THE long-awaited latest addition to Daniel Craig’s incarnation of James Bond is here – and it will be his last time in the iconic role.
In No Time To Die, Bond has left active service and is enjoying a tranquil life in Jamaica.
His peace is short-lived however and his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA turns up asking for help.
The mission, to rescue a kidnapped scientist, turns out to be far more treacherous than expected, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology.
It’s a familiar scenario that promises to bring another gritty film to the screens in Craig’s last hurrah.
Where once the James Bond films played as separate adventures, linked by characters both malevolent and benign, EON Productions wanted the Daniel Craig series to unfold as a unified whole.
Quantum Of Solace (2008) picked up immediately after Casino Royale (2006), which had tracked Bond’s initiation into the life of a double-O agent.
Skyfall (2012) slotted into the series to reveal important aspects of Bond’s early life.
Now, the 25th film in the EON series, No Time To Die, begins in the aftermath of Spectre (2015) where the film’s conclusion saw Bond (Craig) and Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux) drive away in the Aston Martin DB5.
Themes exploring secrets, betrayal and trust have stitched together the last four films and they propel the narrative towards its thrilling conclusion in No Time To Die.
After the heartbreak he suffered with the loss of Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) in Casino Royale, his fluctuating relationship with M and MI6, and the pain inflicted by the revelations imparted by Blofeld (Christoph Waltz), Bond has taken another risk, letting down his guard with Madeleine as he tries to find love again.
“If Bond is going to commit to a relationship, this throws up so many emotional challenges for him,” producer Barbara Broccoli said.
“So trust is the biggest theme in this movie; making an emotional commitment with someone is very difficult because of his history with attachments, and then betrayal being a big part of the break-up of those attachments.
“For us, this film comes five years after Spectre,” director Cary Fukunaga said.
“The world has changed a lot since then and much of our discussion was around how we make this film feel of the time, but also of the universe of Bond, which is never really specific to a time.
“You also want to bring something new to the story and also you want to honour all the Bond films in terms of leitmotifs and expectations.”
With the story taking shape under the guidance of Fukunaga and long-time Bond screenwriters Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, the producers and Daniel Craig also invited contributions from writer and actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag, Killing Eve), who brought her unique take on character and story, while also maintaining what Broccoli describes as Bond’s “essential Britishness”.
The film was produced by Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, with another iconic soundtrack from composer Hans Zimmer, score from Steve Mazzaro and the feature song “No Times to Die” written by Billie Eilish and Finnea O’Connell, and produced by O’Connell and Stephen Lipson.
MAIN CAST: Daniel Craig, Rami Malek, Léa Seydoux, Lashana Lynch, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Jeffrey Wright, Christoph Waltz and Ralph Fiennes.
ALSO STARRING: Rory Kinnear, David Dencik, Ana de Armas, Billy Magnussen and Dali Benssalah.
