Licence to Kill
James Bond is out on his own and out for revenge.
Licence to Kill (1989)
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Production
Budget
$40 000 000
Revenue
$156 167 015
Director
Scenario
Composer
Producer
Actors
Timothy Dalton
James Bond
Carey Lowell
Pam Bouvier
Robert Davi
Franz Sanchez
Talisa Soto
Lupe Lamora
Anthony Zerbe
Milton Krest
Frank McRae
Sharkey
Everett McGill
Killifer
Wayne Newton
Professor Joe Butcher
Short description
Licence to Kill follows James Bond after his friend Felix Leiter, a CIA agent, is attacked on his wedding day by the drug lord Franz Sanchez, who has escaped custody and takes brutal revenge on Leiter and his wife. With his licence to kill revoked, Bond sets out on his own to hunt Sanchez down and brings down his operation from within.
Timothy Dalton plays Bond for the second time, with Carey Lowell as Pam Bouvier, Robert Davi as Sanchez, Talisa Soto as Lupe Lamora, Anthony Zerbe as Milton Krest and Frank McRae as Sharkey. John Glen directed, working from a screenplay by Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson; Albert R. Broccoli and Wilson produced.
The film was the fifth Bond entry Glen directed, following For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, A View to a Kill and The Living Daylights. Made for 32 million USD and released in June 1989, it took 156 million USD worldwide. On IMDb it holds 6.7/10 from 120,000 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.4/10 from 2,250 votes; the critics' rating is 6.5/10 from 63 reviews, placing it in line with the audience scores rather than above them.
What's left behind the scenes
- The main post office building in Mexico City served as the Banco de Isthmus bank. The filmmakers contacted the management of the actual Bancomer bank for permission to film there, but were refused. The financiers feared that the money laundering shown in the film would damage the bank's reputation.
- Casinos were prohibited during the filming of the movie in Mexico.
- The name of the drug lord Franz Sanchez is a reference to Frank Sinatra (1915-1998). A close friend of producer Albert R. Broccoli and actor Robert Davi, Sinatra himself dreamed of playing the villain in one of the franchise's films.
- In scenes set in the United States, Carey Lowell, as Pam Bouvier, wore a wig. She then, as per the plot, went to a hair salon and subsequently appeared on screen with her “natural” short haircut.
- According to screenwriter Michael J. Wilson, Timothy Dalton himself ran away from the exploding tanker truck at the end of the film, not a stunt double.
- The old Ministry of Defence building near Westminster served as the location for the MI6 headquarters and Universal Exports. The building can be seen in the films 'Octopussy' (1983), 'A View to a Kill' (John Glen, 1985), 'The Living Daylights' (John Glen, 1987), and this film. It is located near other locations where 'Bond' scenes were filmed – for example, the Heraldry College in 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service' (Peter R. Hunt, 1969), the subway station exit in 'Skyfall' (Sam Mendes, 2012), Westminster Bridge in 'The World Is Not Enough' (Michael Apted, 1999), 'Die Another Day' (Lee Tamahori, 2002), and 'SPECTRE' (Sam Mendes, 2015).
- Unpainted fishing lures served as "larvae" in the research center scenes at Milton Crest.
- John Rhys-Davies was offered an episodic role as General Pushkin, but the actor was busy filming the adventure film "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" (Steven Spielberg, 1989) and declined the offer.
- Dario aims a Walther P5 (developed in 1979 for the West German police) at James Bond. Agent 007 himself used the same pistol in the films 'Octopussy' (John Glen, 1983) and 'Never Say Never Again' (Irvin Kershner, 1983).
- Albert R. Broccoli (1909-1996), the producer of all films in the series, became seriously ill during filming. The thin Mexican air adversely affected his health, and Broccoli left the set with his wife Dana and daughter Barbara. Thus, the film “Licence to Kill” was the last James Bond film he worked on.
- For the scene where he escapes from the prison van underwater, actor Robert Davi had to take several diving lessons.
- At the age of 21, Benicio del Toro (full name – Benicio Montserrat Rafael del Toro Sánchez) became the youngest actor to play a villain in a James Bond film.
- Felix Leiter's bride's wedding dress was made of French lace with small pearls and opalescent glitter. Two dresses had to be made because the scene of the criminals attacking the Leiter house was filmed before the wedding scene.
- The last film in the Bond series directed by John Glen.
- Two teams were used in the clashes between James Bond and criminals at sea and underwater. Timothy Dalton himself participated in the surface battle, while Arthur Wooster led the team. The second team operated underwater and consisted only of experienced divers.
- A dummy head, created by the props department from casts of Anthony Zerbe's face—the actor playing Crest—was used in the scene of Milton Crest’s death in the caisson chamber. The explosion of the “head” from the pressure difference was filmed, but the result was so gruesome that it was decided not to show it on screen to avoid problems with the American Film Association.
- Initially, the film was intended to take place in China. Screenwriters Richard Maibaum (1909-1991) and Michael J. Wilson wrote two scripts where James Bond was to fight a drug lord from the 'Golden Triangle' countries. Action scenes would have included a motorcycle chase along the Great Wall, as well as a fight among the terracotta warriors of the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty. Due to the strict conditions imposed by the Chinese government, the idea of filming in China had to be abandoned.
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