tmdb93836550
LD was good and all but Licence to Kill is top 10.
Movie spotlight
Licence to Kill
1989
Movie
133 min
English
After capturing the notorious drug lord Franz Sanchez, Bond's close friend and former CIA agent Felix Leiter is left for dead and his wife is murdered. Bond goes rogue and seeks vengeance on those responsible, as he infiltrates Sanchez's organization from the inside.
Insights
IMDb6.6/10
Rotten Tomatoes30%
Metacritic54/100
Google Users68%
Director: John Glen•Genres: Action, Adventure, Thriller, Spy
Plot Summary
James Bond is suspended from MI6 and embarks on a personal vendetta against drug lord Franz Sanchez, who murdered Bond's friend Felix Leiter's fiancée and maimed Leiter. Operating outside the law, Bond teams up with Pam Bouvier, a DEA agent, to infiltrate Sanchez's criminal empire and bring him to justice.
Critical Reception
Licence to Kill was met with mixed to positive reviews. While Timothy Dalton's gritty portrayal and the film's darker, more violent tone were praised by some critics, others found the plot convoluted and the action sequences less inventive than previous installments. The film performed moderately at the box office compared to other Bond films.
What Reviewers Say
Praised for Timothy Dalton's raw, determined performance and a darker, more personal storyline.
Criticized for a convoluted plot and a perceived lack of the sophisticated gadgetry and charm associated with the Bond franchise.
The action sequences were seen as brutal but occasionally formulaic.
Google audience: Audience reviews often highlight Timothy Dalton's intense and believable performance as a more grounded James Bond. Some viewers appreciated the film's darker and more violent direction, finding it a refreshing change. However, a significant portion of the audience missed the more traditional Bond elements like humor, exotic locations, and high-tech gadgets.
Fun Fact
Licence to Kill was the first James Bond film to feature an R rating in the United States due to its violence, marking a departure from the franchise's typically PG or PG-13 tone.
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My Review
TMDB Reviews
9 reviewskevin2019
"Licence to Kill" is unquestionably a very unusual Bond film in every conceivable way imaginable. The larger-than-life villains of the Sean Connery era with their outrageously extravagant plans to blackmail the whole world are completely go...
CinemaSerf
I was just not a fan of Timothy Dalton's "007" and so can't say I was looking forward with much enthusiasm to this. Sadly, it didn't surprise - it's a really far fetched, frankly rather unpleasant, outing for Ian Fleming's deadly agent that...
drystyx
This 007 film stays true to its motif. This begins an era of "no fun" 007 films, where the wit is very minimal and every scene is whiplash brutal. However, unlike most later 007 films, this one stays true to its design. It doesn't try to ...
The Movie Mob
**License to Kill transformers Bond from a goofy punchline to a vengeful unstoppable force, turning the franchise from whimsical to gritty and producing one of the best films of the series.** License to Kill marked a major shift in the f...
GenerationofSwin...
Man, del Toro was only 21 in this film and still makes a showing as one of the most lethal Bond baddies in the history of the franchise. And for those of you who are obsessed with Bondlore, this is the 007 film that references the events...
CinemaSerf
I was just not a fan of Timothy Dalton's "007" and so can't say I was looking forward with much enthusiasm to this. Sadly, it didn't surprise - it's a really far fetched, frankly rather unpleasant, outing for Ian Fleming's deadly agent that...
Wuchak
_**A different kind of Bond**_ Released in 1989, "Licence to Kill" always struck me as the most atypical Bond film. In this one James (Timothy Dalton) goes rogue after a good friend's bride is murdered and the friend is half-eaten by a s...
John Chard
Effective immediately, your licence to kill is revoked, and I require you to hand over your weapon. Licence to Kill is directed by John Glen and written by Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson. It's an original story that uses character...
Video Reviews
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