It might seem odd to combine these two together, but if I were to do them separately it would turn out fairly short for both. Besides which, I think the Brosnan years are an interesting reaction to the Dalton duology, so there's a good reason to cover them together.
The Dalton phase of the franchise was an interesting one because I don't think anyone at the time was really ready for what he was going to bring to the table. The script for The Living Daylights was pretty clearly written for a generic Bond, and it was obvious that the series and the audience needed some time to adjust after seven outings with Roger Moore's more lighthearted take. Unfortunately Dalton didn't get that time. Due to some behind the scenes issues involving copyright lawsuits and the poor response from audiences and critics to Licence to Kill Dalton departed the franchise with only two movies under his belt. It's a shame, because he is a talented actor who brought a bold new take on the character. His darker, harder portrayal was ahead of its time. Sadly, it would take a few more decades before his time in the tux would start to see the praise it deserved. I tend to prefer the more light-hearted and bombastic Bond films to the darker and more realistic ones, but I quite enjoy the edge that Dalton brought to the series, and I consider LTK to be one of my favorite Bond films. I don't think there's ever been a truly bad Bond, at least not in the official series. I wish things had worked out better for Dalton, but that's not the world we live in.
Instead Pierce Brosnan took over the role in 1995, and his portrayal ushered in a resurgence in the franchise's popularity. While I personally may not be the biggest fan of his debut feature, I can't deny that Goldeneye was the right film at the right time. Audiences needed to believe that James Bond could work in a post-Cold War world, and Goldeneye showed them just that. I do think it's worth pointing out though that Goldeneye benefited from the preparation the series had been doing since its inception for a time when the Soviet Union was not the biggest enemy of the Western world. From the beginning the movies had taken steps to ensure that Bond could be a timeless hero. Goldeneye didn't reinvent the wheel because it never needed to.
What Goldeneye did do, however, was carry over some interesting hangovers from the Dalton phase. It's no accident that it's the darkest film of Brosnan's tenure. The others flirted with darker elements, but Goldeneye committed to them the most. That kind of darkness fits a harder-edged Bond than Brosnan ended up portraying, and I'm convinced some of it was there because of Dalton's leftover influence. The writers couldn't be sure what Brosnan would bring to the table, so they hedged their bets.
Speaking of what Brosnan brought to the table, let's address that. It's a common criticism of Brosnan's performance that he wound up being a jack of all trades, master of none. I myself one thought the same. But going back through his tenure with new eyes I can see that this isn't the case. On the contrary, he's quite strong in the role. He brings an air of debonair sophistication to the character that none of the others were quite able to capture. Other Bonds may look good in a tux, but Brosnan looks like he was born in them. Amazingly, this never comes off as snobby. Brosnan's Bond would leave a generous tip for the staff, but do so quietly to avoid drawing attention to himself. That said, he's perfectly capable of selling the gun-toting action hero this era tried to make Bond. I'm still not convinced that was the right direction to take the character, but Brosnan does pull it off and looks cool doing it. I'm glad I got this chance to look at his tenure with new eyes, because Brosnan has shot up to become one of my favorite takes on the character.
That doesn't mean his films are without criticism however. The unfortunate reality is that most of his films failed to live up to his performance. I can't really say I unequivocally enjoy any of them, as even my favorite of the bunch feels more like a 90s action thriller than a true Bond movie. The trend-chasing of the series hurt it in this department. No matter how good Brosnan was, he will always be the Bond that drove a tank through St. Petersburg in broad daylight. Cloak and dagger espionage these films were not. It also doesn't help that many of the films more exciting and risky ideas are often underplayed or walked back entirely. I think the reason for this is the tepid reception Licence to Kill received on its initial release. Many critics and fans felt it went too far into darker territory, so I can understand why the filmmakers wanted to play things more safely afterwards. Unfortunately it means that the majority of Brosnan's films don't really stand the test of time. Still, they kept the series afloat and allowed it to survive to reach new creative heights later.
But now let's touch on how the films handled the women in Bond's life. There's an interesting contrast between the Dalton and Brosnan eras in this regard. Even if you didn't know that the AIDS crisis influenced the decision to cut back on the number of lovers Dalton's Bond had in his tenure, you would probably be able to intuit it. Dalton's Bond seems to be less interested in romance in general, as it's almost always the women who initiate the romantic encounters with him. That said, when it does find him he seems to also value those relationships more, at least until after the end credits. His romance with Kara Milvoy in The Living Daylights in particular feels very sweet and genuine. If there's any problems its that the films carry on with the tradition of dropping the previous Bond girl in the next movie without so much as a reference to what happened to them. It undermines the romance when we know it's not going to last. Still, Milvoy in particular marks a major step forward for the franchise as she has her own character arc and becomes quite capable of defending herself by the end of the movie.
Unfortunately the Brosnan films would mark a step backwards. Brosnan's Bond might just be the horniest of them all, and the films are less interested with developing their characters, with the exceptions of Natalya from Goldeneye and Elektra from TWINE. The fact is that this era trended back towards disposable women, which is a shame considering the progress the series had been making. It leads to an interesting development during the Craig years, but we'll touch on that next time.
That finally wraps up my thoughts on the two eras, so let's tie things off with the ranking! From Worst to Best:
A dark tale to be sure, but a well-made one. The performances of Dalton and Robert Davi elevate this to become a truly impressive tale.
That wraps up our look at two eras of the franchise. Next time we'll go over the final one (for now) as we look at the Daniel Craig years. See you there!
The Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan Years: A Retrospective and Ranking
It might seem odd to combine these two together, but if I were to do them separately it would turn out fairly short for both. Besides which, I think the Brosnan years are an interesting reaction to the Dalton duology, so there's a good reason to cover them together.
