond Girl Halle Berry had been elevated to co-star status with Pierce Brosnan; at least one of the film's posters gives Berry equal billing with Brosnan. In addition, the amount of Product Placement in the film gave rise to its nickname, "Buy Another Day" from various news outlets. Reportedly 20 companies paying $70 million had their products featured in the film, a record at the time. 1 The film also elicited poor opinions across the Korean Peninsula , with the North unhappy with its portrayal as a brutal, war-hungry state, whilst many South Koreans were offended by a romantic scene conducted in a Buddhist Temple and a scene where an American officer issues orders to the South Korean army in the defense of their own homeland. Regardless of these criticisms, ''Die Another Day'' is the current title-holder for highest grossing James Bond film without adjusting for inflation. It took in $456 million in ticket sales worldwide. ''Die Another Day'' was the first movie since '' Live And Let Die '' not to feature Desmond Llewelyn , who had died in 1999 just after the release of '' The World Is Not Enough ''. John Cleese , formerly of '' Monty Python's Flying Circus '' and '' Fawlty Towers '' took over the role of Q; however, it is clear that he is playing a different character (who had been introduced as Q's assistant "R" in ''The World Is Not Enough''). Cleese's Q refers to "his predecessor" in one scene. PLOT SUMMARY The film opens with Bond infiltrating the organization of Colonel Tan-Sun Moon, a North Korea n army officer who is illegally selling military weaponry in exchange for Africa n Conflict Diamonds . Bond is betrayed by an agency Mole , resulting in his capture by North Korean authorities. Disavowed by his superiors upon his release, Bond sets out to find the mole on his own. His search eventually leads to billionaire businessman Gustav Graves , who is actually Colonel Moon surgically altered via Genetic Engineering . (The film's title, ''Die Another Day'', refers to Colonel Moon surviving his first encounter with 007. Upon meeting him later in the film Bond comments, "So you lived to die another day.") Graves' scheme, reminiscent of '' Diamonds Are Forever '', '' Moonraker '' and '' GoldenEye '', involves the construction of Icarus, an Orbital Mirror system made of diamonds that will supposedly focus solar energy on a small area to light the Arctic nights and, if the investment goes well with buyers, provide year-round sunshine for crop development. In truth the orbital mirror system is actually a superweapon designed to clear a path through the minefield in the Demilitarized Zone that separates North Korea from South Korea . North Korea would be able to invade South Korea, Japan , and other surrounding nations. Icarus would also be used to defend North Korea while it invades, by destroying any Ballistic Missile or Nuclear Warhead fired on North Korea or their troops, thus foiling any large scale retaliation from their enemies. Bond, with the aid of NSA agent Jinx (played by Halle Berry ), defeats Gustav Graves, whose other major techno-toy is an Exoskeleton equipped with a high-voltage electric weapon, and prevents global catastrophe. Along the way he beds both Jinx and Graves' assistant, the blond "ice queen" and Olympic fencer Miranda Frost. Frost, who is purportedly working for MI6 , is eventually revealed to be the mole within the agency. CAST & CHARACTERS
CREW
SOUNDTRACK The title song for ''Die Another Day'' was written and sung by Madonna . Madonna also had a small cameo in the movie as Verity, a leather-clad fencing instructor. The soundtrack was composed by David Arnold ; this is his third time composing for a James Bond movie. The soundtrack was released on Warner Brothers Records , which is also Madonna's label. Although the Bond films have a longstanding connection with the pop music world, the choice of Madonna's song, coupled with the use of The Clash 's " London Calling ", proved wildly controversial with some fans who felt the two pieces of music were inappropriate for a Bond movie. "London Calling" was used briefly in the film as Bond returns to England via British Airways ; at the time, the airline was using the song in American radio and television commercials. Madonna's theme song was unusual in that it was presented in a credit sequence that actually moved the film's plot along (as opposed to all previous Bond film titles which are standalone set pieces - an exception being the third segment of the '' Dr. No '' titles). The concept of the song/title sequence was that it represented Bond trying to keep his sanity during 14 months of torture at the hands of the North Koreans. The divided opinion over the "Die Another Day" theme is evidenced in that it was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Original Song as well as for a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Original Song (2002) . Track listing # " Die Another Day " - Madonna # "James Bond Theme (Bond Vs. Oakenfold)" - Paul Oakenfold # "On The Beach" # "Hovercraft Chase" # "Some Kind of Hero?" # "Welcome to Cuba" # "Jinx Jordan" # "Jinx & James" # "A Touch of Frost" # "Icarus" # "Laser Fight" # "Whiteout" # "Iced Inc." # "Antonov" # "Going Down Together" VEHICLES & GADGETS
LOCATIONS Film locations
Shooting locations
Italics indicate the locations in the movie portrayed by each shooting location. NOVELISATION The novelisation to ''Die Another Day'' was written by the then current official James Bond writer, Raymond Benson based on the screenplay by Neal Purvis and Robert Wade . Like the movie, the novel also featured many references to past Bond movies and novels. A few months after its publication, it was announced that Benson was retiring as the official James Bond novelist, and Ian Fleming Publications (owners of the Bond literary franchise) announced that the series was going on hiatus. A new series of Bond novels by Charlie Higson was launched in 2005, although these books focus on Bond's adventures as a teenager ( Young Bond ). As a result, ''Die Another Day'', the novel, is for the time being the final literary adventure featuring Bond as originally conceived by Ian Fleming, although the publisher is reportedly planning another "adult Bond" novel to coincide with the 100th anniversary of Fleming's birth in 2008 .
JINX SPINOFF Berry's performance was heavily criticized by many reviewers and fans, though ironically she won an ''. TRIVIA
REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|