By Sydney Simpson – Editor-in-Chief 

The final James Bond movie, “No Time to Die,” starring Daniel Craig, hit theaters earlier this month on October 8. This is Craig’s fifth and final 007 movie, as “No Time to Die” (which received a Rotten Tomatoes review of 84%) is set to be the finale to the 25 movie franchise. Beginning in 1963 with the release of “Dr. No” starring Sean Connery, the films have won an impressive five Academy Awards in their 58 years. The newest movie follows Bond as he is pulled out of his peaceful retirement by an old CIA friend, Felix Leiter, and helps to save the world yet again. 

Bond had left active service and was no longer a double 0; he was living a tranquil, calm life in Jamaica enjoying his retirement. Despite his efforts to stay off the grid, however, the theft of a weapon that can target a specific person through DNA brought Bond back into the scene where he worked with old friends Felix, Q, and Moneypenny. Bond also worked alongside a new character, Normi (his replacement at M16 as 007) played by Lashana Lynch. On this mission he was forced to not only reconnect with old friends, but with old relationships and old enemies as well. This movie is a direct sequel to the last James Bond film, “Spectre”, and has allusions to “Casino Royale” as Bond visits the grave of Vesper, his true love from that movie, in the beginning of this film.

“No Time to Die” is a fantastic wrap up of the film series, and pulls all the loose ends together. It is heart wrenching, dramatic, shocking, and intense all at once. Bond’s reconnection with Madeline Swann and his finally experiencing a family causes the audience to feel for him even more, and makes the decisions that he has to make seem that much more heavy. This is possibly Bond’s toughest mission, with such a complex, dangerous, and modernized weapon in the hands of a new villain. His origin story and his coincidental connection with Bond and Swann make the film that much more riveting and shocking. Furthermore, although this film has ties with the other 007 movies, viewers do not have to be an avid James Bond fan in order to watch and enjoy this thrilling film. Even with no prior knowledge of the character, one can appreciate Bond’s history as a 007 agent through the background information provided throughout the film in creative, non boring ways. “No Time to Die” may not be appropriate for all viewers, however, due to the amount of violence and discussion of more adult topics. 

All in all,  “No Time to Die” was an incredible final adventure of James Bond, effectively wrapping up the series of films while being able to keep viewers on the edge of their seats. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars