. . . all in the same movie? Bond. James Bond, that's who. He also steals a horse, shoots down a helicopter, invents snow boarding, hijacks a truck full of dynamite, jams a drilling rig, replays the "inside job" massacre at San Francisco's City Hall, crashes a wedding, bests Evel Knievel's top vehicle jump, straddles the point of the TransAmerica Building, and saves Silicon Valley. (Almost sounds like Bauer. Jack Bauer.) Roger Moore is back for his seventh and final crack at Bond. Though Electro-Magnetic Pulse resistant (or EMP-proof) microchips are the initial "MacGuffin" of this yarn, that tech angle is soon dropped in favor of rehashing the same storyline of the previous Bond flick, OCTOPU$$Y. The renegade Russian is reduced in rank from "General" Orlov to "Agent" Zorin. Since Orlov never had his own blimp, Christopher Walken as "Zorin" probably doesn't feel too slighted here. Grace Jones essentially plays Wonder Woman, and blows up on the screen big-time. As Bond says to the "Stacy Sutton" character during their joint effort at water conservation, "That's not the soap!"
428 Reviews
Who car-jacks a snowmobile, taxi cab, fire truck, and blimp . . .
pixrox131 July 2014
Warning: Spoilers
Moore's last decent Bond very underrated and unappreciated good 007 flick
ivo-cobra812 November 2017
Warning: Spoilers
A View to a Kill (1985) is guilty pleasure of mine. I don't think it is a terrible movie like mostly people are saying. I love this film always did and it is one of my favorite Bond films. This is the last Roger Moore movie he did before he was passing on Timothy Dalton. It is very underrated and I know that Roger Moore him self has stated that A View to a Kill is his at least favorite James Bond film because Christopher Walken was machine gunning everyone. I have enjoyed the film it was fast paced, entertaining and it had action. I know it does have flaws and mistakes like every movie does. I have enjoyed action and Roger Moore was good in his performance. He did 100% off him and he is acting was decent it wasn't so much goofy or terrible in my opinion.
A View to a Kill is the 14th entry in the official James Bond series and the final film to star Roger Moore in the role of Agent 007. The 1985 installment follows Bond as he investigates a possible plot to destroy California's Silicon Valley. The film's cast includes Christopher Walken, Grace Jones, Tanya Roberts and Dolph Lundgren, who made his acting debut.
I will say I have simply enjoy this flick more then I did The Man With The Golden Gun, Octopussy, From Russia With Love, Skyfall, Spectre, Quantum of Solace, The World Is Not Enough, Die Another Day and of course the worst Bond ever On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
The cast: Tanya Roberts as Stacey Sutton was in my opinion good Bond girl. I have read so many negative comments about her performance. Because she was screaming, she was way too young for Roger Moore she looked like his daughter etc. I disagree she was good and I have enjoyed her performance.
Grace Jones as May Day was another bad girl just like Famke Janssen in GoldenEye. Grace Jones was good as May Day Zorin's lover and chief henchwoman I thought she was really good at her performance.
Christopher Walken was good as Max Zorin: a psychopathic industrialist he was really a good bad guy and I have enjoyed his performance. He did his job good and convincing and it was good in his good effort.
This was really the only movie that was filmed in the USA in which they used Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. The movie really had a lot of action scenes. The car chases in San Francisco with fire truck the cops are chasing Bond and he with Stacey is fleeing trough the bridge. I love the mining scene in which May Day (Grace Jones) slide down Bond and they bring the larger bomb that would destroy the lock. They put the bomb on a handcar and push it out of the mine along a railroad line. May Day stays on the car to hold the faulty brake lever, sacrificing her own life as the bomb explodes.
Great stunt on Eiffel Tower in which May Day jumps off the Eiffel Tower really great stunt scene. Great car scene in which Bond is chasing May Day with a stolen car. I know it was a stuntman and Roger Moore did not drive the car. In Stacey's house the fight with Bond and Zorin's henchman that wasn't Roger Moore fighting them that was his stuntman and it was funny, I thought the stuntman did a good job. But Tanya Roberts did her own stunts and she was good.
I liked the opening scene in which Bond use a flare gun and shots down the helicopter that was cool. I really enjoy the song A View to a Kill from Duran Duran. I have enjoy the horse riding that was really joy able to me in which Bond races with the horse on the race track with Zorin and Zorin's henchman has set booby traps for Bond and Zorin's men get caught instead. I like Bond with a shotgun Remington and he has a rock salt in it. Pretty cool the first time we see Bond with the shotgun and rock salt.
I did not thought that Roger Moore was that old or was that horrible, no he was really good at acting. I am sorry just my opinion. I like the burning elevator in the building in which Bond escapes and saves Stacey I love that sequence.
I miss those kind of movies: like Rambo, Superman and James Bond 007 Roger Moore I miss movie like this? Why can't we get movies like this one back. Again I did not thought Tanya Roberts was horrible or Roger Moore is too old and Tanya Roberts is his daughter. This movie to me is unappreciated and I wasn't bored with it!
9/10 better the Octopussy in my opinion it was good in my opinion. I have seen this movie so many times and I have always enjoyed it I always had fun with it.
A View to a Kill is the 14th entry in the official James Bond series and the final film to star Roger Moore in the role of Agent 007. The 1985 installment follows Bond as he investigates a possible plot to destroy California's Silicon Valley. The film's cast includes Christopher Walken, Grace Jones, Tanya Roberts and Dolph Lundgren, who made his acting debut.
I will say I have simply enjoy this flick more then I did The Man With The Golden Gun, Octopussy, From Russia With Love, Skyfall, Spectre, Quantum of Solace, The World Is Not Enough, Die Another Day and of course the worst Bond ever On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
The cast: Tanya Roberts as Stacey Sutton was in my opinion good Bond girl. I have read so many negative comments about her performance. Because she was screaming, she was way too young for Roger Moore she looked like his daughter etc. I disagree she was good and I have enjoyed her performance.
Grace Jones as May Day was another bad girl just like Famke Janssen in GoldenEye. Grace Jones was good as May Day Zorin's lover and chief henchwoman I thought she was really good at her performance.
Christopher Walken was good as Max Zorin: a psychopathic industrialist he was really a good bad guy and I have enjoyed his performance. He did his job good and convincing and it was good in his good effort.
This was really the only movie that was filmed in the USA in which they used Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. The movie really had a lot of action scenes. The car chases in San Francisco with fire truck the cops are chasing Bond and he with Stacey is fleeing trough the bridge. I love the mining scene in which May Day (Grace Jones) slide down Bond and they bring the larger bomb that would destroy the lock. They put the bomb on a handcar and push it out of the mine along a railroad line. May Day stays on the car to hold the faulty brake lever, sacrificing her own life as the bomb explodes.
Great stunt on Eiffel Tower in which May Day jumps off the Eiffel Tower really great stunt scene. Great car scene in which Bond is chasing May Day with a stolen car. I know it was a stuntman and Roger Moore did not drive the car. In Stacey's house the fight with Bond and Zorin's henchman that wasn't Roger Moore fighting them that was his stuntman and it was funny, I thought the stuntman did a good job. But Tanya Roberts did her own stunts and she was good.
I liked the opening scene in which Bond use a flare gun and shots down the helicopter that was cool. I really enjoy the song A View to a Kill from Duran Duran. I have enjoy the horse riding that was really joy able to me in which Bond races with the horse on the race track with Zorin and Zorin's henchman has set booby traps for Bond and Zorin's men get caught instead. I like Bond with a shotgun Remington and he has a rock salt in it. Pretty cool the first time we see Bond with the shotgun and rock salt.
I did not thought that Roger Moore was that old or was that horrible, no he was really good at acting. I am sorry just my opinion. I like the burning elevator in the building in which Bond escapes and saves Stacey I love that sequence.
I miss those kind of movies: like Rambo, Superman and James Bond 007 Roger Moore I miss movie like this? Why can't we get movies like this one back. Again I did not thought Tanya Roberts was horrible or Roger Moore is too old and Tanya Roberts is his daughter. This movie to me is unappreciated and I wasn't bored with it!
9/10 better the Octopussy in my opinion it was good in my opinion. I have seen this movie so many times and I have always enjoyed it I always had fun with it.
