‘No Time to Die’ finishes Daniel Craig’s time as 007 in style
After being one of the first films delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, “No Time to Die” was finally released in theaters on Oct. 8. The film is the fifth and final installment of Daniel Craig’s 15-year portrayal of iconic agent 007, a.k.a. James Bond. After making his debut as the deadly member of the British secret service in 2006’s “Casino Royale,” we have seen Craig’s evolution as the famed MI6 operative with each theatrical release.
“No Time to Die” marks the end of an era as Daniel Craig closes the door on this chapter of his acting career, taking his place among legends like Sean Connery, Timothy Dalton, Roger Moore and a select few others who have taken on the role of James Bond over the years. “No Time to Die” is Craig’s epic swan song, refusing to go out without completing one last action-packed, world-saving mission.
Taking place five years after the events of 2015’s “Spectre,” Bond has finally retired his services and ridden off into the sunset with Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux). She's the daughter of former nemesis Mr. White, who aided him in finding and defeating Ernst Blofeld (Christoph Waltz), the head of the elusive Spectre organization that was secretly responsible for much of the criminal activity and chaos of the previous three films.
Before watching “No Time to Die,” the fact that “Spectre” seemed to have such a fitting ending made fans wonder what the plot of the final film would consist of. Fans were worried that the film would come across too unrealistic or inconsequential given that the film had seemingly wrapped up so many of its narrative plotlines already. Thankfully, not only does the film avoid these clichés, it provides an even better ending to the series than “Spectre” potentially did.
The film does an excellent job of drawing the audience in and subverting expectations from the start. The obsessively in-love couple of Bond and Madeleine we expect to be at the core of the film is completely shattered within the first ten minutes. Bond is attacked and decides to abandon Madeleine because he suspects she played a part in his attempted murder and could no longer be trusted. This sets up an exciting new adventure as it seems that no matter what James Bond does, he cannot seem to escape the past of his many years of espionage.
“No Time to Die” is easily the most emotionally compelling film in the Daniel Craig era of James Bond, with only 2012’s “Skyfall” coming close in that regard. The film effectively balances interwoven plots, details, characters and events of the previous films without losing sight of the new story it is trying to tell, ensuring that the film is unique and interesting on its own. This is greatly appreciated because it really shows the dedication to detail, effort and planning that went into its production (which is not something that can always be said about most Hollywood blockbusters). However, no need to worry, the film still has all of the nice cars, fancy suits, cool gadgets and extravagant action sequences that have always been so identifiable with Bond films. Much of which is executed to perfection with great cinematography and visual effects that only lift the enjoyability of the film even higher.
Likewise, the film does an even better job of having many lovable familiar faces such as Q (Ben Whishaw) and Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright), while introducing new and interesting characters that do not take too much attention away from our charismatic protagonist. Ana de Armas and Lashana Lynch are both particularly entertaining in their supporting roles, while Rami Malek steals the show as the main antagonist Safin, seeking revenge on Spectre and world domination by mass-producing deadly bio-engineered weaponry. Overall, “No Time to Die” is an extremely entertaining film in itself and an even better send-off for Daniel Craig, one of the greatest actors to ever play the iconic role of James Bond.