Il mondo non basta

Pierce Brosnan returns in the 19th Bond adventure in which 007 is sent to protect Elektra King (Sophie Marceau), the daughter of a murdered oil tycoon who was also an old friend of M (Judi Dench). The threat appears to come from terrorist Renard (Robert Carlyle), who has a bullet in the brain courtesy of MI6 that has made him immune to pain. Renard is playing the nuclear explosion card, which leads to Bond girl nuclear weapons expert Dr. Christmas (Denise Richards), who has minimal impact but seems attractive. She will see firsthand that there is some truth to Bond's fame. Danger !. Suspense !. Excitement !. There must be when he's around !. Some men want to rule the world... Some women ask for the world... Some believe the world is theirs for the taking... But for one man, The World Is Not Enough!!!As the countdown begins for the new millennium there is still one number you can always count on. Bond is Back.

This Bond entry contains sensational pursuits, frantic action-packed and stimulating set pieces. The World Is Not Enough(1999) begins with an exciting prologue that takes place in the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, from where our protagonist already does some of his typical pirouettes and jumps from a building. Then a terrible attack takes place at the heart of MI6 itself, the famous British secret service. In front of the best secret agents, including Bond, a bomb explodes, killing one of the most important businessmen in the world, then 007 goes to action . Pierce Brosnan's third appearance as the agent with a license to kill, after ¨Goldeneye¨ (1996), ¨Tomorrow Never Dies¨ (1997) and before ¨Die Another Day¨ (2002).

The villain of this adventure is one of the most human of the series: Renard, a bad guy with an emotional side who is brought to life by Robert Carlyle. They are joined by Robbie Coltrane, Judi Dench as M, John Cleese as R replacing Desmond Llewelyn as Q, the gadget master. This was Llewelyn's last appearance on the big screen since he died that same year in 1999. He was the actor who appeared the most times in James Bond films. And other secondaries such as: Samantha Bond as Moneypenny, Michael Kitchen, Colin Salmon, David Calder, Serena Scott Thomas, Patrick Malahide, Ulrich Thomsen, among others.

The numerous action scenes overwhelm the roles and Bond has little to contend with as the villains are pretty discreet. There are also the typical Bond girls: Sophie Marceau, Maria Grazia Cucinotta, and Denise Richards, who, of course, fall for the charms of the handsome spy. There's a welcome darker edge to both Bond's character and the plot that the franchise should be built on, rather than trying to outdo his death-defying stunts every time. It contains spectacular and stirring musical score fitting to action by the always stunning David Arnold. And attractive song title: 'The World is not Enough' lyrics by Don Black performed by Garbage, along with the classic James Bond theme music by Monty Norman. Colorful and fascinating cinematography by cameraman Adrian Biddle. The motion picture produced by habitual producers, Eon, Albert R Broccoli, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson , being professionally directed by deceased filmmaker Michael Apted. He was a good director, producer of several successes ,such as ¨ ¨Gorillas in the mist¨ , ¨Class action¨, ¨Nell¨, ¨Enigma¨, ¨The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader¨, ¨The word is not enough¨, among others . The film will appeal to James Bond fans.

James Bond must rescue M, protect an oil heiress from her former kidnapper Renard, a terrorist who can't feel pain.

It begins with the sleek gun barrel Point of View walk, and what follows is arguably one of the greatest Bond pre-title sequences and certainly Pierce Brosnan's best. There's a specular escape in Spain, an explosion in MI6 headquarters London and a chase on the River Thames to apprehend an assassin (Sicillian star, Maria Grazia Cucinotta) that climaxes at the Millennium Dome. All this action before the James Bond title song and it's carried out not just for show, but as it's all part of the story's later developments.

Michael Apted directs the 19th Bond instalment in which Brosnan gives his finest performance as 007, he appears, confident, intellectual, more dangerous and authentic as the spy. In this he is injured and carries his ailment throughout the film, making him more vulnerable and real in life threaten situations, leaving the entertaining but bland Tomorrow Never Dies behind.