Moore was a likable hero who softened the menace saving the world seven times with charm, intelligence, and great dialog
Nazi_Fighter_David7 August 2005
Warning: Spoilers
"A View to a Kill" is a true remake of "Goldfinger." Let's start with the villain and his scheme
The villain, Max Zorin (Christopher Walken), is a true and exact copy of Auric Goldfinger
He owns a stud farm, and wins horse races by cheating... He is the European outsider who plans to wipe out a massive American resource, thus increasing the value of his own stockpiled wealth
His lust for power are greater than his loyalty to a lover
Disco diva Grace Jones took the role of May Day, Zorin's natural born killer May Day's leap off the top of the Eiffel Tower is a fine moment in best Bond tradition This statuesque Jamaican womanwith sharp-cut hair to enhance her profileis cast as a horse-taming, Kickboxing American who, according to Q, 'must take a lot of vitamins.' Nevertheless, at the film's climax, she retained a few shreds of humanity
The film opens on an icy Siberian shore, where Bond recovers a microchip from the body of 003, driving back a party of Russian militiamen in his flight back to a British submarine disguised as an ice floe and controlled by blonde compatriot Kimberley Jones (Mary Stavin). The location chosen is both arresting and well-photographed enough to distinguish itself
Bond is alerted to Zorin's intentions while investigating how the Russians have managed to duplicate a secret microchip resistant to damage caused by the magnetic pulse of a nuclear explosion The technology has been leaked to the KGB following Zorin's purchase of the research company that developed the chip
Tanya Robertswho had joined the cast of television detective series Charlie's Ange1s in 1980is cast for the role of Stacey Sutton, the beautiful blond geologist and heiress who results a vital assistance to 007 in unraveling the details of Zorin's scheme to detonate a bomb in one of his mines and create a cataclysmic earthquake
"A View to a Kill" represents the farewell of Lois Maxwell who appeared as Miss Moneypenny for over 20 years of loyal secretarial service, and a unique claim to have featured in every Bond film The motion picture also concludes Roger Moore's activities for over a decade in Bond adventures In all his Bond's movies, Moore was a likable hero who softened the menace saving the world seven times with charm, intelligence, and great dialog However action sequences lost their deadly flavor and took on a madcap flavor In battles with characters such as J. W. Pepper, Nick Nack, Jaws, and May Day, it was hard to keep too straight a faceand Bond didn't
Disco diva Grace Jones took the role of May Day, Zorin's natural born killer May Day's leap off the top of the Eiffel Tower is a fine moment in best Bond tradition This statuesque Jamaican womanwith sharp-cut hair to enhance her profileis cast as a horse-taming, Kickboxing American who, according to Q, 'must take a lot of vitamins.' Nevertheless, at the film's climax, she retained a few shreds of humanity
The film opens on an icy Siberian shore, where Bond recovers a microchip from the body of 003, driving back a party of Russian militiamen in his flight back to a British submarine disguised as an ice floe and controlled by blonde compatriot Kimberley Jones (Mary Stavin). The location chosen is both arresting and well-photographed enough to distinguish itself
Bond is alerted to Zorin's intentions while investigating how the Russians have managed to duplicate a secret microchip resistant to damage caused by the magnetic pulse of a nuclear explosion The technology has been leaked to the KGB following Zorin's purchase of the research company that developed the chip
Tanya Robertswho had joined the cast of television detective series Charlie's Ange1s in 1980is cast for the role of Stacey Sutton, the beautiful blond geologist and heiress who results a vital assistance to 007 in unraveling the details of Zorin's scheme to detonate a bomb in one of his mines and create a cataclysmic earthquake
"A View to a Kill" represents the farewell of Lois Maxwell who appeared as Miss Moneypenny for over 20 years of loyal secretarial service, and a unique claim to have featured in every Bond film The motion picture also concludes Roger Moore's activities for over a decade in Bond adventures In all his Bond's movies, Moore was a likable hero who softened the menace saving the world seven times with charm, intelligence, and great dialog However action sequences lost their deadly flavor and took on a madcap flavor In battles with characters such as J. W. Pepper, Nick Nack, Jaws, and May Day, it was hard to keep too straight a faceand Bond didn't
Most underrated of the series
dieseldemon8520 August 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Not sure why this one gets so much hate. Rating a Bond movie is subjective. Everyone has their personal favorite and this one is mine. Everyone discusses Roger's age and say he was too old for Bond. I disagree, I think as he got older his Bond movies were better. I don't want to give too much away, aside for having the best Bond, you have Christopher Walken playing psycho to the max. Also Grace Jones,and Tanya Roberts who was the girl next door of the Bond girls. Sure she was a bit screamy at times but not her fault alot of females parts were written that way in the 80's. Duran Duran had the best song until Skyfall ,and John Barry produced the best musical score since On her Majesty's secret service (1969). Look for the City Hall scene where Bond climbs down the ladder, with the instrumental version playing in background, has always stood out in mind. This film is different from the other Moore films, he plays it serious and it works well just like in For your eyes only. It really is a good film to kick back with some popcorn on a Saturday/Sunday afternoon. If your one of the haters, go back a re-watch,and look for the other positives I described.
Roger keeps the British end up one last time
ShadeGrenade4 June 2012
Warning: Spoilers
Days before the rogue Bond movie 'Never Say Never Again' - which starred Sean Connery - opened in London at the end of 1983, Cubby Broccoli managed to pull off a champion spoiler. He announced that Roger Moore - who had declared his retirement from the role earlier that year with 'Octopussy' - had signed for a seventh movie, provisionally titled 'From A View To A Kill'. In other words, it didn't matter whether or not 'Again' was a hit, because Moore was still going to be around in the future. Loosely based on Ian Fleming's short story ( which appeared in the 'For Your Eyes Only' collection ) 'A View To A Kill' appeared two years later, again directed by John Glen. Critics who had claimed the 56-year old star too old for the role had to eat their words - in fact, he looks in better condition than Connery did in 'Again'. The plot by Michael G.Wilson and Richard Maibaum has Bond investigating the nefarious activities of millionaire 'Maz Zorin' ( Christopher Walken ). When I saw this originally, I chuckled. "They've remade 'Goldfinger!", I thought. "Only with microchips instead of gold bullion!". The two films are similarly structured. Instead of cheating at cards, Zorin is fixing horse races with the aid of steroids and micro-chips. Whereas Goldfinger wanted to increase the value of his gold by blowing up Fort Knox, Zorin wants to increase the value of his micro-chips by triggering an earthquake along the San Andreas Fault, California, thus destroying Silicon Valley.
'Kill' is a long way from 'Goldfinger' in terms of quality, of course, but it is much better than 'Again'. The equivalent 'Oddjob' is the enigmatic 'May Day', played with gusto by singer Grace Jones. Strangely, she never gets to fight Bond, which is a pity as the posters gave the impression such a skirmish was going to the movie's highlight. The action scenes start with an impressive Siberian skiing sequence ( marred only by the use of the Beach Boys' 'California Girls' ), and go on to include May Day jumping off the Eiffel Tower, Bond losing half his car in a chase, Bond and 'Stacy Sutton' ( Tanya Roberts of 'Charlie's Angels' ) trapped in a burning lift shaft, a chase involving a runaway fire engine in San Francisco, and Bond and May Day in a flooding mine, culminating in a climax involving an airship and the Golden Gate bridge. One of the film's pleasures is seeing Moore alongside Patrick Macnee of 'The Avengers', cast as 'Sir Godfrey Tibbett', Bond's sidekick. There is an amusing scene with Bond posing as a rich man and Tibbett as his chauffeur. It is a pity Tibbett was written out so soon. More of him and less of Fiona Fullerton's arch Russian agent - 'Pola Ivanova' - would have helped the movie no end. Moore was reputedly uncomfortable with some of the more violent aspects, such as Zorin machine-gunning to death his own men.
With its lively 'Duran Duran' theme song, 'A View To A Kill' was another big hit when it opened in the summer of 1985. Though it was not formally announced at the time, it was obvious that Moore was not coming back. Ditto Lois Maxwell as 'Miss Moneypenny'. His tenure as 007 - seven films across twelve years - marks him as the longest serving incumbent in the role. He might not have pleased humourless Ian Fleming fans, but there is no denying that he was massively popular with the general public. His successor, Timothy Dalton, was closer to the original Fleming character but the public chose not to endorse him. It was not until the arrival of Pierce Brosnan in 1995 that Moore was successfully replaced. The look of pleasure Moore put on the faces of cinema-goers world-wide took a long time to fade.
'Kill' is a long way from 'Goldfinger' in terms of quality, of course, but it is much better than 'Again'. The equivalent 'Oddjob' is the enigmatic 'May Day', played with gusto by singer Grace Jones. Strangely, she never gets to fight Bond, which is a pity as the posters gave the impression such a skirmish was going to the movie's highlight. The action scenes start with an impressive Siberian skiing sequence ( marred only by the use of the Beach Boys' 'California Girls' ), and go on to include May Day jumping off the Eiffel Tower, Bond losing half his car in a chase, Bond and 'Stacy Sutton' ( Tanya Roberts of 'Charlie's Angels' ) trapped in a burning lift shaft, a chase involving a runaway fire engine in San Francisco, and Bond and May Day in a flooding mine, culminating in a climax involving an airship and the Golden Gate bridge. One of the film's pleasures is seeing Moore alongside Patrick Macnee of 'The Avengers', cast as 'Sir Godfrey Tibbett', Bond's sidekick. There is an amusing scene with Bond posing as a rich man and Tibbett as his chauffeur. It is a pity Tibbett was written out so soon. More of him and less of Fiona Fullerton's arch Russian agent - 'Pola Ivanova' - would have helped the movie no end. Moore was reputedly uncomfortable with some of the more violent aspects, such as Zorin machine-gunning to death his own men.
With its lively 'Duran Duran' theme song, 'A View To A Kill' was another big hit when it opened in the summer of 1985. Though it was not formally announced at the time, it was obvious that Moore was not coming back. Ditto Lois Maxwell as 'Miss Moneypenny'. His tenure as 007 - seven films across twelve years - marks him as the longest serving incumbent in the role. He might not have pleased humourless Ian Fleming fans, but there is no denying that he was massively popular with the general public. His successor, Timothy Dalton, was closer to the original Fleming character but the public chose not to endorse him. It was not until the arrival of Pierce Brosnan in 1995 that Moore was successfully replaced. The look of pleasure Moore put on the faces of cinema-goers world-wide took a long time to fade.
Under-rated Bond entry.
barnabyrudge2 October 2003
A View To A Kill seems to get more than its fair share of criticism. Often it is labelled the weakest of the Bond entries, but I don't think this is particularly true. Personally, I don't even rate it as the poorest of Roger Moore's Bond outings, with Moonraker and The Man With the Golden Gun standing out in my memeory as less memorable escapades than this one.
It's Moore's final appearance as 007, and he is trying to prevent a psychotic business magnate, Max Zorin (Walken) from destroying Silicon Valley and cornering the world electronic market all for himself. To make matters worse, Zorin is not your average adversary, since he was born as the result of a Nazi doctor's scientific tamperings resulting in him being hyper-intelligent but also uncontrollably murderous. The mission takes Bond from Zorin's French chateau, to San Francisco, and ultimately to an abandoned mine close to Silicon Valley, where Zorin plans to detonate a bomb which will trigger a cataclysmic earthquake.
The set pieces are memorable, including a parachute pursuit from the Eiffel Tower, a fire engine chase around the hilly streets of San Francisco, and an airship crash on the Golden Gate bridge. Moore looks a bit old for the part, and his sexual humour bears a greater emphasis than usual of the "dirty old man" baggage. However, he still has an easy-going charisma and good comic timing. Walken makes for a good, supremely confident villain, and is well backed by the fearsome Grace Jones. However, Tanya Roberts Bond girl character is whining and screaming so much in this film that she eventually wears out her welcome. The theme song from Duran Duran is rather too '80s, but the instrumental music by John Barry is stirring and dramatic.
I'm not sure what all the disappointment is about. A View To A Kill is an above average Bond flick with plenty to keep you entertained.
It's Moore's final appearance as 007, and he is trying to prevent a psychotic business magnate, Max Zorin (Walken) from destroying Silicon Valley and cornering the world electronic market all for himself. To make matters worse, Zorin is not your average adversary, since he was born as the result of a Nazi doctor's scientific tamperings resulting in him being hyper-intelligent but also uncontrollably murderous. The mission takes Bond from Zorin's French chateau, to San Francisco, and ultimately to an abandoned mine close to Silicon Valley, where Zorin plans to detonate a bomb which will trigger a cataclysmic earthquake.
