The Living Daylights-1987
Director John Glen
Starring Timothy Dalton, Maryam d’Abo
Scott’s Review #1,194
Reviewed November 12, 2021
Grade: B+
It’s 1987 and Timothy Dalton is the new James Bond having replaced the aging Roger Moore. Moore made seven Bond films.
Dalton’s reign was to be brief and made only two films- The Living Daylights (1987) and License to Kill (1989).
The Living Daylights is a fine Bond film ranking somewhere midstream with Best Of lists. I completely agree with this sentiment as it mostly borrows from other Bond films or stays true to the course, providing a quality action film with all of the typical trimmings a fan would expect from the franchise.
Nothing wrong with that.
This is unsurprising since director John Glen is at the helm once again. Responsible for directing the three prior Bond films- For Your Eyes Only (1981), Octopussy (1983), and A View To A Kill (1985) he knows how to create a decent picture and he does just that.
The main issue is with Dalton himself. Handsome, dashing, and British, he doesn’t quite possess the charisma that other Bonds like Moore, Connery, or Lazenby had. There is a seriousness to the actor and a lack of a smirk or wink in his eye that makes fans melt like putty in his hands.
The action commences with British secret agent James Bond (Dalton) helping KGB officer Georgi Koskov (Jeroen Krabbé) defect during a symphony performance. A mysterious blonde woman who plays cello immediately catches Bond’s attention for more than one reason.
She is Russian assassin Kara Milovy (Maryam d’Abo). Predictably, as events unfold they become madly in love (or lust).
Koskov reveals that a policy of assassinating defectors has been instated by new KGB head Leonid Pushkin (John Rhys-Davies). But as Bond explores this threat, counterplot surfaces, involving a shady American arms dealer (Joe Don Baker). Bond must thwart the evildoer’s fiendish plans and save the world from disaster.
The plot is secondary and difficult to follow but the gist is the same as any other Bond film.
The fun (for me anyway) is enjoying the exquisite locales that the film takes Bond to. I salivated at the gorgeous concert hall and surrounding areas of Czechoslovakia (pre-Czech Republic) and was mesmerized as the action went to the stark desert lands of Afghanistan, Morocco, and finally into historic Austria.
The pre-title sequence was filmed on the Rock of Gibraltar and is utterly fabulous.
With every Bond film, this is a real treat and much of the enjoyment. The Living Daylights doesn’t disappoint in this regard.
The thrilling finale aboard a speeding airplane is thrilling and pulsating, edge-of-your-seat fun. Fights, ticking time bombs, and impending peril keep the action moving at a breakneck speed.
The villains lack much gusto save for a hunky blonde assassin named Necros (Andreas Wisniewski) who enjoys prancing around in skimpy swimwear and who may or may not be gay.
In a more progressive Bond, they might have had a dalliance. The main antagonists, Brad Whitaker, an arms dealer General, and Koskov are too goofy to present any real danger or feel diabolical.
Also forgettable is the main Bond girl. Maryam d’Abo is an okay actress but lacks much chemistry with Dalton. Their adventures are appealing but more as buddies and the romance didn’t work for me. He does respect her more than other Bonds would so that is a win.
Delightful is the title theme song performed by the band A-Ha, which is catchy enough to stick in my head as I write this review. It is exotic and upbeat. Its standard inclusion in the opening credits makes the cheesy sequence more bearable.
Undoubtedly intended to launch a long and storied career as the new James Bond, Dalton lasted only briefly in the role.
The Living Daylights (1987) presents a Cold War theme still relevant but slightly tired for the times. As usual, unless we’re talking about one of the superior Bond films, the locales are the real highlight.
