Tuesday, September 15, 2009

A View to a Kill

Sharon, Jack and I watched A View to a Kill during the Labor Day Weekend. Released in 1985, it is the fourteenth film of the James Bond series, and the seventh and last to star Roger Moore. 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.

Bond investigates a high-tech firm, Zorin Industries, and uncovers a plot to corner the market on microchips by manufacturing an earthquake that would drown Silicon Valley (and all of Zorin's competition).

In addition to Roger Moore as James Bond, the film stars Christopher Walken as Max Zorin, Grace Jones as May Day (Zorin's lover and chief henchwoman), Tanya Roberts as Stacey Sutton (granddaughter of an oil tycoon whose company is taken over by Zorin) and Patrick Macnee (from the Avengers!) as Sir Godfrey Tibbett.

This was last film to star Lois Maxwell as Miss Moneypenny. She played the role in fourteen films, from Dr. No (1962) until her final performance of the character in A View to a Kill (1985).

Much of the first half of the film was shot at Château de Chantilly in France. It is kind of an interesting location and I might add it to my places to try and visit someday.

I had not seen this Bond movie before and was looking forward to it. I enjoyed Christopher Walken in the film, but overall was very disappointed. Sharon and I had a spirited debate afterward about which of the Roger Moore films was the worst. She could not decide which one was worse between Live and Let Die, Moonraker and A View to a Kill. In general, I think that I enjoyed the Sean Connery films a lot more than the Roger Moore films.

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