The set pieces are memorable, including a parachute pursuit from the Eiffel Tower, a fire engine chase around the hilly streets of San Francisco, and an airship crash on the Golden Gate bridge. Moore looks a bit old for the part, and his sexual humour bears a greater emphasis than usual of the "dirty old man" baggage. However, he still has an easy-going charisma and good comic timing. Walken makes for a good, supremely confident villain, and is well backed by the fearsome Grace Jones. However, Tanya Roberts Bond girl character is whining and screaming so much in this film that she eventually wears out her welcome. The theme song from Duran Duran is rather too '80s, but the instrumental music by John Barry is stirring and dramatic.
I'm not sure what all the disappointment is about. A View To A Kill is an above average Bond flick with plenty to keep you entertained.
Roger Moore's last outing as Bond
Tweekums21 June 2012
Warning: Spoilers
This instalment in the Bond franchise opens with 007 in Siberia retrieving a silicon chip from the frozen body of 003; of course he then has to escape across the ice on skis, a snowmobile, a makeshift snowboard and finally a boat disguised to look like a small iceberg! We soon learn that the chip recovered from Siberia matched those made by a government contractor recently taken over by Zorin Industries. Bond is given to job of investigating Zorin; a task that takes him to France where Zorin is holding a horse sale. Bond learns that Zorin is stockpiling silicon chips but at this point he has no idea why. The only real lead he finds there is a cheque written to a Stacey Sutton, Californian woman for five million dollars. It is at this point that the viewer learns his plans... he is intending to destroy Silicon Valley to give him and his associates a monopoly in silicon chip supply. Bond heads to California where he learns that Zorin is pumping sea water into a series of oil wells. He is initially told that this is routine to test the pipes but when he finds Stacey she tells him that Zorin has been trying to force her to sell her family's oil well and that pumping water into the wells is dangerous as they are on a fault. It turns out he plans to flood both the Heywood and San Andreas Faults while simultaneously blowing up the location that prevents both of them having earthquakes at the same time... Bond and Stacey only have a limited time to prevent to flooding of Silicon Valley and the drowning of hundreds of thousands of people.
As with the other Roger Moore era Bond Films this one contains many elements that are fairly silly; whether that makes them more entertaining or just annoying will depend on the viewer... a case in point is the use of the song 'California Girls' as Bond 'surfs' on a makeshift snowboard in the opening scenes; personally I thought that was rather fun but I know others disagree. Christopher Walken who played the psychotic Zorin made an entertaining if somewhat OTT villain and Grace Jones was good as his Amazonian assistant May Day; although better when doing action scenes than when talking! Roger Moore once again put in a fun performance as Bond although by now he was getting a little old for the role. It wouldn't be a Bond film without exciting stunts in impressive locations; these included having Bond chase May Day in a stolen taxi as she parachuted from the Eiffel Tower; Bond fleeing from the police in a huge stolen fire engine and finally a fight on the top of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge. It could be argued that the plot has been taken straight from 'Goldfinger'; right down to killing the 'investor' who decides not to proceed when he learns just what the villain is planning, while this is a fair argument I don't think it spoilt the film, even if it is not in the same league as the earlier film. Overall this was a decent final Bond film for Roger Moore although it is far from his best; still it is a fun way to pass a couple of hours on a rainy afternoon!
As with the other Roger Moore era Bond Films this one contains many elements that are fairly silly; whether that makes them more entertaining or just annoying will depend on the viewer... a case in point is the use of the song 'California Girls' as Bond 'surfs' on a makeshift snowboard in the opening scenes; personally I thought that was rather fun but I know others disagree. Christopher Walken who played the psychotic Zorin made an entertaining if somewhat OTT villain and Grace Jones was good as his Amazonian assistant May Day; although better when doing action scenes than when talking! Roger Moore once again put in a fun performance as Bond although by now he was getting a little old for the role. It wouldn't be a Bond film without exciting stunts in impressive locations; these included having Bond chase May Day in a stolen taxi as she parachuted from the Eiffel Tower; Bond fleeing from the police in a huge stolen fire engine and finally a fight on the top of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge. It could be argued that the plot has been taken straight from 'Goldfinger'; right down to killing the 'investor' who decides not to proceed when he learns just what the villain is planning, while this is a fair argument I don't think it spoilt the film, even if it is not in the same league as the earlier film. Overall this was a decent final Bond film for Roger Moore although it is far from his best; still it is a fun way to pass a couple of hours on a rainy afternoon!
Roger Moore's final go as Bond a nice send off
Aaron137514 December 2014
For a lot of people, Roger Moore is usually dismissed from the 'who was the best Bond' argument. For me, he was my favorite, possibly still is. Part of the reasons for this is a pure nostalgia factor in that he was the Bond when I was growing up. His films were the ones that were on television and when there was a new film he was Bond. Another reason he may be my favorite is the movies themselves. His Bond films were an eclectic collection of movies that were usually fast paced and fun. Most of his films featured multiple exotic locations , lots of cool action sequences and an awesome villain. Roger Moore's Bond got to duel with Christopher Lee and in this one Christopher Walken two of the best actors to portray Bond villains. Sure, Octopussy was almost the Austin Power's of its day in that it was almost a parody, but this one reigned in the campiness a bit and while not his best work, still ended his tenure as Bond in nice fashion. Not perfect, mind you, as Timothy Dalton's 'The Living Daylights' would be better, this one is still is a good Bond film that probably did represent the 80's more so than did any other Bond film from its opening featuring a Duran Duran song and lots of neon to the inclusion of Grace Jones as villainous sidekick Mayday.
The story has Bond recovering a microchip from a Russian facility that mirrors one at a plant run by Max Zorin. Meaning that somehow the Russians have gotten a hold of one of these chips. James sets out to investigate Zorin at his horse staples as Zorin seems to also have an unnatural edge in the racing of horses as well. It is not too long before Zorin tries to off Bond and show himself as the bad guy and soon Bond must go to San Francisco where he must try to figure out what Zorin's plans are as Zorin seems to be plotting something large. Bond will be assisted by a lady that Zorin has been trying to pay off and intimidate and together they will find themselves in a cave that is laden with Zorin's men as they plan to do something insane to turn the world of computers and microchips decidedly in Zorin's favor.
Roger Moore was quite old by this time and it was time for him to relinquish the role of 007. That being said, he still did a great job as the one thing you can say about him is that unlike Sean Connery near the end of his run as Bond, Moore still seemed to have fun doing it. In fact, I would say had Moore started as Bond instead of Connery, he would likely have kept the role up to View To a Kill. Here his age is apparent, as he is older than Connery, so one knows that you're mainly getting stunt doubles, but they made it work. Christopher Walken is the main villain of the piece and he is crazy good. Probably one of the more psychotic Bond villains he relishes killing those who work for him and laughs as he faces death. Grace Jones is also in this film and like most of the villains henchmen, she is a formidable opponent. Patrick Mcnee also does a good job as the agent initially investigating Zorin's horses. Now for the main problem with the film, Tanya Roberts. She has the looks, but she just does not seem like a Bond girl to me. She is perhaps, my least favorite Bond girl besides Denise Richards in The World is Not Enough.
So, I think this film was a nice farewell for Roger Moore as Bond. I actually thought Octopussy was good too, but this one was just a better send off as it had less comedic elements than did that film. Like I stated above, that one was nearly a parody in areas. Roger Moore's age does show, but he still carries the film well as he faces off a very nice opponent in Zorin played by Walken. I did not enjoy this one as much when I was younger, but it has grown on me, it is just nice to see so many very well down practical special effects rather than mainly CGI ones that accompany nearly every film released these days. It is also interesting that this is the film that sort of brought snowboarding into the open and made it quite big, so Roger Moore's final Bond film did start something rather big and that is rather cool. So is this film not even Moore's best Bond movie, but a nice cool entry into the series and a nice farewell to probably the actor who enjoyed being Bond the most.
The story has Bond recovering a microchip from a Russian facility that mirrors one at a plant run by Max Zorin. Meaning that somehow the Russians have gotten a hold of one of these chips. James sets out to investigate Zorin at his horse staples as Zorin seems to also have an unnatural edge in the racing of horses as well. It is not too long before Zorin tries to off Bond and show himself as the bad guy and soon Bond must go to San Francisco where he must try to figure out what Zorin's plans are as Zorin seems to be plotting something large. Bond will be assisted by a lady that Zorin has been trying to pay off and intimidate and together they will find themselves in a cave that is laden with Zorin's men as they plan to do something insane to turn the world of computers and microchips decidedly in Zorin's favor.
Roger Moore was quite old by this time and it was time for him to relinquish the role of 007. That being said, he still did a great job as the one thing you can say about him is that unlike Sean Connery near the end of his run as Bond, Moore still seemed to have fun doing it. In fact, I would say had Moore started as Bond instead of Connery, he would likely have kept the role up to View To a Kill. Here his age is apparent, as he is older than Connery, so one knows that you're mainly getting stunt doubles, but they made it work. Christopher Walken is the main villain of the piece and he is crazy good. Probably one of the more psychotic Bond villains he relishes killing those who work for him and laughs as he faces death. Grace Jones is also in this film and like most of the villains henchmen, she is a formidable opponent. Patrick Mcnee also does a good job as the agent initially investigating Zorin's horses. Now for the main problem with the film, Tanya Roberts. She has the looks, but she just does not seem like a Bond girl to me. She is perhaps, my least favorite Bond girl besides Denise Richards in The World is Not Enough.
So, I think this film was a nice farewell for Roger Moore as Bond. I actually thought Octopussy was good too, but this one was just a better send off as it had less comedic elements than did that film. Like I stated above, that one was nearly a parody in areas. Roger Moore's age does show, but he still carries the film well as he faces off a very nice opponent in Zorin played by Walken. I did not enjoy this one as much when I was younger, but it has grown on me, it is just nice to see so many very well down practical special effects rather than mainly CGI ones that accompany nearly every film released these days. It is also interesting that this is the film that sort of brought snowboarding into the open and made it quite big, so Roger Moore's final Bond film did start something rather big and that is rather cool. So is this film not even Moore's best Bond movie, but a nice cool entry into the series and a nice farewell to probably the actor who enjoyed being Bond the most.
A violent Bond film with an aggressive, strong n sexually pulchritudinous Bond girl.
Fella_shibby3 May 2021
I first saw this in the early 90s on a vhs.
Revisited it recently.
This is the fourteenth in the Bond series and the final appearance of Roger Moore as James Bond.
In this movie Bond has to deal with a villain Zorin, who is planning to blow up Silicon Valley. (I think he is fed up with the geeks n nerds).
Apart from Zorin none of the henchmen are noteworthy.
This one's a bit violent
The main villain Zorin, a sadistic psychopath (played smoothly by Christopher Walken) displays a near-total lack of loyalty to his own men n shoots hundreds of people with machine guns n that too with a smile.
