Skyfail: The 5 Worst James Bond Films

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by Oliver Lyttelton
November 7, 2012 3:05 PM
37 Comments

"Licence To Kill" (1989)
A good couple of decades before the trend for darkness in franchise pictures came about thanks to "Batman Begins" and co., Timothy Dalton's Bond saw an attempt to reinvent the franchises after diminishing returns in the Moore era by returning to relative realism, with a more character-driven approach. Dalton's debut, 1987's "The Living Daylights" isn't a classic, but it's a decent attempt at melding a Bond for the 1980s with the classic template. Unfortunately, things tipped too far the other way with the actor's second and final spin at 007, 1989's "Licence To Kill." The story did at least take the franchise to new places: after an attack on his U.S. liaison friend Felix Leiter and his wife, 007 goes rogue, resigns, has his licence to kill revoked, and sets out on a mission of revenge. Inspired by hardcore R-rated '80s action movies like "Lethal Weapon," this is a dark and violent Bond (it had to be edited down from an R in the U.S. and remains the only 15-rated entry in the series in the U.K.), with exploding heads, bullet impacts, and severed legs. But from the off -- which sees Leiter's wife raped and murdered, and the DEA agent fed to a shark -- it leaves a deeply sour taste in the mouth. Indeed, between the revenge plot and the coke-dealing villains, the film barely feels like a Bond movie at all; you could swap in Arnold Schwarzenegger or Sylvester Stallone and the film might as well be a "Commando" or "Rambo" sequel. There's one impressive action sequence near the end (the tanker chase), but ultimately there's very little to like here, beyond an expanded role for Desmond Llewelyn's Q. It's a shame Dalton didn't get a third stab, because he was a fairly decent Bond. But hey, at least he got to be Mr. Pricklepants.

"Die Another Day" (2002)
Pierce Brosnan was a well-liked Bond who proved to be an inspired choice for the character, helping revive the franchise and take it to new box-office heights. But it's a shame that his films got gradually worse as time went on, from the excellent "Goldeneye," diminishing returns seemed to hit every time he was at bat. Things reached rock bottom with Brosnan's final entry, "Die Another Day," a CGI-stuffed misjudged mess that, in the same year as upstarts "The Bourne Identity" and to a lesser extent "xXx," tried to get with the times, but ultimately made the franchise look like your dad in a ponytail and a leather jacket. Things start off promisingly. After an impressive hovercraft-based action scene, Bond is actually captured, tortured and left a bearded, bedgraggled burn-out, traded back to the MI6 only reluctantly. From there, however, it goes rapidly downhill: a hammy villain (Toby Stephens) with a ludicrous sci-fi tinged plot, a would-be counterpart to Bond in the shape of Halle Berry that mostly made the audience question why she'd won an Oscar only a few months earlier, pop-culture baiting stunt casting in the form of a shoehorned-in Madonna, and a creaky script that trades in single entendres more than bona-fide innuendo. Worst of all, having kept mostly to practical stunts in the earlier films, the film sees Bond embrace the age of CGI and overblown set pieces, with an invisible car and some dreadful effects that sees a 16-bit Bond surfing a melted ice wave. Director Lee Tamahori went on to make "xXx2: State Of The Union" starring Ice Cube next. That's arguably a better Bond movie than this.

