The Rewatch Podcast: RW345 - James Bond Rewatch

In this episode of the James Bond 007 Rewatch, Cory and Nathan start to take thing personally as they discuss "License to Kill."

Trailer:

The Music of License to Kill:

Initially Vic Flick, who had played lead guitar on Monty Norman's original 007 theme, and Eric Clapton were asked to write and perform the theme song to Licence to Kill and they produced a theme to match Dalton's gritty performance, but the producers turned it down and instead Gladys Knight's song and performance was chosen. The song (one of the longest to ever be used in a Bond film) was based on the "horn line" from "Goldfinger", seen as an homage to the film of the same name, which required royalty payments to the original writers. The song gave Knight her first British top-ten hit since 1977. The end credits feature the Top 10 R&B hit "If You Asked Me To", sung by Patti LaBelle.

John Barry was not available at the time due to throat surgery, so the soundtrack's score was composed and conducted by Michael Kamen, who was known for scoring many action films at the time, such as Lethal Weapon and Die Hard. Glen said he picked Kamen, feeling he could give "the closest thing to John Barry."

Our Favourite Trivia:

Licence to Kill was the first film in the series to not use the title of an Ian Fleming story. Although its plotline is largely original, it contains elements of the Fleming novel Live and Let Die and the short story "The Hildebrand Rarity", interwoven with a sabotage premise influenced by Akira Kurosawa's film Yojimbo.

Originally titled Licence Revoked in line with the plot, the name was changed during post-production due to American test audiences associating the term with driving.

Licence to Kill was the fifth and final consecutive Bond film to be directed by John Glen, as well as the last to feature actors Robert Brown as M and Caroline Bliss as Miss Moneypenny, and the final Bond film to utilise the services of screenwriter Richard Maibaum, title designer Maurice Binder, and producer Albert R. Broccoli before Maibaum and Binder's deaths in 1991, and Broccoli's passing in 1996.

Budgetary reasons resulted in Licence to Kill becoming the first Bond film to be shot entirely outside the United Kingdom: principal photography took place on location in Mexico and the US, while interiors were filmed at Estudios Churubusco instead of Pinewood Studios. The film earned over $156 million worldwide, and enjoyed a generally positive critical reception, with ample praise for the stunts, but attracted some criticism for its significantly darker tone than its predecessors, which carried into Dalton's portrayal of the character.

For the primary location, the producers wanted a place where the series had not yet visited. While China was visited after an invitation by its government, the idea fell through partly because the 1987 film The Last Emperor had removed some of the novelty from filming in China. By this stage the writers had already talked about a chase sequence along the Great Wall, as well as a fight scene amongst the Terracotta Army.

After Carey Lowell was chosen to play Pam Bouvier, she watched many of the films in the series for inspiration. Lowell had described becoming a Bond girl as "huge shoes to fill", as she did not see herself as a "glamour girl", even coming to audition in jeans and a leather jacket. Lowell wore a wig for the early scenes but uses her own hair style in the later scene after she is sent by Bond to buy new clothes

It is widely and incorrectly rumored that this was Timothy Dalton's last James Bond film due it being financially disappointing. In reality, Dalton was to star in a third James Bond film after this one, titled "Property of a Lady". However legal issues with MGM beginning that year created long delays and Dalton's contract expired in 1994. John Landis, Ted Kotcheff and John Byrum were all under consideration to direct.

What's Up Next?

The 80's has closed out on Bond and so has a era in style of storytelling. But the memories lived on and were lovingly parodied in our next series rewatch, "Austin Powers."