Have we seen the last of James Bond? Well, who knows, but I think this is the last we’ll see Daniel Craig in his role as James Bond in the movie, “No time to Die”. The movie released by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer & Eon productions in October of 2021 after the long wait due to the covid-19 pandemic. Well, for most people who followed the James Bond character from its inception in the ’60s, “No time to Die” might just have been yet another masterpiece of action and storytelling following the travails of Daniel Craig in reprising his role. 

It’s no wonder that the franchise over the years has gained huge popularity owing to the large budget and kinds of characters cast in each movie. The level of action, espionage, car chases and all just seems to blow the mind in a million ways. 

Plot

No time to Die begins with Madeleine Swann (Lea Seydoux) as a little girl in a cabin with her mother. Safin (Rami Malek) attacks them and kills Madeline’s mother because her father killed his whole family. But she escapes and falls into the frozen water, but is spared by Safin. Later we see the love story between Swann and Bond as they spend time together in Matera. Bond visits Vesper Lynd’s grave, but is ambushed by Blofeld (Christoph Waltz)’s men making Bond leave Swann as he thought she was responsible. 

Moving on, we are taken through the series of events and action that leads Bond to the discovery of project Heracles and Nanobots which Blofeld tries to make use of in his evil plot. Later, reinstated by M16 boss M (Ralph Fiennes), Bond, Felix Leiter, Logan Ash and Paloma, a CIA agent take on Blofeld’s men in Cuba and capture Obruchev, a scientist working for Safin. Unknowingly, Bond is infected by a reintroduced Swann when he goes to see Blofeld and mistakenly kills him. Reunited in Love, we get to see the couple back together again and also, wait for it, Baby Mathilde, who has Bond’s blue eyes. Ash, who is a double agent and his minions try to kill the family, but is killed by Bond instead leading to Bond’s family being taken by Safin.  We see surprisingly the new 007, Nomi (Lashanna Lynch) and Bond later on in action in a bid to rescue the family from Safin’s hideout. Safin is later killed by Bond who on fighting him is infected and cannot leave the facility. With airstrikes already called on the facility, Bond bids his family goodbye and tells them he loves them and that’s the last we see of James Bond. 

Why I think the movie was worth the hype

Many Bond fans are reminiscing on social media about Daniel Craig’s time in the role of 007, which has come to a close. No Time To Die, Craig’s latest film as 007, has many fans rethinking their assessment of Skyfall as the actor’s best performance. 

Well, after watching the movie, I just couldn’t seem to imagine ( now don’t get me wrong, all past Bond characters were superb, and Craig just fitted into the role perfectly) who else could play James Bond with such class. Well, I guess we’ll get to see that in subsequent movies. (I really hope so; crying emoji)

Here’s why I think it’s worth the hype.

It was a successful conclusion to the series

Daniel Craig’s No Time To Die career has come to an end, and fans are saddened to see him go. In the past, numerous films and television shows have struggled to put a series to a close. 

In No Time To Die, the current film series came to an appropriate finale. That final picture allowed Craig to say goodbye to the part while still bringing it to a close. 

We got to see female action

It is in Cuba that we get to know the female 007 who took over Bond’s number when the former agent resigned. It’s no surprise that Nomi (Lashana Lynch), the new Bond girl, is sensational, but the debut of CIA operative Paloma (Ana de Armas) is equally impressive. It’s refreshing to see Bond Girls take center stage alongside the male action heroes.

The movie enabled Bond to form deeper “bonds”

A fundamental issue that we see often in the Bond franchise is that Bond has a habit of pursuing women. For the sake of the story, No Time to Die ignored this aspect of the character, which was a rather wise decision. 

By giving Bond a closer relationship to the people in his life, particularly Madeleine, Bond became a more fully formed character.

The movie’s got some nice action

Every other Bond movie has been outdone by No Time to Die in terms of its jaw-dropping action scenes. Each scene, from car chases to hand-to-hand combat to gunplay, was expertly staged and executed.  It was a perfect match, and the film captured it well. 

We also got to see vintage and modern models of cars with awesome gadgets

A marvellous job was done in recreating James Bond’s automotive and technological past in No Time To Die. In addition to the dual mini-guns and smoke billowing from his vintage Aston Martin, Q’s innovations were on full exhibit, from EMP watches to popping eyes. 

Many fans were happy to see the franchise’s exotic automobiles and Q’s technology get the recognition they deserve. 

“No time to Die” gave Bond a purpose to fight for 

In No Time To Die, James Bond became a father for the first time. When James and Madeleine decided to start a new life together, they decided to leave their old one. Guns and suspicion, of course, scuppered this meeting. 

Bond discovered that he had a daughter when he and M were reunited after so long. To Bond, this was a driving force throughout the rest of the film. A father’s battle to protect his daughter even changed how he interacted with a movie villain.

Well, these and lot more are the reasons why I think you should just grab some popcorn and chillout with the movie. Really, I would like to know your thoughts if you’ve already watched it. Did you enjoy it?