The Dalton phase of the franchise was an interesting one because I don't think anyone at the time was really ready for what he was going to bring to the table. The script for The Living Daylights was pretty clearly written for a generic Bond, and it was obvious that the series and the audience needed some time to adjust after seven outings with Roger Moore's more lighthearted take. Unfortunately Dalton didn't get that time. Due to some behind the scenes issues involving copyright lawsuits and the poor response from audiences and critics to Licence to Kill Dalton departed the franchise with only two movies under his belt. It's a shame, because he is a talented actor who brought a bold new take on the character. His darker, harder portrayal was ahead of its time. Sadly, it would take a few more decades before his time in the tux would start to see the praise it deserved. I tend to prefer the more light-hearted and bombastic Bond films to the darker and more realistic ones, but I quite enjoy the edge that Dalton brought to the series, and I consider LTK to be one of my favorite Bond films. I don't think there's ever been a truly bad Bond, at least not in the official series. I wish things had worked out better for Dalton, but that's not the world we live in.
Instead Pierce Brosnan took over the role in 1995, and his portrayal ushered in a resurgence in the franchise's popularity. While I personally may not be the biggest fan of his debut feature, I can't deny that Goldeneye was the right film at the right time. Audiences needed to believe that James Bond could work in a post-Cold War world, and Goldeneye showed them just that. I do think it's worth pointing out though that Goldeneye benefited from the preparation the series had been doing since its inception for a time when the Soviet Union was not the biggest enemy of the Western world. From the beginning the movies had taken steps to ensure that Bond could be a timeless hero. Goldeneye didn't reinvent the wheel because it never needed to.
What Goldeneye did do, however, was carry over some interesting hangovers from the Dalton phase. It's no accident that it's the darkest film of Brosnan's tenure. The others flirted with darker elements, but Goldeneye committed to them the most. That kind of darkness fits a harder-edged Bond than Brosnan ended up portraying, and I'm convinced some of it was there because of Dalton's leftover influence. The writers couldn't be sure what Brosnan would bring to the table, so they hedged their bets.
Speaking of what Brosnan brought to the table, let's address that. It's a common criticism of Brosnan's performance that he wound up being a jack of all trades, master of none. I myself one thought the same. But going back through his tenure with new eyes I can see that this isn't the case. On the contrary, he's quite strong in the role. He brings an air of debonair sophistication to the character that none of the others were quite able to capture. Other Bonds may look good in a tux, but Brosnan looks like he was born in them. Amazingly, this never comes off as snobby. Brosnan's Bond would leave a generous tip for the staff, but do so quietly to avoid drawing attention to himself. That said, he's perfectly capable of selling the gun-toting action hero this era tried to make Bond. I'm still not convinced that was the right direction to take the character, but Brosnan does pull it off and looks cool doing it. I'm glad I got this chance to look at his tenure with new eyes, because Brosnan has shot up to become one of my favorite takes on the character.
That doesn't mean his films are without criticism however. The unfortunate reality is that most of his films failed to live up to his performance. I can't really say I unequivocally enjoy any of them, as even my favorite of the bunch feels more like a 90s action thriller than a true Bond movie. The trend-chasing of the series hurt it in this department. No matter how good Brosnan was, he will always be the Bond that drove a tank through St. Petersburg in broad daylight. Cloak and dagger espionage these films were not. It also doesn't help that many of the films more exciting and risky ideas are often underplayed or walked back entirely. I think the reason for this is the tepid reception Licence to Kill received on its initial release. Many critics and fans felt it went too far into darker territory, so I can understand why the filmmakers wanted to play things more safely afterwards. Unfortunately it means that the majority of Brosnan's films don't really stand the test of time. Still, they kept the series afloat and allowed it to survive to reach new creative heights later.
But now let's touch on how the films handled the women in Bond's life. There's an interesting contrast between the Dalton and Brosnan eras in this regard. Even if you didn't know that the AIDS crisis influenced the decision to cut back on the number of lovers Dalton's Bond had in his tenure, you would probably be able to intuit it. Dalton's Bond seems to be less interested in romance in general, as it's almost always the women who initiate the romantic encounters with him. That said, when it does find him he seems to also value those relationships more, at least until after the end credits. His romance with Kara Milvoy in The Living Daylights in particular feels very sweet and genuine. If there's any problems its that the films carry on with the tradition of dropping the previous Bond girl in the next movie without so much as a reference to what happened to them. It undermines the romance when we know it's not going to last. Still, Milvoy in particular marks a major step forward for the franchise as she has her own character arc and becomes quite capable of defending herself by the end of the movie.
Unfortunately the Brosnan films would mark a step backwards. Brosnan's Bond might just be the horniest of them all, and the films are less interested with developing their characters, with the exceptions of Natalya from Goldeneye and Elektra from TWINE. The fact is that this era trended back towards disposable women, which is a shame considering the progress the series had been making. It leads to an interesting development during the Craig years, but we'll touch on that next time.
That finally wraps up my thoughts on the two eras, so let's tie things off with the ranking! From Worst to Best:
6: Die Another Day
I am a lifelong pun-lover, and this film made me dread hearing another one. I will never forgive it for that.
5: The World Is Not Enough
Comes so close to greatness, then backs away in fear.
4: GoldenEye
A good film, but too shaky for me to call it great.
3: The Living Daylights
It's not the best start Dalton could've had, but it is an enjoyable film.
2: Tomorrow Never Dies
The most testosterone-heavy and adrenaline-pumping film in the franchise.
1: Licence to Kill
A dark tale to be sure, but a well-made one. The performances of Dalton and Robert Davi elevate this to become a truly impressive tale.
That wraps up our look at two eras of the franchise. Next time we'll go over the final one (for now) as we look at the Daniel Craig years. See you there!