For the most part this instalment is more grounded and played serious with fewer gags than in previous Bonds, certainly less than Moore's outings. A lot of this is due to Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and Bruce Feirstein screenplay which lends itself as a mystery, whodunit thriller theme and the villains, have more shades of grey as well as the heroes.

Despite, Denise Richards beauty with brains role as Dr. Christmas Jones, she still appears as the typical Bond girl by the end. Robert Carlyle character Renard is given depth and ulterior motives as the villain but he still is cliché Bond Villain with scars. This aside, Sophie Marceau is excellent as femme fatale oil baron heiress Elektra King and M's (Judie Dench) late friends daughter. Dench is given more to do and shines on screen, and regulars Desmond Llewelyn (Q), Samantha Bond (Miss Moneypenny) and Colin Salmon reprise their roles. Robbie Coltrane makes a welcomed return as Zukovsky to briefly assist Bond, and Goldie makes an appearance as a henchman. Comedy legend John Cleese plays Q's side kick R.

The music score and Barry's trademark theme comes in just at the right moments to heighten the action on screen. And as a bonus the title songs music is interlaced throughout the movie.

The World Is Not Enough is only marred by some poor cringe-worthy quips that are synonyms with the franchise. It's a shame that all the hard work of writers, Bronson's and Apted's subtly was discarded in Die Another Day (2002), where it was CGI heavy and returned to a Moore- like, lighter spectacle adventure.

This Bond is in the tradition of the earlier Connery outings, the vein of Dalton's steely incarnation, and a credit must goto Pierce Brosnan as this influenced the style of the later Casino Royale rework.

Ultimately, The World Is Not Enough due to it's great plot is one of the better Bonds that can be enjoyed by fans and the causal viewer.

Until now, this was the only James Bond film in the official EON series I had not watched. Having just now done so with Mom, we consider this one of the most entertaining of the series in recent times. Pierce Brosnan, in only his third time as 007, seems to get better each time he portrayed Bond, James Bond. Among the rest of the cast Sophie Marceau is aces as Electra King whose story is one that's filled with great surprises, that's for sure! Robert Carlyle is also fine as Renard. As for Denise Richards as nuclear scientist Dr. Christmas Jones, well, she does well enough for what she's supposed to do and isn't too distracting a presence considering. Also, nice return of Robbie Coltrane from GoldenEye. Also great to once again see Judi Dench as M, Samantha Bond as Moneypenny, and, for what turned out to be his very last time, Desmond Llewelyn as Q. His character here introduces former Monty Pythoner John Cleese as his assistant and possible replacement about whom Bond asks Q if he's called "R". Mr. Llewelyn, unfortunately, died in a car accident a few weeks after this movie premiered. He was often one of the most entertaining parts of all these JB flicks starting with From Russia with Love to this one (though it should be noted he was absent in Live and Let Die). Great entertaining set-pieces throughout and fine backstory concerning some of the characters. For both Mom and me, The World is Not Enough is fine Bond entertainment.

The World Is Not Enough is ranked as one of the weakest of any of the Bond films, but it does have many positives. The action is very strong in this one, like the caviar factory and the ski chase. Pierce Brosnan is joined by two very good actors to be the villains, and are some of the vest in the franchise. The locations are good, and it gives the films a different dimension, particularly in terms of the role of M. It is badly underrated, and is a great film, but just has some issues in the actual story.

'The World is Not Enough' fixes many issues with the previous entry in the franchise 'Tomorrow Never Dies'. The prior film was criticized for having goofy villains and a silly story. 'The World is Not Enough' re-aligns the franchise by bringing back better villains, a more interesting story, and adding much more substance to the characters. The film throws a few curve balls and misdirections at the audience as well, so you'll be kept on your toes. All of the actors put on a great performance, with the exception of Denise Richards. She plays Dr. Christmas Jones and she is not believable in the slightest as a nuclear scientist. But she's such a gorgeous bombshell I can overlook her crappy acting. M is also much more involved in the plot, which is quite welcome because she really dominates her scenes. Overall I enjoyed 'The World Is Not Enough', it's much better than the prior Bond film, but still not quite as good as 'Goldeneye'.