A man gets minced in an underwater exhaust fan.
In this movie Bond does an amazing horse hurdle race.
It has a lovely pre credit scene of that of a breathtaking ski chase.
It has a spectacular chase up and down the Eiffel Tower which must have inspired the parkour chase sequence in Casino Royale.
The climactic fight scene on Golden Gate Bridge is very well done.
This movie is Dolph Lundgren's first on-screen role, playing General Gogol's KGB bodyguard Venz but without any dialogues.
He is present before the iconic dialogue, "No one ever leaves the KGB".
In this movie Bond gets to cool off with Mary Stavin, Fiona Fullerton, Tanya Roberts n Grace Jones (A true Amazonian female n better than the fake Gal Gadot. Grace Jones was the first sexually aggressive Bond girl, evidenced by her reversal of positions - she climbed on top).
Many fellas say that Muad Adams is present in the movie as an extra n uncredited of that of a passerby. I tried but didn't notice her.
Some info on Zorin: Max Zorin is a sharp businessman, operating on the microchip market. He is highly intelligent n acts very fast cos he is the product of a Nazi medical experimentation during World War II, in which pregnant women were injected with massive quantities of steroids in an attempt to create "super-children." Most of the pregnancies failed while the few surviving babies grew to become extraordinarily intelligent-but also psychopathic.
After the war, Hans Glaub aka Carl Mortner, the German scientist who conducted the experiments, raised a young Zorin. Zorin was later trained by KGB agents.
Revisited it recently.
This is the fourteenth in the Bond series and the final appearance of Roger Moore as James Bond.
In this movie Bond has to deal with a villain Zorin, who is planning to blow up Silicon Valley. (I think he is fed up with the geeks n nerds).
Apart from Zorin none of the henchmen are noteworthy.
This one's a bit violent
The main villain Zorin, a sadistic psychopath (played smoothly by Christopher Walken) displays a near-total lack of loyalty to his own men n shoots hundreds of people with machine guns n that too with a smile.
A man gets minced in an underwater exhaust fan.
In this movie Bond does an amazing horse hurdle race.
It has a lovely pre credit scene of that of a breathtaking ski chase.
It has a spectacular chase up and down the Eiffel Tower which must have inspired the parkour chase sequence in Casino Royale.
The climactic fight scene on Golden Gate Bridge is very well done.
This movie is Dolph Lundgren's first on-screen role, playing General Gogol's KGB bodyguard Venz but without any dialogues.
He is present before the iconic dialogue, "No one ever leaves the KGB".
In this movie Bond gets to cool off with Mary Stavin, Fiona Fullerton, Tanya Roberts n Grace Jones (A true Amazonian female n better than the fake Gal Gadot. Grace Jones was the first sexually aggressive Bond girl, evidenced by her reversal of positions - she climbed on top).
Many fellas say that Muad Adams is present in the movie as an extra n uncredited of that of a passerby. I tried but didn't notice her.
Some info on Zorin: Max Zorin is a sharp businessman, operating on the microchip market. He is highly intelligent n acts very fast cos he is the product of a Nazi medical experimentation during World War II, in which pregnant women were injected with massive quantities of steroids in an attempt to create "super-children." Most of the pregnancies failed while the few surviving babies grew to become extraordinarily intelligent-but also psychopathic.
After the war, Hans Glaub aka Carl Mortner, the German scientist who conducted the experiments, raised a young Zorin. Zorin was later trained by KGB agents.
A view to a kill : Actor Roger Moore's final film as agent 007.
FilmCriticLalitRao17 September 2015
After the success of 'Octopussy', it was felt that actor Roger Moore should continue winning ways of James Bond. Nobody had any idea that 'A view to a kill' would turn out to be his last film as British agent James Bond. After this film, Timothy Dalton was chosen to represent James Bond on the big screen. This is something which his loyal fans and other admirers of this series must bear in mind while watching this Bond flick where American actor Christopher Walken appears as a highly dangerous, psychopathic villain with a smile on his face who set his mind on destroying America's Silicon valley. Actor Roger Moore doesn't disappoint a bit as James Bond continues to move from one place to another in order to gather valuable information about the villain's nefarious plans. However, it is through sudden twists and turns of events that Bond achieves final victory over the villain. There are times when even a villain can also be more popular than a hero. This is depicted in Christopher Walken's performance as Zorin, a shrewd businessman with stakes in an expensive stable. Actor Christopher Walken dominates this film to a huge extent. It is his arrogance which brings his downfall. When this film was being made, there was absolutely no link between horses and a silicon valley as 1985 was too early a period to speak about the destruction of 'Silicon Valley'. However, the inventiveness of the script ensured that even such an idea was practical. This is one of the film's key strengths.
Incredibly Under-rated
rutherfordh-8199322 December 2020
A View To A Kill commonly comes under as one of Roger Moore's weakest Bond films, however in my opinion, that is completely wrong. It is one of the most best of his films. The action is stronger than many previous films, the music is good and the locations such as France and San Francisco. Roger Moore is great as a Bond actor, especially down to the fact he is 57. Christopher Walken makes a fantastic and one of the very best villains. Overall, there are some bits which are a bit slow, but lots of it is exciting, strong and thrilling.
the first bond I saw
henrymadman29 September 2007
View To A Kill, released in 1985, is the 14th film in the James Bond series, and the seventh and last to star Roger Moore as the fictional British Secret Service agent James Bond.
Although the title is adapted from Ian Fleming's short story "From a View to a Kill", the film is the third Bond film after The Spy Who Loved Me and Octopussy to have an entirely original screenplay. In A View to a Kill, Bond is pitted against Max Zorin, who plans to destroy California's Silicon Valley.
shame its classed as one of the worst.
7/10
Although the title is adapted from Ian Fleming's short story "From a View to a Kill", the film is the third Bond film after The Spy Who Loved Me and Octopussy to have an entirely original screenplay. In A View to a Kill, Bond is pitted against Max Zorin, who plans to destroy California's Silicon Valley.
shame its classed as one of the worst.
7/10
Has all the elements of a decent Bond
CrazyArty17 July 2022
James Bond sets out to stop a psychopathic business man and a successful horse breeder. Stars Roger Moore and Christopher Walken.
Moore was clearly too old for this role but the film has all the elements of a great Bond film. An excellent villain in Walken, a dastardly plot, beautiful girls and amazing locations.
A lot of fun. Grace Jones is a great henchman.
Moore was clearly too old for this role but the film has all the elements of a great Bond film. An excellent villain in Walken, a dastardly plot, beautiful girls and amazing locations.
A lot of fun. Grace Jones is a great henchman.
A View to a Kill
Scarecrow-887 July 2012
Warning: Spoilers
A View to a Kill is considered bad Bond and propelled Moore out of the role he had occupied for over a decade. With a great title song from Duran Duran, the film has a unique if rather unspectacular plot (Christopher Walkin, with blond-dyed hair and sociopathic, cold-blooded method of conducting business, plans to use an earthquake to submerge Silicon Valley under water so he can take full control of the microchip industry). Walkin's Max Zorin is assisted by titanic model May Day (Grace Jones) who can lift people in the air, throwing them around like rag dolls, and is not afraid to kill for her man when needed. Tanya Roberts is a geologist (!!!) whose father once owned an oil plant Zorin stole from her, fighting him in the courts which has taken practically everything but her mansion. Patrick Macnee has a nice part as a field operative, Sir Godfrey Tibbett, who goes undercover as Bond's chauffeur, both trying to figure out what Zorin plans to do. With locations in Paris and San Francisco primarily, Bond will wind up trying to halt a bomb set in a cave near the San Andreas Fault, hang from a rope dangling from Zorin's blimp, and battle Zorin on the Golden Gate Bridge. Patrick Bauchau's Scarpine is Zorin's right-hand man, as psychopathic as his boss is. When Zorin floods the cave where the workers had been setting the explosives, he and Scarpine machine gun them all who attempt to escape from out of harm's way! Hell, Walken's Zorin laughs while shooting them as pleas of help spray out across the entire cave! Jones makes a sacrifice when Zorin betrays her, Bond gets plenty of action (not just from Walken's cronies, but with the girls, Roberts, Fiona Fullerton (as the foxy Russian agent Pola Ivanova), and even Jones!), and the climax is quite the bonafide stunner (the Golden Gate Bridge, quite a place for the hero and villain to duel, don't you think?). There's plenty of plot centered around the horse track (Zorin's is an aficionado of horses, and his mentor and "creator", a Nazi who was performing experiments on women to see if they could perfect a genius race, is using steroids on thoroughbreds) and stuntmen are put to good use as Moore's no spring chicken by this point. I didn't have the least bit of problem with Moore, here, as Never Say Never Again will attest to, an actor can remain in a part a little too long and strain credibility as a chick magnet, particularly when you see him in scenes next to the much younger Roberts. Roberts is eye candy, but her part is similar in acceptability as Denise Richards' role was in a later Pierce Brosnan Bond vehicle. Moore's chase of Jones through Paris in a car that takes a licking and keeps ticking with just two tires left and half a torso gone once he reaches her to a boat, unable to reach her is quite a stunt sequence.
Max Zorin for the win
Sandcooler16 September 2011
Christopher Walken with a machine gun, Duran Duran while they were still popular, James Bond while he was still Roger Moore, steroid-enhanced horses, evil Grace Jones, a zeppelin: it's really tough to find something in this movie that's not cool. "A View To A Kill" wasn't too well-received when it came out, but I seriously have no idea why. It's a highly entertaining movie, filled with all of the elements that you could possibly watch Bond flicks for. It goes on for almost two and a half hours, but it contains more than enough action to justify that running time. And if there's no action, you still have a lot of Walken being completely insane, which is just as good. Highly underestimated entry.
