GOLDENEYE (1995) // James Bond Review and Whisky Pairing
"GoldenEye" Plot
Rogue Russian group headed by a former MI6 agent (Sean Bean) looks to use a destructive satellite to bring London to its knees.
Whiskey Lore Review
It took a while for Pierce Brosnan to get the role he was born to play. He had been lined up for The Living Daylights, and even though he said he was much to young and had too much hair at the time, he would have easily made that a Top 5 movie on everyone's list. Instead, we waited until Goldeneye. But the gods shined brightly on him when they gave him Martin Campbell as a director and Sean Bean as a villain. This was a fantastic way to start the Brosnan years.
The movie finds a way to work in the trusty Russian theme but with an English actor, and yet it works. There really aren't any low points in this movie. Boris isn't really a favorite, but at least he gets his in the end. The highlights come fast and furious. The drive through the French Maritime Alpes during his psychological evaluation is priceless, with the champagne on ice and an amazing view of Monte Carlo (which is actually about 100 miles away from the drive they were on).
It is interesting rewatching this film, because we got so used to the tough as nails M, that it feels odd to have the somewhat awkward M overcompensating for being a woman in what was thought at the time to be a man's job. Amazing how times change. Now we know she was the best M and she owned it in the Craig years. The appropriately named Samantha Bond is also my favorite Moneypenny - although Naomi Harris is right up there. Natalia, the Russian computer nerd is an interesting Bond girl, not a favorite, but good.
An unusual choice but the BMW Z3 turns out to be a nice addition to the films and the watches started to shine from here on out with the Omega Seamaster Professional 300M Ref. 2541.80 laser and detonator.
Best of the movie: Pierce Brosnan's performance overall shines in this film - it was like a heavy sigh of relief when we finally saw him as Bond. I don't think any actor until Brosnan brought everything to the part, style, action, a smooth comedic style with excellent timing, and a genuine likeability. Connery had a lot of it, but was less consistent in the quality of his performances.
Memorable moment: The opening sequence with the jump off the dam and then the
Where it goes wrong: Onotopp may be a little over the top, but if she's the worst thing I can find in this movie (and I really think she kinda fits), it is a solid film.
Paired Whisky: Writer's Tears Double Oak Irish Whiskey
I almost chose Old Forester 100 instead, mainly because I wanted M to choose a "Bourbon" if that is what she prefers, rather than a Jack Daniel's "Tennessee Whiskey" - I know, technically a bourbon...but still. There are a couple of reasons I paired Writer's Tears with Pierce Brosnan's inaugural run as 007. Obviously one reason is - he's Irish, the second is because it's easy to shed a tear thinking how good his time with the franchise could have been, if not for lame writing in 2 out of the 4 movies he made.
Whiskey Lore Rank: #6 (Score 7.76) > Next Movie
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MUSIC (7) More Irish, as Bono and the Edge wrote the title song performed by Tina Turner. Cool vibe. Oddly, it is the score that seems a little dated.