"Quantum Of Solace" (2008)
Daniel Craig's first entry, "Casino Royale," suggested a franchise that had been successfully reinvented. At the time, the biggest hit ever in the series, and critically acclaimed, it showed that the filmmakers were learning from the success of rivals like Bourne, without slavishly copying. Were we in for a new golden age of Bond movies? As "Quantum Of Solace" proved two years later, not so much. In advance, it looked promising: an acclaimed filmmaker in the shape of "Finding Neverland" director Marc Forster, a script again polished by Oscar-winner Paul Haggis, 'Bourne' genius Dan Bradley as second-unit director, and the first Bond movie in history to pick up the threads of a storyline from a previous film. Unfortunately, the film was rushed into production because of the impending writer's strike, and the result was an insipid, half-hearted and, frankly, dull entry that dissipated any goodwill from "Casino Royale." Plotwise, the film sees Bond attempting to track down the organization, Quantum, that killed his love Vesper Lynd, but things are swiftly sidetracked by his discovery of a nefarious plan by faux environmentalist Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric). Having apparently learned nothing from the mockery pointed George Lucas' way when he made the plot for "The Phantom Menace" revolve around trade embargos, Greene's scheme involves him trying to win a utillities contract in Central America, which has to be the dullest Bond plot in history. And while Amalric's a great actor, he's given very little to work with, hardly seeming a physical match for Craig in their final square-off. Most crucially of all, Forster has no feeling for how to shoot an actual sequence. Choppy, line-crossing cutting, overuse of CGI doubles and impossible camera shots, plus an inability to handle geography making it the most incoherently shot film in the history of the franchise. Craig is fine, and Olga Kurylenko makes a spirited Bond girl (Gemma Arterton's "Goldfinger"-homaging cameo less so), but one can only be thankful that the makers of "Skyfall" learned from the mistakes here.

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37 Comments

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Vitor | April 11, 2013 8:30 PMReply

Only "Day Another Day" deserves to entry in this shit list. The man who made this doesn't understand a few about Bond.
Danybe | April 2, 2013 5:10 PMReply

This list is crazy. License to Kill and Quantum of Solace are fantastic!
raoul | January 26, 2013 5:58 AMReply

licensed to kill is easily in the TOP 5! Dalton is the closest actor to play the character imagined by Flemming! Plus the vilain is outstanding! We have a deeper relatable Bond who wants to avenge Felix! Please....3 movies that make your list are Brosnan movies
Rune Naljoss | December 28, 2012 12:55 PMReply

The two reasons Quantum of Solace isn't in fact the worst Bond, are "Die Another Day" and "A View to a Kill" (although I understand why "Moonraker" stands in for all that's problematic with Moore's Bond). Qos is a still-born victim of the writer's strike, edited like a video game for ADD sufferers, without any plot worth speaking of, fake tans, and gratuitous anti-iconic moments for Bond that are more heavy handed than the cliches they meant to supplant or poke fun at. The writer is spot on with "half-hearted ... dull entry that dissipated any goodwill from "Casino Royale.""
JMan | November 28, 2012 5:07 PMReply

LICENCE TO KILL and QUANTUM OF SOLACE don't belong on a worst of the series list. The other three are fine picks. Others like A VIEW TO A KILL, MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN, and OCTOPUSSY would've been more fitting than those aforementioned two.
Spy | November 12, 2012 11:44 PMReply

View to a Kill is the worst.
nightgoat72 | November 12, 2012 12:46 AMReply

I really enjoy Diamonds are Forever and Moonraker, but I can understand why people hate them. The other three, I cannot defend. They'd make my list as well. Though personally, I think Skyfall is a new low for the series. A total mess.
Lucy | November 11, 2012 7:21 PMReply

I don't understand the hate on Quantum I liked it and I really loved Olga Kurylenko's character. Yes the plot isn't the best but it's definitely not one of the worst.
Chrisco | November 11, 2012 2:52 PMReply

I agree only by half. Die Another Day and Moonraker were indeed bad. Even though Halle Berry was hot as hell there and Moonraker had a nice setting (space and everything), both premises were completely ridiculous. I don't think that QoS, DaF and LtK are bad. Especially License to Kill was nearly as awesome as Skyfall. I'm also kinda surprised Live and Let Die isn't on the list.
chris | November 11, 2012 1:21 AMReply

SKYFALL IS A GARBAGE FILM WITH NO SOUL.
WASTE OF MONEY IF CONSIDERED... 4/10
David | February 12, 2013 11:02 AM

Amazingly bad!
Chrisco | November 11, 2012 2:47 PM

you not liking is your problem and does not make it garbage
Skyfall was amazing!
shark | November 9, 2012 12:07 AMReply

This is a bad list. Quantum is bad, but not THAT bad, and Licence to Kill is one of my favorite Bond movies because it's so awesomely 80's. Also, Moonraker's a lousy pick for worst Moore Bond film when A View to a Kill and The Man With the Golden Gun exist.
Worst:
1. Die Another Day
2. The Man With the Golden Gun
3. A View to a Kill
4. Diamonds Are Forever
5. Octopussy

just outside the list
6. Quantum of Solace
7. Moonraker
8. The World is Not Enough
9. Dr. No
All of the others I really kind of love.