Roger Moore's Final Appearance as 007 Isn't As Bad As Some Argue.
zardoz-1326 February 2009
Warning: Spoilers
The fourteenth James Bond extravaganza "A View to a Kill" pitted 007 (Roger Moore) against the franchise's most psychotic villain, 'staunch, anti-Communist,' French industrialist Max Zorin (Oscar winner Christopher Walken of "The Deer Hunter"), who schemes to corner the micro-chip market by destroying Silicon Valley. Essentially, this Bond movie recalled Goldfinger because Zorin resembled Goldfinger with his wealth and his plan to wipe out Silicon Valley the way that Goldfinger wants to take over the gold market by turns America's supply of gold at Fort Knox in a radioactive rubble. Indeed, as villains go, Zorin ranks as one of the more memorable with an interesting back story. A Nazi scientist had conducted steroid tests with pregnant women and most of the offspring died, but Zorin survived to become a genius but a psychotic. Zorin and the good doctor who had been captured by the Soviets after World War II helped their athletes. Mind you, the Bond movies neither demonized the Soviets, nor did they romanticize the Russkies. The Soviets made mistakes, but they always managed to clean up after themselves. In "Octopussy," the Soviets caught up with a renegade black market General Orlov (Steven Berkoff of "Beverly Hills Cop") who tried to start a nuclear war and frame the Americans. In "A View to a Kill," the Soviet catch up with Zorin who had been in cahoots with them in the microchip manufacturer business but the two fell out. Indeed, like all the Roger Moore Bond's after "Live and Let Die," "A View to a Kill" takes place with in the context of the Cold War. Furthermore, while tensions exist between East and West, there is also an air of détente that characterize these Bonds.
Although it proved to be Roger Moore's last mission as James Bond and it didn't surpass the box office receipt of "Octopussy," "A View to a Kill" contains more than enough virtues, such as the snow pursuit in Siberia, Bond's careening car chase through Paris, and Zorin's sadistic massacre of his own men in a secluded mine in California. Original 007 composer John Barry provides a strong, atmospheric orchestral soundtrack and the Duran Duran title tune is a knock-out! The Richard Maibaum & Michael G. Wilson screenplay contains a some imaginative twists on the Bond formula, especially with regard to the sacrificial girl convention. Essentially, the sacrificial girl in most Bonds is either an agent working with Bond as in "Thunderball" or the villain's girl as in "The Man with the Golden Gun." Oh, yes, let's not forget Plenty O'Toole who stumbles into bad girl Tiffany Case's house and dies because the villains catch her. The difference with "A View to a Kill" is that Mayday (Grace Jones) is not only Zorin's main squeeze but also a villainess herself. She has to die, but her death is heroic. Alan Hume's cinematography is good and John Glen never lets the pace flag in his third outing as a Bond helmer.
Director John Glen, in his three outing as a Bond helmer, stages several interesting sequences. The fistfights are rather conventional, primarily those at Zorin's laboratories and in Stacy Sutton's home, but Zorin's plan for Operation: Mainstrike against Silicon Valley takes place in a zeppelin, but we don't know that until one of Zorin's associates literally takes a walk into thin air for refuses to participate in his Silicon Valley scheme. The scene opens in a conference room as Zorin explains how Mainstrike will work and we don't know until the last second that they are hundreds of feet in the air. The fire truck chase with the SFPD in pursuit is reminiscent of "Diamonds Are Forever" and "Live and Let Die." There's a robust disaster sequence when Zorin kills a San Francisco City Hall official and traps Stacy and Bond in an elevator while setting the building ablaze. Stacy Sutton (Tanya Roberts of TV's "Charlie's Angels") qualifies as the most annoyingly hysterical heroine of the franchise. She screams convincingly throughout the blazing city hall predicament. As seemingly lightweight as "A View to a Kill" is you cannot overlook Sir Godfrey Tibbett's murder by Mayday and Zorin's decision to plunge a KGB agent into a shaft with a whirling propeller at the other end. Actually, we see him thrown into the shaft by Zorin's men and he dies in a gush of water. Occasionally, Bonds contain gruesome death scenes that—owing to their PG-ratings—are left to the imagination of the spectator. Of course, it isn't as grisly as the snow plow scene in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," but violence does creep into every Bond.
The scenes at Zorin's equine stables and the eccentric Frenchman's château is scenic. The idea that Zorin and his doctor pal are tampering with horse races is no doubt inspired by the characteristically decadent Ian Fleming villain who cannot help but cheat, even when he has more money that most people. Christopher Walken with his blond hair is ideally cast as the devious Zorin. Unfortunately, to be as nefarious as Zorin is, he lets 007 off the hook too easily. Bond's escape from the sinking car is slick but far from believable and the shift from the lake to San Francisco is the film's weakest link. Furthermore, Patrick Macnee's demise is glossed over too much. Patrick Bauchan plays Zorin's right-hand man and actress Alison Doody is one of his girls. Robert Brown plays M and Lois Maxwell plays Ms. Moneypenny for the last time. Bond regular Walter Gotell reprises his role as the sympathetic KGB chief, while future B-movie action star Dolph Lundgren has a moment as a KGB henchman at a race track when the Soviets upbraid Zorin. "A View to a Kill" isn't as bad as some might argue. It tops "Live and Let Die" and "The Man with the Golden Gun," but it isn't as great as "The Spy Who Loved Me."
Although it proved to be Roger Moore's last mission as James Bond and it didn't surpass the box office receipt of "Octopussy," "A View to a Kill" contains more than enough virtues, such as the snow pursuit in Siberia, Bond's careening car chase through Paris, and Zorin's sadistic massacre of his own men in a secluded mine in California. Original 007 composer John Barry provides a strong, atmospheric orchestral soundtrack and the Duran Duran title tune is a knock-out! The Richard Maibaum & Michael G. Wilson screenplay contains a some imaginative twists on the Bond formula, especially with regard to the sacrificial girl convention. Essentially, the sacrificial girl in most Bonds is either an agent working with Bond as in "Thunderball" or the villain's girl as in "The Man with the Golden Gun." Oh, yes, let's not forget Plenty O'Toole who stumbles into bad girl Tiffany Case's house and dies because the villains catch her. The difference with "A View to a Kill" is that Mayday (Grace Jones) is not only Zorin's main squeeze but also a villainess herself. She has to die, but her death is heroic. Alan Hume's cinematography is good and John Glen never lets the pace flag in his third outing as a Bond helmer.
Director John Glen, in his three outing as a Bond helmer, stages several interesting sequences. The fistfights are rather conventional, primarily those at Zorin's laboratories and in Stacy Sutton's home, but Zorin's plan for Operation: Mainstrike against Silicon Valley takes place in a zeppelin, but we don't know that until one of Zorin's associates literally takes a walk into thin air for refuses to participate in his Silicon Valley scheme. The scene opens in a conference room as Zorin explains how Mainstrike will work and we don't know until the last second that they are hundreds of feet in the air. The fire truck chase with the SFPD in pursuit is reminiscent of "Diamonds Are Forever" and "Live and Let Die." There's a robust disaster sequence when Zorin kills a San Francisco City Hall official and traps Stacy and Bond in an elevator while setting the building ablaze. Stacy Sutton (Tanya Roberts of TV's "Charlie's Angels") qualifies as the most annoyingly hysterical heroine of the franchise. She screams convincingly throughout the blazing city hall predicament. As seemingly lightweight as "A View to a Kill" is you cannot overlook Sir Godfrey Tibbett's murder by Mayday and Zorin's decision to plunge a KGB agent into a shaft with a whirling propeller at the other end. Actually, we see him thrown into the shaft by Zorin's men and he dies in a gush of water. Occasionally, Bonds contain gruesome death scenes that—owing to their PG-ratings—are left to the imagination of the spectator. Of course, it isn't as grisly as the snow plow scene in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," but violence does creep into every Bond.
The scenes at Zorin's equine stables and the eccentric Frenchman's château is scenic. The idea that Zorin and his doctor pal are tampering with horse races is no doubt inspired by the characteristically decadent Ian Fleming villain who cannot help but cheat, even when he has more money that most people. Christopher Walken with his blond hair is ideally cast as the devious Zorin. Unfortunately, to be as nefarious as Zorin is, he lets 007 off the hook too easily. Bond's escape from the sinking car is slick but far from believable and the shift from the lake to San Francisco is the film's weakest link. Furthermore, Patrick Macnee's demise is glossed over too much. Patrick Bauchan plays Zorin's right-hand man and actress Alison Doody is one of his girls. Robert Brown plays M and Lois Maxwell plays Ms. Moneypenny for the last time. Bond regular Walter Gotell reprises his role as the sympathetic KGB chief, while future B-movie action star Dolph Lundgren has a moment as a KGB henchman at a race track when the Soviets upbraid Zorin. "A View to a Kill" isn't as bad as some might argue. It tops "Live and Let Die" and "The Man with the Golden Gun," but it isn't as great as "The Spy Who Loved Me."
Even with its imperfections this is still a great Bond movie.
Rodrigo_Amaro24 July 2012
"Skyfall" is coming with Daniel Craig again as the new and ultra serious Bond so what's better than to take a look at the Bond classics and revisit some really great moments? "A View to a Kill" marked Roger Moore's last film as 007 (a forced exercise to him, since he was hoping that "For Your Eyes Only" would be his final), not much of a great exit but still a fun thing to watch.
My evaluation of this film comes in light of how Bond series changed through the years, stuck with some aspects, characters, situations, his eternal drink, and why even the funniest flicks of the agent still are slightly better than the ones we're seeing now. It's a generation thing, I grew up watching those films and they were a lot of fun. I know the whole change behind the longest franchise so far (let me know if there's any other...) was to gather a new audience and maybe preserve the oldest, just like the Batman reboot started brilliantly with Christopher Nolan, and many other franchises went along. But that didn't meant quality in the Bond case. Fine, the oldest ones like "A View to a Kill" were ridiculously in its editing, you can clearly see the stunt double changing places with Moore or Connery, or whoever is playing Bond, and it's very funny and a little bit over-the-top but they were fun, amazing, pleasant to watch. Now, all we have is dramatic parts, a certain reluctance in acting (this never works in Bond films, take a look at George Lazenby only instance), an agent with so much feelings. I liked the movies but didn't enjoyed them so much (Q is going to return, so let's see, difficult to replace the irreplaceable Desmond Llewelyn).
Enough with the comparisons, let's see what "A View to a Kill" is all about. 007's mission is to investigate the eccentric Max Zorin (an blonde Christopher Walken) and his enigmatic Zorin Industries and the masterplan that involves the destruction of the Silicon Valley. And Bond is escorted by Stacey Sutton (Tanya Roberts, you all know her from "That 70's Show" as Donna's mom) and May Day (the diva Grace Jones), Zorin's partner and a woman of many talents. Among the action sequences, highlight to the chase at the Eiffel Tower and the fight on the blip flying over San Francisco, where it also happens a strange car chase that looks more suitable on a Police Academy movie than in a Bond movie.
