Mission Summary

James Bond (Dalton) is assigned to help defecting KGB general Georgi Koskov (Jeroen Krabbé) escape Czechoslovakia and protect him from a sniper watching his every move. Upon his arrival in London, he tells of a plan by the KGB to kill all known Western agents. Bond is suspicious of such an ambitious plot, and his concerns are upheld when the general is abducted from the MI6 safehouse. Bond decides to follow up with the assassin, who turns out to be his girlfriend Kara (Maryam d'Abo). Together, they learn that Koskov is working with arms dealer Brad Whitaker (Joe Don Baker) to play the superpowers off each other.

Analysis

Rank: 5

I think it's no secret I love Dalton's Bond (second only to Connery, of course), so it should come as no surprise that one of his movies cracked my top five. But don't think I have my Dalton blinders on; this is still an exceptional Bond film. We see a spy who must rely on his skills in the field and not so much on convenient gadgets. This may be one of the few films where we see Bond get into several scraps yet rarely ends up killing his enemy, which is how a spy usually carries himself.

Much like the other films that were made during the period of détente with the Soviet Union, the plot revolves around how a villain can disrupt the peace and make the two sides increase hostilities, believing the other is the instigator. Yet it never seems that simple until nearly the end of the movie, and all the characters were deceived at some point in the movie. It is very well written for a Bond film and takes several turns along the way, and even Bond admits he was played several times throughout. The one improbable part is that the KGB would have lost touch with Koskov for periods of time when he met with Whitaker, but they don't seem to be suspicious, and the ease in which they rescued him the safehouse was a joke.

Don't let the low body count fool you: there are some great action sequences in this movie. The best is when Bond is fighting Whitaker's henchman Necros (Andreas Wisniewski) while hanging out the back of an airplane on a cargo net, and it is one of the more thrilling fights in the whole series. This is also one of the few times the Russians cooperate with Bond, and Bond helps General Pushkin (John Rhys-Davies) fake his death to draw out Koskov. Bond also has some harrowing adventures in the Afghan desert and storms a Soviet air base on a horse. One of the more ridiculous moments is when Bond and Kara slide down a slope in Vienna in Kara's cello case and escape being shot or caught by henchmen on skis.

As I've said before, Dalton does the best job of capturing Ian Fleming's characterization of Bond: cold and ruthless. Dalton is more likely to fight than toss out a one-liner when faced with a tough situation. Unfortunately for him and the series, he was forced to play Bond in the dreadful "Licence to Kill." Kara is an interesting character since she is a KGB assassin who plays the cello, but that's the end of her development after the first 10 minutes. D'Abo does a decent job, but her Russian accent is terrible. Koskov could have been a good henchman, but he comes off as a weasel most of the time. We see a new Moneypenny for the first time in the series, when Caroline Bliss replaces Lois Maxwell. Bliss seems to fawn over Bond in nauseating fashion and is much more desperate than Maxwell (and what's with the glasses?).

Now we come to my biggest beef with this film: Brad Whitaker. Despite being the villain of the film, he probably has less than 10 minutes of screen time. He also isn't imposing in the least; rather, he comes across as a buffoon. It seems impossible that he is capable of concocting such an elaborate scheme that fools both the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom. He pretends that he was in the military, but it is never disclosed why he goes to such lengths to keep up such a charade. Finally, his death in the film is so anti-climactic, but I guess it's appropriate for such a forgettable villain.

Boring villains aside, this is a great Bond adventure. The plot seems to break the mold for a Bond movie and has great action littered throughout. The locations aren't exotic, but they are places Bond had never visited and seemed appropriate for this film and script. Those looking for tons of gadgets and one-liners will surely be disappointed, but it is a refreshing turn for the series after the lighter years with Roger Moore.