As Daniel Craig concludes his tenor as the fifth 007 (following in the footsteps of Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan) and having had to hold the title for an extra year because the pandemic delaying the release of his swan song performance, it was great to see how director, Cary Fukunaga, created a deserving send off for Craig in No Time to Die.
The story starts with Bond leaving active duty of Her Majesty’s Secret Service and finally enjoying some time off in Jamaica, but that doesn’t last very long when an old buddy asks for his help.
Believe it or not, Cary Fukunaga is the first ever American director in all in the (Silver Jubilees’) franchises history. Fukunaga created a thrill ride that has all the classic antics of what you would expect of a James Bond flick including a very tight storyline, captivating energy and giving credit where credit is due for a departing 007. There really is not a dull moment and that is not an easy task when the movie is two-hours-and-forty-three-minutes long… or the longest Bond movie in history.
It was almost surprising to see, that other than the main character, the movie also had enough space for other characters to shine. Academy Award winner, Rami Malek, as the villain certainly makes his presence felt and then there was Lashana Lynch, as the rising MI6 agent with the peculiar codename: 007, a mystery that shall probably be revealed in the next movie.
I gotta admit, the last scene of the movie had me quite emotional, truly remarkable if you consider this is a franchise movie. Fukunaga truly checks off all the boxes in the handbook of how to deliver a memorable movie. (After Sean Connery) Daniel Craig will surely stay in everyone’s mind as a Bond to remember. I enjoyed every minute and easily give it a THUMBS UP!