There's excitement and good moments overall, some forced moments and an almost empty plot when it comes to the villainy committed (just a psycho who wants to sink Silicon Valley? We could have more). Don't even get me started on how bad edited some sequences were (the car chase in Paris, it's unbelievable how close they were from the stunt double, obviously not Moore driving that "half car") or even endure with Roberts sexy hoarse voice all the time calling "James!" (priceless!), far from being perfect. But who cares? This is so much fun, highly entertaining, it's always a pleasure to see Moore as Bond (the funniest and in a good way!) and there's the best theme song ever in a Bond movie, Duran Duran's title song (the video clip is even better, with the band members at the Eiffel tower, mixing scenes with 007 chasing the mysterious killer).
You can't miss this! 10/10
My evaluation of this film comes in light of how Bond series changed through the years, stuck with some aspects, characters, situations, his eternal drink, and why even the funniest flicks of the agent still are slightly better than the ones we're seeing now. It's a generation thing, I grew up watching those films and they were a lot of fun. I know the whole change behind the longest franchise so far (let me know if there's any other...) was to gather a new audience and maybe preserve the oldest, just like the Batman reboot started brilliantly with Christopher Nolan, and many other franchises went along. But that didn't meant quality in the Bond case. Fine, the oldest ones like "A View to a Kill" were ridiculously in its editing, you can clearly see the stunt double changing places with Moore or Connery, or whoever is playing Bond, and it's very funny and a little bit over-the-top but they were fun, amazing, pleasant to watch. Now, all we have is dramatic parts, a certain reluctance in acting (this never works in Bond films, take a look at George Lazenby only instance), an agent with so much feelings. I liked the movies but didn't enjoyed them so much (Q is going to return, so let's see, difficult to replace the irreplaceable Desmond Llewelyn).
Enough with the comparisons, let's see what "A View to a Kill" is all about. 007's mission is to investigate the eccentric Max Zorin (an blonde Christopher Walken) and his enigmatic Zorin Industries and the masterplan that involves the destruction of the Silicon Valley. And Bond is escorted by Stacey Sutton (Tanya Roberts, you all know her from "That 70's Show" as Donna's mom) and May Day (the diva Grace Jones), Zorin's partner and a woman of many talents. Among the action sequences, highlight to the chase at the Eiffel Tower and the fight on the blip flying over San Francisco, where it also happens a strange car chase that looks more suitable on a Police Academy movie than in a Bond movie.
There's excitement and good moments overall, some forced moments and an almost empty plot when it comes to the villainy committed (just a psycho who wants to sink Silicon Valley? We could have more). Don't even get me started on how bad edited some sequences were (the car chase in Paris, it's unbelievable how close they were from the stunt double, obviously not Moore driving that "half car") or even endure with Roberts sexy hoarse voice all the time calling "James!" (priceless!), far from being perfect. But who cares? This is so much fun, highly entertaining, it's always a pleasure to see Moore as Bond (the funniest and in a good way!) and there's the best theme song ever in a Bond movie, Duran Duran's title song (the video clip is even better, with the band members at the Eiffel tower, mixing scenes with 007 chasing the mysterious killer).
You can't miss this! 10/10
A View to a Thrill!!
MovieMan197520 January 2005
Seriously underrated and lambasted by critics, but in my opinion one of the best Bond films. Moore bowed out of the series, just in time (well, at least close to it...) and with a serious bang. Christopher Walken is deliciously evil and psychopathic as Mack Zorin, the Nazi engineered genius looking to take over the tech industry by destroying Silicon Valley with a major flood disaster and earthquake. He is definitely one of the best movie villains ever. Along with some of the best music scoring of all the films in the series, including the fantastic Duran Duran song which epitomizes the 80's, the final showdown between Zorin and Bond on top of the golden gate bridge is breathtakingly exciting. I get goose bumps watching the ending! Many people hate this entry in the 007 series, calling it cheezy, clichéd, and that Moore is just too hammy and way too old. I disagree. I claim to be a true Bond-phile, having seen every film many times over, and have read every one of the most excellent (and quite different from the films) Fleming novels (btw the Fleming short story View to a Kill is actually the basis for the films Live and Let Die and For Your Eyes Only) and find that this is definitely one of my favourites. A great watch with amazing music, villains, and final action sequence.
Dance into the Fire.
Dock-Ock26 November 2001
With A View To a Kill, the cutain falls on one of the greatest era's in action/adventure movies, as we, EON and the rest of the world bid a fond farewell to Roger Moore's James Bond. And what an exit Moore makes, put simply A View to a Kill is on of the most exciting, stylish, well written and under-rated Bond movies of all time.
The basic feel of the movie is pure electric. The series is on a role after the rousing successes that were For Your Eyes Only and Octopussy. Both these movies had represented a maturing point in the series and the shot in the arm of suspense,action and excitement that was needed. This trend is continued to the full with A View To A Kill, and in his goodbye performance Roger Moore manages to remarkably combine all the best elements of his previous Bond movies, and comes up with a perfect way to leave behind Bond and Her Majestys Secret Service.
Cubby Broccoli could hardly have awarded Roger a better acolade in wich to leave the series, than to give him the opportunity to act alongside one of America's all time best character/villain actors : Christopher Walken. Walken as Zorin is the best villain in the series since Christopher Lee's Scaramanga in The Man with The Golden Gun. Walken brings a refreshing air of realism and menace combined to put him amngst the great villains of the series. Equally impressive is Grace Jones as MayDay. Jones is the epitomy of a she-hulk and is the very fore of mid 80-s femenism.She strangely manages to be beautiful and frightening in the same breath, and looks fantastic in the action and love making sequences were she lets Bond know who's on top! Then there is Patrick MacNee as Tibbet. Tibbet is a fun character and when posing as Bonds servent early on in the movie Moore takes every opportunity to ad-lib, ordering and bossing MacNee about. In truth it is very amusing to see John Steed carrying Simon Templer's Bags around. It is a petty that MacNee's character is Killed because other Bond movies would have benefited from Macnee's presence. Less succesfull on the character fronts are David Yip, whos character drifts into the movie, seemingly to make the numbers up and is then killed, and of course Tanya Roberts as Stacey Sutton. Sutton makes Brit Ecklands Goodnight look impressive. Roberts looks good, nd the part is well written , so perhaps it is a case of miscasting. Luckily, the beautiful Fiona Fullerton, who may have been a more impressive Stacey Sutton turns up as the tantalisingly sexy Pola Evanova.
The action set pieces like in every Bond movie fire and work on all cilendars. There is a wonderfull pre-credits Ski-Chase battle set in a picturesque arctic glacier. The excitement begins in Parris were BJ Worth doubled for grace Jones and parachuted off the Eiffel Tower, and this is imediately followed by a fantastic car chase through the Parrisian locals. This later shifts to a simmilar scene in San Francisco, wich has bon Escape a burning elavator shaft and end up driving a Fire Engine dangling from one] at full speed through the city. And finally to the Golden Gate bridge via Air Balloon were Bond and Zorin battle to death. Here Walken displays all the depth of his character, giving a knowing giggle before plummiting to his death, as though he apreciates the joke is on him.
A View to a Kill represents one of the finest scripts in the series, the battle for monopoly over the microchip market. Even if the climax borrows slightly from Superman the Movies flooding of St Andres Fault, or in this case Sillicon Valley. All the elements work. John Barry's Score is his best since On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and the title song by Duran Duran is one of the most energetic and exciting of the series and has quickly becom a standard. In all this is a most satisfying Bond movie. An adequate exit for Roger Moore and one that has stood the test of time well. Thanks Roger and goodbye.
The basic feel of the movie is pure electric. The series is on a role after the rousing successes that were For Your Eyes Only and Octopussy. Both these movies had represented a maturing point in the series and the shot in the arm of suspense,action and excitement that was needed. This trend is continued to the full with A View To A Kill, and in his goodbye performance Roger Moore manages to remarkably combine all the best elements of his previous Bond movies, and comes up with a perfect way to leave behind Bond and Her Majestys Secret Service.
Cubby Broccoli could hardly have awarded Roger a better acolade in wich to leave the series, than to give him the opportunity to act alongside one of America's all time best character/villain actors : Christopher Walken. Walken as Zorin is the best villain in the series since Christopher Lee's Scaramanga in The Man with The Golden Gun. Walken brings a refreshing air of realism and menace combined to put him amngst the great villains of the series. Equally impressive is Grace Jones as MayDay. Jones is the epitomy of a she-hulk and is the very fore of mid 80-s femenism.She strangely manages to be beautiful and frightening in the same breath, and looks fantastic in the action and love making sequences were she lets Bond know who's on top! Then there is Patrick MacNee as Tibbet. Tibbet is a fun character and when posing as Bonds servent early on in the movie Moore takes every opportunity to ad-lib, ordering and bossing MacNee about. In truth it is very amusing to see John Steed carrying Simon Templer's Bags around. It is a petty that MacNee's character is Killed because other Bond movies would have benefited from Macnee's presence. Less succesfull on the character fronts are David Yip, whos character drifts into the movie, seemingly to make the numbers up and is then killed, and of course Tanya Roberts as Stacey Sutton. Sutton makes Brit Ecklands Goodnight look impressive. Roberts looks good, nd the part is well written , so perhaps it is a case of miscasting. Luckily, the beautiful Fiona Fullerton, who may have been a more impressive Stacey Sutton turns up as the tantalisingly sexy Pola Evanova.
The action set pieces like in every Bond movie fire and work on all cilendars. There is a wonderfull pre-credits Ski-Chase battle set in a picturesque arctic glacier. The excitement begins in Parris were BJ Worth doubled for grace Jones and parachuted off the Eiffel Tower, and this is imediately followed by a fantastic car chase through the Parrisian locals. This later shifts to a simmilar scene in San Francisco, wich has bon Escape a burning elavator shaft and end up driving a Fire Engine dangling from one] at full speed through the city. And finally to the Golden Gate bridge via Air Balloon were Bond and Zorin battle to death. Here Walken displays all the depth of his character, giving a knowing giggle before plummiting to his death, as though he apreciates the joke is on him.
A View to a Kill represents one of the finest scripts in the series, the battle for monopoly over the microchip market. Even if the climax borrows slightly from Superman the Movies flooding of St Andres Fault, or in this case Sillicon Valley. All the elements work. John Barry's Score is his best since On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and the title song by Duran Duran is one of the most energetic and exciting of the series and has quickly becom a standard. In all this is a most satisfying Bond movie. An adequate exit for Roger Moore and one that has stood the test of time well. Thanks Roger and goodbye.
Dance into the fire!!
coltras354 October 2021
Roger Moore's final Bond film, A view to a kill, is a criminally underrated entry in the canon, and I just don't get what's the gripe is about. From the opening sequence, it jumps on to one dazzling event to the next, the pace flowing. The plot just sucks you in like a vacuum - The racetrack scenes, the Eiffel Tower scene where Bond chases Mayday after she kills an informer, and the investigation at Zorin's mansion. It just rocks, and never lets up the pace. It's never boring and it's a glorious romp with some killer action sequences.
