GoldenEye

Distributed by MGM/UA Home Video

Six years after Timothy Dalton relinquished the role of British agent James Bond, enter ex-tv's Remington Steele Pierce Brosnan in the role. Strangely the opening action takes place three years before Dalton's exit with an amazing bungee jump off a dam as we only see the back of our hero is it Tim or Pierce ? Gaining entrance with opening dialogue of "Beg your pardon forgot to knock", 007 meets up with 006 played by Sean tv's Sharpe Bean inside the chemical warfare facility. Things go wrong but James escapes on a bike and a dive after a plane ( is it a bird , is it a bullet ? .. no it's 007 ! ). Enter the titles with Tina Turner providing the vocals.

The story picks up nine years on with the re-appearance of the silver Aston Martin DB5 driving down the Grand Carniche's narrow roads. James engages in a race with a red Ferrari which scares 'the living daylights' out of his lady passenger. After her demands to stop the entertaining driving duel, he has to reassure her with a handy bottle of champagne. Later 007 drives down to Monte Carlo ( Brosnan admitted to leaving the hand-brake on during filming ) for an evening visit to the casino. He spots the Ferrari and meets up with the beautiful driver Xenia Onatopp ( Famke Janssen ) at the baccarat table. She proves to be a memorable villainess who gets pleasure by shooting or squeezing her victims to death. Despite James' efforts, Onatopp steals a top secret helicopter in order to take over a Russian space device called GoldenEye ( updated version of Diamonds ..'s space laser ). Back in London we visit a new MI6 HQ with a new lady M played by Judi Dench and a 'sparring' Moneypenny in the shape of Samantha Bond. After some nice banter between M & 007 who is told by his new boss to "come back alive". He makes his usual visit to Q's lab to pick up another gadget and 'plug' the new BMW Z3. James is off to good old but changing Russia to meet CIA agent Jack Wade ( played by The Living Daylights' Joe Don Baker ). Wade takes Bond to meet & renew an old acquaintance Valentin Zukovsky ( Robbie tv's Cracker Coltrane ) who is to get a bigger role in The World Is Not Enough. Watch out for a cameo by Minnie Driver ( later to do Good Will Hunting ) as the awful night-club singer and Zukovsky's girl-friend who is instructed "to take a hike !". After a great tank chase around St. Petersburg Bond meets up with the villain Janus aka Trevelyan/006 who is alive & well except for a nice face scar. The 007 love-interest is Russian programmer Natalya Simonova played by the attractive Izabella Scorupco who is dressed down ( with a cardigan ) as a Bond Girl but she can use my computer anytime. Joining forces with Bond ( as most girls do ) they head off to Cuba ( how the Z3 car got there is a mystery ? ) to track down Trevelyan who is planning to use a 2nd GoldenEye aimed at ... London ! This movie proves an entertaining debut for Brosnan as Bond, slightly too slim for my liking but easier with the one-liners than Dalton. He manages to bring Bond back into the movie spotlight with good help from director Martin Campbell ( later to direct The Zorro movies ). Eric Nikita Serra gives us a different musical score with less use of the Bond Theme which is missed in some action scenes.

After an enforced break Bond is Back !