Moore is interesting because I think he had three good ones (Live and Let Die, Spy Who Loved Me, For Your Eyes Only), three bad ones, and one that I find endlessly entertaining but abysmal (Moonraker).
Christopher-J | November 8, 2012 7:42 PMReply

I can see what people are saying about them picking the worse of each Bond, except poor, lonely Lazenby. (Definitely poor, since he could have made some good coin if he had stuck around for even one more film. But I think he made the right choice to bail considering.) That said, they couldn't have made this list if they had included a film from each Bond actor, because On Her Majesty's Secret Service is one of the best Bond films. Granted, it's a personal favorite of mine, but I'd say it should easily be any "Top 5" list. If only they had continued the series by continuing Bond's story from the end of that film. And with Lazenby. Could have had a few great entries before switching up. I also have to say that The Man With the Golden Gun is, IMHO, a terrible Bond film. The book wasn't that hot to begin with, but the film is simply painful for me to watch. Anyhoo...
poo poo | November 8, 2012 7:33 PMReply

kaka
bb | November 8, 2012 12:58 PMReply

Quantum is definitely deserving of more scorn. Total trash.
Rohan | November 8, 2012 5:21 AMReply

I should point out that Diamonds Are Forever gets 31/2 stars in the Maltin guide ("great fun"). The worst thing for me was that the assassins didn't even make an effort to be plausibly gay, but were content to be archetypal "pansies". (One of the actors was a noted jazz bassist - he really should have known better.)

I read somewhere that Pierce Brosnan put on so much weight during "Die Another Day" that the costume people started calling it "Diet Another Day".
nechoplex | November 7, 2012 9:53 PMReply

You guys dropped the ball with naming Quantum of Solace one of the worst Bond films. Now that is ridiculous. It is certainly a weak entry, but no horrible. It is better than most action films and I always thought that Craig's performance in it was very interesting. He took Bond to a darker much colder path that I haven't seen in any other Bond rendition. I wished that had been explored a bit further, but those glimpses were still welcoming hints at something interesting.
Shayne | November 18, 2012 2:55 PM

Quantom was one of the biggest snorfests I've ever seen. It was so bad I wanted to give up on the franchise.
Scott | November 7, 2012 11:26 PM

I think they just picked the worst movie from each Bond (Except Lazenby because he only had one) because a real worst james bond list would be predominantly Roger Moore films.
Chris138 | November 7, 2012 9:38 PMReply

Licence to Kill is where it's at. Easily one of the best Bond movies to date. I agree with the other choices though, especially Moonraker and Die Another Day.
Ugh | November 7, 2012 7:53 PMReply

This isn't a Bottom 5 Worst Bond list. Be real. This is just cherry picking the Worst Bond film by every Actor who has played Bond (Lazenby aside). Be honest when you name a list. If you had called "Worst Film by Every Multiple Film Bond Actor" then you'd be right. 'Quantum of Solace' isn't great, nor is 'Diamonds Are Forever' but in a series that includes 'Octopussy' & 'The World is Not Enough' you can't call them among the five worst. Shame on you.
Felix jones | November 7, 2012 5:00 PMReply

Quantum of solace isn't as bad as everyone claims. The action is decent and while the plot is poor, you could say the same for all bonds.
Alan | November 7, 2012 7:10 PM

Thank you. I hate the idea of defending 'Quantum', but the suggestion that it is one of the worst five Bond films is ridiculous. For any that disagrees, rewatch 'Thunderball', a film taht is 60% underwater action sequences.
Caleb | November 7, 2012 3:31 PMReply

Moonraker and Quantum are awesome Bonds. Moonraker might be outlandish, but it is jaw-droppingly absurd fun. The Quantum of Solace bashing needs to stop. It had some issues with editing and an unfinished script they were locked into, but lined up against the rest of the series it's easily one of the best.
mpbstereo | November 7, 2012 9:09 PM

