Bond-a-Thond #17: 'GoldenEye' (1995)

[NelsonG]

[img]http://moviesblog.mtv.com//wp-content/uploads/movies/2012/10/GoldenEye-Banner.jpg[/img]

[i]MTV Movies Blog is earning its license to kill with a feature we call the [url="http://moviesblog.mtv.com/category/bond-a-thond/"]Bond-a-Thond[/url]. Every Wednesday we're taking a look back at a single (official) Bond film, giving you the vitals and seeing how it holds up, right up until the release of "Skyfall" on November 9. Feel free to watch along with us and share your thoughts or just kick back and enjoy the Bond.[/i]

[b] GoldenEye (1995)[/b]

[b]Plot:[/b] A high-tech EPM-based weapon goes missing, and it's up to Bond to find it.

[b]Title Meaning:[/b] GoldenEye is both the name of the weapon's satellite at the center of the story and author Ian Fleming's estate in Jamaica.



[b]Song:[/b] "GoldenEye," written by Bono and The Edge and performed by Tina Turner

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[b]Bond:[/b] Pierce Brosnan in his first appearance

[b]Villains:[/b] Alec Trevelyan, a weapons dealer and former MI6 agent, played by Sean Bean, and Xenia Onatopp, a former KGB pilot, played by Famke Janssen

[img]http://moviesblog.mtv.com//wp-content/uploads/movies/2012/10/GoldenEye-Villains.jpg[/img]

[b]Bond Girl:[/b] Natalya Simonova, a computer programmer, played by Izabella Scorupco

[img]http://moviesblog.mtv.com//wp-content/uploads/movies/2012/10/GoldenEye-Girl.jpg[/img]

[b]"Bond, James Bond" Occurrences:[/b] 1

[b]Martinis:[/b] 1

[b]Card Games:[/b] 1

[b]Cigarettes Smoked:[/b] 0

[b]Explosions:[/b] 26

[b]Tuxes Worn:[/b] 1

[b]Kills By Bond:[/b] 21 + dozens more in explosions he causes

[b]Most Creative Kill:[/b] Bond clips on a repelling rope to Xenia's belt and shoots down the helicopter it's attached to, sending her flying into a tree and crushing her to death.

[img]http://moviesblog.mtv.com//wp-content/uploads/movies/2012/10/GoldenEye-Kill.jpg[/img]

[b]Gadgets:[/b] Laser watch, explosive pen, grappling hook belt

[b]Mental State of Miss Moneypenny:[/b] Fierce

[b]First Occurrence of Sex:[/b] 1 hour 39 minutes in

[b]Sexual Partners:[/b] 1 (Natalya Simonova)

[b]Most Unrealistic Moments:[/b] While chasing a train in a tank, Bond somehow manages to get way in front of it, even though he was previously far behind it.

[img]http://moviesblog.mtv.com//wp-content/uploads/movies/2012/10/GoldenEye-Unreal.jpg[/img]

[b]Most "Bond" Moments:[/b] "For England, James?" "No, for me."



[b]Place in Bond History:[/b] Dame Judi Dench made her debut as the first female M of the series, and Brosnan, after initially being cast in "The Living Daylights," finally got his shot at 007.

[b]Review:[/b]
For as solid of a debut as "GoldenEye" is for Pierce Brosnan, it's difficult not to feel a mix of emotions when revisiting his first Bond movie. There is so much here that is so right. Brosnan nails down his own version of 007 from the very beginning. Sean Bean made for one hell of a villain, but doesn't show up nearly enough. Martin Campbell flat-out knows how to make an excellent James Bond movie.

All the pieces are there, but any bit of looking ahead at the rest of Brosnan's run inevitable leaves you with the sinking feeling that this is as good as it's going to get. The story and action will never be as straight forward, and Bond's depth and inner conflict largely disappear.

But on its own terms, "GoldenEye" succeeds as a Bond film and as a relaunch of the series after lawsuits caused a six year gap between films.

[b]The Bond-a-Thond will return next week in "Tomorrow Never Dies."[/b]

[i]What do you think of "GoldenEye"? Let us know in the comments below and on [url="http://www.twitter.com/mtvmoviesblog"]Twitter[/url]![/i]



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