The story-The recovery of a microchip off the body of a fellow agent leads James Bond to a mad industrialist who plans to create a worldwide microchip monopoly by destroying California's Silicon Valley
As for Roger Moore, he's on top form, on a roll as a mature Bond - the word "old" is a bit derogatory - who still looks handsome, but importantly is exuding confidence, a great screen presence, elan and smooth as ever, but his fun approach is tempered with a seriousness and determination. His dialogues, especially when conversing with Zorin, are delivered brilliantly. His disgust for Zorin is very apparent. It's seems too convincing. He is much more mature and less winking at the camera - the only thing the filmmakers should've done in this entry was indicate that Bond is retiring, that this is his last hurrah, that way miserable moaners who go on about his age wouldn't raffle on about that point. ( odd though that the literary Bond chronologically is way past 60!!)
The action sequences are awesome, well-staged, exciting, especially the pre-credit sequence with the skiing, and Bond tackling the swarming helicopter. Matching this is the Eiffel Tower and the mine sequence - the latter is just pure cliffhanger. The cinematography is superb, especially around the golden gate where Bond and Stacy is clinging to life as Zorin wields his axe. The bits in between the excitement is engaging, with plenty of investigation and tech talk.
Christopher Walken is suitably creepy as the psychotic as Max Zorin, the way he shoot his own employees is so callous, and underpins his disturbed persona. Grace Jones as his henchwoman is menacing and emotes well when Zorin stabs her in the back. The oft-criticised Bond girl Stacey Sutton played by the sexy Tanya Roberts was really good, capturing that innocence of Bond girls Solitaire and Melina Havelock - she can scream "James" a lot, but if you're hanging to dear life in some perilous situations, what else would you do but scream. Patrick Macnee makes an inspiring appearance as the ill-fated Tibet, alongside his former ITC mate, Roger Moore. He's the third actor from the Avengers to appear.
A view to a kill might have some shoddy editing in regards to it being obvious that it isn't Roger but a stuntman, but overall it's an exciting addition to the franchise, and a fitting end to Roger Moore's tenure in a role that made him a household name. He's always been a heroic, Douglas Fairbanks-type of Bond, so it was fitting to see him carry Stacy down the ladder. A hark back to when heroes were heroes. In 1985 that was very much anachronistic - a farewell to the old-fashioned hero.
The story-The recovery of a microchip off the body of a fellow agent leads James Bond to a mad industrialist who plans to create a worldwide microchip monopoly by destroying California's Silicon Valley
As for Roger Moore, he's on top form, on a roll as a mature Bond - the word "old" is a bit derogatory - who still looks handsome, but importantly is exuding confidence, a great screen presence, elan and smooth as ever, but his fun approach is tempered with a seriousness and determination. His dialogues, especially when conversing with Zorin, are delivered brilliantly. His disgust for Zorin is very apparent. It's seems too convincing. He is much more mature and less winking at the camera - the only thing the filmmakers should've done in this entry was indicate that Bond is retiring, that this is his last hurrah, that way miserable moaners who go on about his age wouldn't raffle on about that point. ( odd though that the literary Bond chronologically is way past 60!!)
The action sequences are awesome, well-staged, exciting, especially the pre-credit sequence with the skiing, and Bond tackling the swarming helicopter. Matching this is the Eiffel Tower and the mine sequence - the latter is just pure cliffhanger. The cinematography is superb, especially around the golden gate where Bond and Stacy is clinging to life as Zorin wields his axe. The bits in between the excitement is engaging, with plenty of investigation and tech talk.
Christopher Walken is suitably creepy as the psychotic as Max Zorin, the way he shoot his own employees is so callous, and underpins his disturbed persona. Grace Jones as his henchwoman is menacing and emotes well when Zorin stabs her in the back. The oft-criticised Bond girl Stacey Sutton played by the sexy Tanya Roberts was really good, capturing that innocence of Bond girls Solitaire and Melina Havelock - she can scream "James" a lot, but if you're hanging to dear life in some perilous situations, what else would you do but scream. Patrick Macnee makes an inspiring appearance as the ill-fated Tibet, alongside his former ITC mate, Roger Moore. He's the third actor from the Avengers to appear.
A view to a kill might have some shoddy editing in regards to it being obvious that it isn't Roger but a stuntman, but overall it's an exciting addition to the franchise, and a fitting end to Roger Moore's tenure in a role that made him a household name. He's always been a heroic, Douglas Fairbanks-type of Bond, so it was fitting to see him carry Stacy down the ladder. A hark back to when heroes were heroes. In 1985 that was very much anachronistic - a farewell to the old-fashioned hero.
This Film is often Under-Rated, Better Than others over Time
DKosty12326 August 2005
While Ian Fleming created a great character in 007, time is wilting away the logic to a lot of the plots to the early films in this series. While this one still has touches of the Cold War Theme, the plot actually holds up better over time than some of the other films. In fact, this film does very well with the location shots being scenic including the Eifel Tower & Golden Gate Bridge in the same film.
Even though Flemming's material is long gone by this time the plot in this film actually holds together quite well. Actually, in a way the plot borrows on the plot of Goldfinger replacing Gold with sand. This does hold the film together quite well. The biggest problem with this film is Tanya Roberts, on my list the second worst Bond girl. Trouble is there is nothing good to balance her here & since her poor performance dominates the film, we are stuck with her here.
(In case your wondering, the worst Bond Girl of the entire series is Lynn-Holly Johnson. In FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, Lynn proved she can't act, & couldn't even be a believable skater even though in real life she is one. Carol Bouquet balances her off because she is one of the best Bond women ever, because without her, Lynn would have killed the series off for Moore sooner.) Christopher Walken is good as the heavy in this. Grace Jones does a good turn as "Mayday" also.
Roberts is the reason this ended Roger Moore's reign as 007. Maybe this is a good thing, but I wish they could re-shoot it with another better actress (not Johnson) because this film is good. The scenery is good, and the rest of the cast brings this off well. The stunts in this one are top notch too. This film grows on you when you watch it. There are times when Moore's advanced age shows up plainly though.
Even though Flemming's material is long gone by this time the plot in this film actually holds together quite well. Actually, in a way the plot borrows on the plot of Goldfinger replacing Gold with sand. This does hold the film together quite well. The biggest problem with this film is Tanya Roberts, on my list the second worst Bond girl. Trouble is there is nothing good to balance her here & since her poor performance dominates the film, we are stuck with her here.
(In case your wondering, the worst Bond Girl of the entire series is Lynn-Holly Johnson. In FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, Lynn proved she can't act, & couldn't even be a believable skater even though in real life she is one. Carol Bouquet balances her off because she is one of the best Bond women ever, because without her, Lynn would have killed the series off for Moore sooner.) Christopher Walken is good as the heavy in this. Grace Jones does a good turn as "Mayday" also.
Roberts is the reason this ended Roger Moore's reign as 007. Maybe this is a good thing, but I wish they could re-shoot it with another better actress (not Johnson) because this film is good. The scenery is good, and the rest of the cast brings this off well. The stunts in this one are top notch too. This film grows on you when you watch it. There are times when Moore's advanced age shows up plainly though.
Seventh and last Bond-Moore entry with suspense, intrigue and unstopped action
ma-cortes20 June 2007
James Bond -Roger Moore- in his last appearance, the first was ¨Live and let Die¨ . This new mission takes him to France and USA ,where he must fight the stylish villainous Max Zorin (Christopher Walken). After an impressive adventure in the Arctic , extravagant agent OO7 is assigned by MI6 : M (Bernard Lee), Minister of Defence (Geoffrey Keen) , Q (Desmond LLewelyn) , to a dangerous mission , concerning microchips : It's a silicon integrate circuit essential to all modern computers , and until recently , all microchips were susceptible to damage from the intense magnetic pulse of a nuclear explosion . One burst in outer space over UK and everything with a microchip in it , from the modern toaster to sophisticated computers and the defence systems would be rendered absolutely useless . UK would be paralysed at the Russians mercy , that's why one of the private defence contractor , came up with this : a chip totally impervious to magnetic pulse damage . Placed on the micro-comparator and compared with the chip Bond recovered from the body of 003 in Siberia , bringing the two images together resulted are identical , six months ago a company was acquired by an Anglo-French combine , Zorin industries . Max Zorin is a perfect baddie, here is his biography (the film warns neither the name nor any other character is meant to portray a real company or actual person) : Born in Dresden , fled from East Germany in the sixties , ex-KGB agent , nowadays is immensely rich , he actually is a product of a genetic Nazi experiment , French passport , he's a leading French industrialist , a staunch anti-communist with influential friends in the government,speak at least five-languages , no accent , now he deals the Bourse and the City, made his first fortune in oil and gas and second in electric and hi-tech . Zorin celebrates a reunion with magnates , he explains them ¨the project main strike¨aboard a private blimp, they pay 100 million dollars , except one , who will be rewarded with unfortunate finale .Other characters are as follows : Stacey Sutton (a beauty Tanya Roberts) , a geologist in charge of supervision oil refineries , she discovers the Zorin plan : a bomb explosion and originate an earthquake destroying California's Silicon Valley . May Day (Grace Jones) , she's an art martial expert , similar Zorin , her origin is a genetic programme . Scarpine (Patrick Bauchau) is the Zorin's chief security , he's as baddie as him . Sir Godfrey Tibbett (Patrick Mcnee : Avengers) , MI6 agent accompanies to Bond , he's disguised as a chauffeur to enter the Zorin's properties .
Besides , there shows up habitual in Bond series : Louis Maxwell (MonneyPenny) , Geoffrey Keen , Desmond Llewellyn , Walter Gotell (General Gogol) and , adding , the gorgeous Bond girls : Fiona Fullerton , Alison Doody (Indiana Jones and the last Crusade) , among others . The highlights of the film are the following ones : the breathtaking May Day scape in parachute with pursuit by Bond , the horse races with continuous set ups against OO7 ; the Town Hall's burning with risked rescue of Stacey Sutton by James Bond , and, of course , the confrontation-denouement over San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge and fighting on a dirigible . The film contains action-packed , apocalyptic and overwhelming scenarios along with the typically glossy ingredients of the series , but Roger Moore looks a little boring , in fact it results to be his Bond's last film . It packs colorful , spectacular cinematography by Alan Hume and appropriate -as usual- musical score by John Barry . Main title song is catching and performed by Duran Duran . The motion picture was professionally directed by John Glen .