I'm 100% on board with James' assessment... QoS gets undue grief.
James | November 7, 2012 4:27 PM

No he's not out on an island. Everyone is falling onto the QOS-is-shit bandwagon without really thinking about the film. Yeah, the villain's scheme was a bit boring and the plot was a little convoluted, but the film is elegant. The action sequences are spectacular yet quick (none of these bloated set pieces that drag on), the titles for each location were artistically done, as were the opening credits (Skyfall's were dreadful -- looked like a cheap fun house) and let's not forget nuanced scenes like the opera sequence in Austria. Plus the globe-trotting was pure escapist fun, exactly what a Bond movie is supposed to be. I think fans of the series will come around on QOS like they did OHMSS.
KT | November 7, 2012 3:46 PM

You're out on an island with that opinion.
Thom | November 7, 2012 3:21 PMReply

And the backlash against Skyfall begins. Nicely written piece but there are some of us who wholeheartedly embrace Skyfall not only as the best Bond to date - but one helluvah great movie.
James | November 7, 2012 11:42 PM

Oops, I was tired when I read your comment earlier and thought you were saying Quantum of Solace was the Best Bond film, lol. Disregard my other comment below, haha.
Christian | November 7, 2012 3:37 PM

It's just pathetic. Every ambitious action tentpole somehow has to be ripped apart on the Internet. It' pathetic because it's a desperate reaction against what's mainstream and, dare I say it, common sense. Skyfall is not only the best Bond film ever made, it's also one of the best action films I've ever seen.
James | November 7, 2012 3:35 PM

"Best Bond to date"? I think you'll find yourself with few people backing you up on that one. I didn't think it was as wretched as some people did - the locations were pretty and the photography nice, but it certainly was incoherent, having something do with water or oil or something and with a final scene ripped straight from The Bourne Supremacy, as if its Bourne debt weren't obvious enough in all the Dan Bradley directed action scenes.
Zatopek | November 7, 2012 3:19 PMReply

License to Kill is better than Skyfall. While not a great film, it's still a better attempt at the dark brooding Bond that Daniel Craig is trying to do over two decades later. 007 in Skyfall was just psychotic.
Truecoat | November 9, 2012 10:38 AM

I only remember License to Kill as one of the worst Bond movies. That was my initial opinion when I saw it in the theater. It just didn't seem like a Bond movie at the time but I need to rewatch it and see how I feel. On the other hand, I just rewatched Living Daylights and it did not age well. I thought I liked this movie but on this viewing it really falls flat. Interesting on the whole Soviet-Afghanistan plot, especially with the drug angle. Bond fighting along side the Talaban? Who knew? I guess Rambo did the same in Rambo 3.

I still have a soft spot for Moonraker. I know the plot is outlandish but it is grand in design. It has the all the Bond trappings...great locales (France via California, Venice, Brazil, Amazon, and space), great stunts (the opening stunt wasn't equaled for many movies) and a murderous (x100) plot. I remember being impressed with the space shuttle effects at the time. I know, they aren't great in this day and age but the shuttle didn't actually fly for almost 2 years after the release of Moonraker. So, not too bad for the times considering no one had seen a shuttle take off before. For me, Moonraker was my favorite Moore Bond movie.
Fred | November 8, 2012 12:11 PM

One more plug for Licence; might add that I personally feel that Die Another Day is the only irredeemably bad movie on this list.
Kyle | November 7, 2012 9:29 PM

License to Kill is one of the best Bond films. I've never really understood how it can be criticized for making the Bond series darker and edgier when Casino Royale is praised for doing the exact same thing. If LtK feels like a generic late-80s revenge action flick then CR is just a generic mid-00s Bourne ripoff.
JD V | November 7, 2012 4:35 PM

I'll second the praise for License To Kill, although I'm not gonna try to claim it as a great movie or anything. But it's far from one of the worst Bonds. Glad to see that even an article claiming it as such still admits how great the tanker chase is, though. That part rules. : )