After two previous Bond outings, Pierce Brosnan was able to hone in his Bond persona and turn in perhaps his best overall performance as the British spy in "The World Is Not Enough". Sadly, after an incredible "first act", the second half of the film drags it down almost two whole stars.
For a basic plot summary, "World" sees Bond (Brosnan) up against the Russian baddie Renard (Robert Carlyle) for control over a key oil pipeline. Along the way, Bond runs into a few beauties (Sophie Marceau & Denise Richards), gets his orders from M (Judi Dench), and receives the gadgets from Q (Desmond Llewelyn).
The first half of the film is some of the best Bond action ever. Brosnan is incredibly slick, his chemistry with Marceau is palpable, and the action is full-throttle without being over-the-top. Basically, Bond is firing on all cylinders.
However, when Renard is introduced (and proves to be nothing ever close to menacing) this film takes a sharp nosedive. Only adding to the misery is the terrible acting from Richards. I know that Bond girls are usually "seen but not heard", so to speak, but I think one can say that Richards is the worst of the worst by quite a large margin.
Overall, "The World Is Not Enough" is a very fun Bond outing until it nosedives about halfway through. My exact rating would be 3.5 stars, but I'll give it the benefit of the doubt because of how much fun I had in the first half.
For a basic plot summary, "World" sees Bond (Brosnan) up against the Russian baddie Renard (Robert Carlyle) for control over a key oil pipeline. Along the way, Bond runs into a few beauties (Sophie Marceau & Denise Richards), gets his orders from M (Judi Dench), and receives the gadgets from Q (Desmond Llewelyn).
The first half of the film is some of the best Bond action ever. Brosnan is incredibly slick, his chemistry with Marceau is palpable, and the action is full-throttle without being over-the-top. Basically, Bond is firing on all cylinders.
However, when Renard is introduced (and proves to be nothing ever close to menacing) this film takes a sharp nosedive. Only adding to the misery is the terrible acting from Richards. I know that Bond girls are usually "seen but not heard", so to speak, but I think one can say that Richards is the worst of the worst by quite a large margin.
Overall, "The World Is Not Enough" is a very fun Bond outing until it nosedives about halfway through. My exact rating would be 3.5 stars, but I'll give it the benefit of the doubt because of how much fun I had in the first half.