Review by Leonard Norwitz
Studio:
Theatrical: MGM Pictures
Blu-ray: MGM Home Entertainment
Disc:
Region: A
Runtime: 128 min
Chapters: 32
Size: 50 GB
Case: Standard Blu-ray case w/ slipcover
Release date: March 24, 2009
Video:
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Resolution: 1080p
Video codec: AVC @ 25 MBPS
Audio:
English DTS HD 5.1 Master Audio. Spanish & French 5.1 Dolby
Surround
Subtitles:
English SDH, Spanish, Korean, Cantonese & Mandarin
Extras:
• Audio Commentary by Director Michael Apted
• Audio Commentary with Peter Lamont, David Arnold & Vic
Armstrong
• The Making-Of The World is Not Enough (15:06)
• James Bond: Down River (25:04)
• The Secrets of 007 (22:31)
• Creating an Icon: Creating the Teaser Trailer (4:26)
• Music Video by Garbage (4:01)
• Hong Kong Press Conference (9:46)
• Tribute to Desmond Llewelyn (3:22)
• Deleted, Extended and Alternate Scenes with Introductions
by the Director (12:49)
• Alternate Angle Scenes (8:27)
The Film:
6
The first batch of James Bond films on Blu-ray from MGM
included the final Pierce Brosnan film as 007: Die Another
Day. This second group includes Brosnan's previous movie:
The World is Not Enough. The plot, this time around, blends
one of the staples of the genre, the theft of nuclear
material, with an important contemporary concern: energy. In
this case, control of that most durable of geopolitical
resources: oil.
The concern at the beginning of the movie is somewhere else
entirely, or so it would seem: the successful return of
money used for the ransom of the beautiful heiress, Elektra
King (Sophie Marceau). When her father is killed in the
bargain, Elektra assumes control of her father's work to
complete a competing pipeline across the Caucasus. Bond and
MI6 become convinced that not only will there be another
attempt on Ms. King's life, but the likely assassin is the
man who kidnapped her in the first place, Renard (Robert
Carlyle).
Bond is assigned to protect Elektra, who is generally
dismissive of his intentions since, as she sees it, it was
M's initial response to her kidnapping that led to her
father's death. Other figures emerge: Valentin Zukovsky
(Robbie Coltrane), a casino owner and ex-Russian mafia who
may have information about Elektra's most recent attackers
and, later on, Dr. Christmas Jones (Denise Richards – harder
to believe than the most far-fetched of Q's toys) an
American nuclear scientist working at an old ICBM base in
Kazakhstan.
Aside from Ms. Richards (and the painfully absent chemistry
between her and Brosnan), The World is Not Enough boasts a
strong supporting cast, though I can't say that it came to
much. One villain in the person of Robert Carlyle should
have been enough, but this movie has two, the other being an
even more formidable opponent than Carlyle, if you can
imagine such a thing. As it happens it is easy to imagine,
since Carlyle's characteristic sadistic sneer and explosive
personality is given a holiday in this movie.
Judi Dench returns as M (after coming on board in the role
along with Brosnan in GoldenEye.) And Desmond Llwelyn, after
17 films as "Q" passes the baton on to John Cleese (as "R"?,
Brosnan wryly asks.) Robbie Coltrane (whose character,
Zukovsky, we first met in GoldenEye) was seen as Falstaff in
Kenneth Branagh's Henry V and would later go on to play
Rubeus Hagrid in the Harry Potter films. But it was in the
mid-1990s British TV series, Cracker, that as Dr. Eddie "Fitz"
Fizgerald he found a role suitable to his immense talent.
Sophie Marceau made her mark on the international stage in
1995 at 29 as Princess Isabelle in Mel Gibson's Braveheart,
having already had 15 years experience in French films.
I felt Pierce Brosnan to be the most convincing and engaging
post-Connery Bond until Daniel Craig. I say this, though the
older I get, the more I like Roger Moore. Moore may not be
my idea of Bond exactly, but he makes entertainment out of
formula. Though a little lightweight, Brosnan has wit,
charm, and is comfortable in the action sequences. GoldenEye
proved all that. Brosnan always had looks, he even looked
great disheveled and unshaved as he does when released from
a North Korean prison in Die Another Day. Craig, on the
other hand, shows us a hard case Bond. Craig's Bond is
really not all that much fun, but he has guts, intensity and
determination. He's out to prove something from deep in his
core, and he has the scars – emotional and physical – to
show for it. Brosnan will likely be the last of his kind, so
enjoy him while you can.
Image:
7/9
The first number indicates a relative level of excellence
compared to other Blu-ray video discs on a ten-point scale.
The second number places this image along the full range of
DVD and Blu-ray discs.
The World is Not Enough on Blu-ray looks good, but not
exciting. Regardless of location, indoors or out -
especially in comparison to the simultaneously released
Goldfinger and Moonraker - there is a kind of contrast
compression as if in attempt to deal with hugely variable
lighting condition, such as apply during the Thames River
chase. This condition is likely pre-transfer. The transfer
itself blemish and artifact-free, with just enough shadow
information in the dark and dimly lit scenes, of which there
are many. The World is Not Enough demands that the image
does not blow itself out either in the snow or on the
Thames. The projected image has sufficient detail,
regardless, though we never get to see very deeply into many
of the interiors, I assume by design.
Audio & Music:
7/7
Considering the relatively recent vintage of this movie, I
was surprised by its relative lack of pizzazz. Focus,
dynamic contrast, LFE, even surround location cues – all
struck me as less than what I thought I should expect.
Dialogue is clear enough, as was the music, but when either
or both is blended with the effects track I felt immersed
but unclear. Neither the whizzing front to back speeding
boats or helicopters are clearly located.
Operations:
5
MGM's menu for all the Bond films on Blu-ray, while quick to
load, are clumsy and arcane, with vague and arbitrary titles
like "Declassified: MI6 Vault" "Mission Control" "Mission
Dossier". Why so obscure? Why are some features under one
category and not another? Additionally, whenever you return
to the main menu, you find yourself not where you left off,
but at the beginning.
Extras:
5
Considering how recent this film is, The World is Not Enough
does not seem to get the full Extra Features treatment. None
of them are in high def and only two, I thought, are worth
investigating: "James Bond Down River" is all about the
filming of the boat chase on the Thames and what the crew
had to go through to make it happen, including getting the
cooperation of the Thames River Master. The 22-minute
feature "The Secrets of 007" came as a surprise. It's a
self-guiding tour of the stunt work in Bond films from
Connery to Brosnan. Storyboards, live action
behind-the-scenes footage, and the finalized scenes are
imaginatively woven together in a short film as informative
as it is entertaining.
The Tribute to Desmond Llewelyn is simply a short pastiche
of Q moments over Llewelyn's many Bond films. The music
video, performed by the dangerously named "Garbage," had
great potential simply by relying entirely on imagery
generated by the song and the creative talents of the
producer, but before long toileted itself with the
introduction of material from the movie – on split-screen,
no less. Coward!
Bottom line:
6
The Blu-ray is good, but not exemplary on the usual counts
(image, sound and extras). Given Amazon's present discount
of better than 50%, 007 completists will be hard pressed not
to pick it up. But except for Sophie Marceau, a woman of
fascinating and unusual beauty, I can't say I was much
intrigued.
Leonard Norwitz
April 3rd, 2009