Besides , there shows up habitual in Bond series : Louis Maxwell (MonneyPenny) , Geoffrey Keen , Desmond Llewellyn , Walter Gotell (General Gogol) and , adding , the gorgeous Bond girls : Fiona Fullerton , Alison Doody (Indiana Jones and the last Crusade) , among others . The highlights of the film are the following ones : the breathtaking May Day scape in parachute with pursuit by Bond , the horse races with continuous set ups against OO7 ; the Town Hall's burning with risked rescue of Stacey Sutton by James Bond , and, of course , the confrontation-denouement over San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge and fighting on a dirigible . The film contains action-packed , apocalyptic and overwhelming scenarios along with the typically glossy ingredients of the series , but Roger Moore looks a little boring , in fact it results to be his Bond's last film . It packs colorful , spectacular cinematography by Alan Hume and appropriate -as usual- musical score by John Barry . Main title song is catching and performed by Duran Duran . The motion picture was professionally directed by John Glen .
Humorous final Bond film with Roger Moore.
OllieSuave-00724 February 2014
This is a humorous James Bond adventure, the last one to star Roger Moore as Agent 007. In this story, Bond returns from the USSR with a computer chip, which is immune to a nuclear electromagnetic pulse and was created by Max Zorin (Christopher Walken) of Zorin Industries. Bond discovers that Zorin is planning to set off an earthquake in San Andreas that will wipe out all of Silicon Valley.
There are some intense action scenes followed by a fast-paced and exciting plot by Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson. John Glen gave solid direction to this film.
Moore's continuing unique suaveness and charm as 007 kept this movie entertaining and, this being Moore's 7th and final appearance as 007, it appeared he was just having a blast for his farewell. I thought Moore added more humor and physical comedy in his acting, especially during the chase scene through a wedding party (Bond hands the wedding cake to the groom he had just accidentally smashed and says, "Congratulations!"). Max Zorin makes a ruthless and crafty villain, making you love to root against him. May Day (Grace Jones) proved to be a seductive but formidable opponent to Bond and Tanya Roberts makes a charming Bond girl.
Loaded with thrills and drama, this is a fine film that closes Moore's Bond saga.
Grade A
There are some intense action scenes followed by a fast-paced and exciting plot by Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson. John Glen gave solid direction to this film.
Moore's continuing unique suaveness and charm as 007 kept this movie entertaining and, this being Moore's 7th and final appearance as 007, it appeared he was just having a blast for his farewell. I thought Moore added more humor and physical comedy in his acting, especially during the chase scene through a wedding party (Bond hands the wedding cake to the groom he had just accidentally smashed and says, "Congratulations!"). Max Zorin makes a ruthless and crafty villain, making you love to root against him. May Day (Grace Jones) proved to be a seductive but formidable opponent to Bond and Tanya Roberts makes a charming Bond girl.
Loaded with thrills and drama, this is a fine film that closes Moore's Bond saga.
Grade A
Walken saves an otherwise forgettable Bond tale
Reef-Shark30 April 2009
I can say I am a Bond fan, seeing as I own twenty of the twenty-two movies currently on DVD (as of writing this review). So far the only film I haven't enjoyed in the series has been Roger Moore's Moonraker, just because of the over the top silliness and the obvious sell-out to appeal to moviegoers who had just seen Star Wars.
Upon seeing 'A View to a Kill' I instantly was prepared for the worst, and let me tell you this certainly is a bad Bond film. Moore is showing his obvious age, making the relations with his leading ladies undeniably awkward, to say the least. The plot is as simple as they come, and none of the actors are really given any chance with the dialogue they have been given. Moore has very few witty comments in this movie, and most of the other characters are cardboard cut outs.
One thing however manages to make this film better than Moonraker. This is the under-appreciated role of Max Zorin, played by the always wonderful Christopher Walken. I can say without a doubt in my mind that Walken is the single saving grace in this film, exhibiting everything any good Bond villain needs.
Exotic locations: Check! Unique henchmen/henchwoman: Check! Surrounded by beautiful girls: Check Cold and ruthless attitude: Double check! Heartless and chilling disregard for henchmen life: CHECK Walken, with a horrid script (every character in this movie is poorly written) is able to create one of the best Bond villains I've ever seen! The way he talks, the way he acts, everything he does showcases his undeniable talent. So for a movie like 'A View to a Kill' Walken's performance is like shifting through sewage and finding a large diamond ring.
It is because of Walken that I recommend this movie and give it a relatively good rating. Everything else about this film is really forgettable. You'd think a super-strong female henchwoman would make for a memorable moment in the franchise, but this is so poorly handled that she winds up as one of the most forgettable characters in the series, as opposed to one of the best.
Roger Moore, unfortunately, ends his career on Bond in perhaps his own worst performance, which is undeniably sad. It seems that all Bond actors seem to end their careers on the lowest of their films (Connery with 'Diamonds are Forever', Brosnan with 'Die Another Day', and though Dalton was a great Bond, I have to say 'License to Kill' was a weak film) but with those films it has always been more the scripts fault, as opposed to the actor's talent (all three tried their best with the material). Moore is just plain stiff in his last entry! The man seems to have totally lost interest in playing the character by this point.
I consider 1979's 'Moonraker' Moore's worst, but like 'Diamonds are Forever', and 'Die Another Day', Moonraker was more the fault of the script writers; not the Bond actor. In 'A View to a Kill' Moore really shows that he is no longer capable of playing the part, and that is the saddest part of the film (especially seeing Moore seducing girls much younger than himself, with his developing turkey neck becoming quite obvious). Walken makes the movie an enjoyable, B-grade action movie, but as for Bond, this is where it becomes an undeniable fact that Moore has overstayed his welcome as Agent 007.
Moore deserved a better ending, and the fact is that he just shouldn't have come back for this film. Octopussy may have actually been a decent departure, but Moore decided to try one last time and it really is the straw that breaks the Moore Bond's back. Enough was enough, and Moore failed to recognize when he should have cried "when!" I give this film a decent rating for the performance of Christopher Walken, but everything else is very low, and forgettable. Go and see it for Walken, but it is sad to see Moore's finally desperate breaths as he tries to keep the character going one last time.
Upon seeing 'A View to a Kill' I instantly was prepared for the worst, and let me tell you this certainly is a bad Bond film. Moore is showing his obvious age, making the relations with his leading ladies undeniably awkward, to say the least. The plot is as simple as they come, and none of the actors are really given any chance with the dialogue they have been given. Moore has very few witty comments in this movie, and most of the other characters are cardboard cut outs.
One thing however manages to make this film better than Moonraker. This is the under-appreciated role of Max Zorin, played by the always wonderful Christopher Walken. I can say without a doubt in my mind that Walken is the single saving grace in this film, exhibiting everything any good Bond villain needs.
Exotic locations: Check! Unique henchmen/henchwoman: Check! Surrounded by beautiful girls: Check Cold and ruthless attitude: Double check! Heartless and chilling disregard for henchmen life: CHECK Walken, with a horrid script (every character in this movie is poorly written) is able to create one of the best Bond villains I've ever seen! The way he talks, the way he acts, everything he does showcases his undeniable talent. So for a movie like 'A View to a Kill' Walken's performance is like shifting through sewage and finding a large diamond ring.
It is because of Walken that I recommend this movie and give it a relatively good rating. Everything else about this film is really forgettable. You'd think a super-strong female henchwoman would make for a memorable moment in the franchise, but this is so poorly handled that she winds up as one of the most forgettable characters in the series, as opposed to one of the best.
Roger Moore, unfortunately, ends his career on Bond in perhaps his own worst performance, which is undeniably sad. It seems that all Bond actors seem to end their careers on the lowest of their films (Connery with 'Diamonds are Forever', Brosnan with 'Die Another Day', and though Dalton was a great Bond, I have to say 'License to Kill' was a weak film) but with those films it has always been more the scripts fault, as opposed to the actor's talent (all three tried their best with the material). Moore is just plain stiff in his last entry! The man seems to have totally lost interest in playing the character by this point.
I consider 1979's 'Moonraker' Moore's worst, but like 'Diamonds are Forever', and 'Die Another Day', Moonraker was more the fault of the script writers; not the Bond actor. In 'A View to a Kill' Moore really shows that he is no longer capable of playing the part, and that is the saddest part of the film (especially seeing Moore seducing girls much younger than himself, with his developing turkey neck becoming quite obvious). Walken makes the movie an enjoyable, B-grade action movie, but as for Bond, this is where it becomes an undeniable fact that Moore has overstayed his welcome as Agent 007.
Moore deserved a better ending, and the fact is that he just shouldn't have come back for this film. Octopussy may have actually been a decent departure, but Moore decided to try one last time and it really is the straw that breaks the Moore Bond's back. Enough was enough, and Moore failed to recognize when he should have cried "when!" I give this film a decent rating for the performance of Christopher Walken, but everything else is very low, and forgettable. Go and see it for Walken, but it is sad to see Moore's finally desperate breaths as he tries to keep the character going one last time.
Moore's last Bond appearance
chris_gaskin12311 July 2005
A View To A Kill was to be Roger Moore's last James Bond movie and not his best either, but very enjoyable though.
Highlights of this movie include the sequence in Paris with Bond using a Renault 11 taxi which breaks into several bits and is still driving after this!. Also, the quarry sequence at the end and the final scene aboard the airship above the Golden Gate Bridge.
Joining Roger Morre in the cast are Christopher Walken who plays a great part as baddie Max Zorin who likes killing people, Patrick Macnee (The Avengers) and David Yip. The girls are played by Tanya Roberts, Grace Jones and Fiona Fullerton. Bond regulars Desmond Lleweyn and Lois Maxwell also star, along with Robert Brown as M for the second time.
A View To A kill is a must for all James Bond fans, even though it's not Moore's best.
Rating: 3 stars out of 5.
Highlights of this movie include the sequence in Paris with Bond using a Renault 11 taxi which breaks into several bits and is still driving after this!. Also, the quarry sequence at the end and the final scene aboard the airship above the Golden Gate Bridge.
Joining Roger Morre in the cast are Christopher Walken who plays a great part as baddie Max Zorin who likes killing people, Patrick Macnee (The Avengers) and David Yip. The girls are played by Tanya Roberts, Grace Jones and Fiona Fullerton. Bond regulars Desmond Lleweyn and Lois Maxwell also star, along with Robert Brown as M for the second time.
A View To A kill is a must for all James Bond fans, even though it's not Moore's best.
Rating: 3 stars out of 5.
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