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Die Another Day is the twentith James Bond movie made by EON Productions and the fourth to star Pierce Brosnan as James Bond. It was released in 2002 and produced by Bond veterans Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli. It is the first movie to not feature Desmond Llewelyn as Q since Live and Let Die.

Plot Summary

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In the film, Die Another Day refers to the villain who fakes his death in the opening sequence. When Bond meets up with him later in the film he says "So you live to die another day".

The plot, reminiscent of Moonraker, GoldenEye, and the loose Austin Powers parody The Spy Who Shagged Me, involves billionaire businessman Gustav Graves (who, through supposed medical wizardry, is actually a North Korean soldier) who builds an orbital mirror system that can focus solar energy on a small area—supposedly to light the Arctic nights but is actually a superweapon designed to destroy the de-militarized zone that separates North Korea from the South. Bond, with the aid of NSA agent Jinx (Berry), defeats the soldier (whose other major technotoy is an exoskeleton equipped with a high-voltage electric weapon) and prevents global catastrophe, along the way bedding both Jinx and Graves' assistant, the blonde ice queen Frost (who in a succession of twists is first revealed to be working for MI6, then as a double agent for Graves).

The movie departs from the usual Bond formula in several ways. The movie starts with an action set-piece which, instead of a comic ending, ends up with Bond captured by the North Koreans, after which he is tortured for 14 months, depicted in a stylized manner through the title sequence, ending only when he is released in a prisoner-exchange deal. The psychological consequences of this torture are however not explored in the rest of the movie. The movie also shows some attempts to improve the appeal of Bond to younger people, featuring two separate scenes of Bond surfing, a more contemporary soundtrack (by David Arnold), and extensive use of The Matrix-style slow-motion pans. However, it also features many, many references to each of the previous Bond films which were eagerly picked out by fans.

Theme Music

The theme music to Die Another Day with the title of the same name was written and sung by Madonna. Madonna also had a small cameo as a leather-clad fencing instructor in the movie.

The soundtrack was composed by David Arnold, this is his third time composing for a James Bond movie. The soundtrack also used The Clash's "London Calling" in one sequence.

Cars and Gadgets

• Aston Martin Vanquish V12 - The car is equipped with all the usual refinements including front-firing rockets, hood mounted guns, and passenger ejector seat that was a homage to original Aston Martin DB5 that Bond drove in Goldfinger. The car was also equipped with an adaptive camouflage device, that allowed it to become invisible at the push of a button.
• Jagaur XKR - While not technically a Bond car, this car was driven by the criminal Zao. Like Bond's car, it came equipped with guns mounted on it's hood, missiles, and it could launch mortar shells.
• Glass Shattering Ring - This ring, given to Bond by Q-Branch, emits a high pitch sound that shatters any glass it's near.

Cast & Characters

• James Bond - Pierce Brosnan
• M - Judi Dench
• Q - John Cleese
• Miss Moneypenny - Samantha Bond
• Gustav Graves - Toby Stephens
• Jinx Johnson - Halle Berry
• Miranda Frost - Rosamund Pike
• Zao - Rick Yune
• Damian Falco - Michael Madsen
• Colonel Moon - Will Yun Lee
• General Moon - Kenneth Tsang
• Verity - Madonna

Director: Lee Tamahori

Producers: Michael G. Wilson , Barbara Broccoli

Written by: Neal Purvis, Robert Wade

Cinematography: David Tattersall

Theme Music: Madonna

Composed by: David Arnold

Locations

• Puk'chong, North Korea
• Korean_DMZ
• Hong Kong
• Havana, Cuba
• Isla Los Organos, Cuba
• London, U.K.
• Iceland

Reaction

Critical reaction to the film was mixed, even allowing for the typical disdain of action films held by many reviewers. Many felt that it was merely a tired retread of old ideas, and the attempts to appeal to a younger audience were unsuccessful. Berry's performance was heavily criticised by many reviewers. Some also felt that the extensive use of CGI special effects detracted from one of the major appeals of the older films—that the stunts, however preposterous, were actually performed. Some of the CGI was poorly done (notably the second surfing sequence).

Trivia

• It has been suggested that Richard Branson was the inspiration for the Graves character.

• The film united opinion across the Korean peninsula for once, with the North unhappy with its portrayal as a brutal, war-hungry state, whilst many South Koreans were offended by a sex scene conducted in a Buddhist temple and a scene where an American officer issues orders to the South Korean army in their defence of their own homeland.

• This is the first movie since Live and Let Die to not feature Desmond Llewelyn.
• Wai Lin from Tomorrow Never Dies was rumored to have been in early drafts of the script.
• On Bond's flight to London, the flight attendant who serves him a vodka martini is played by Roger Moore's daughter, Deborah.
• The book A Field Guide to Birds of the West Indies by James Bond, the ornithologist whose name inspired Ian Fleming, is picked up by Bond with a pair of binoculars in a scene that takes place in Havana.

External links

• Official site
• IMDb entry

• James Bond movies