Plot
An investigation of a horse-racing scam leads 007 to a mad industrialist who plans to create a worldwide microchip monopoly by destroying California's Silicon Valley.
Release Year: 1985
Rating: 6.2/10 (32,117 voted)
Director:
John Glen
Stars: Roger Moore, Christopher Walken, Tanya Roberts
Storyline James Bond has one more mission. Bond returns from his travels in the USSR with a computer chip. This chip is capable of withstanding a nuclear electromagnetic pulse that would otherwise destroy a normal chip. The chip was created by Zorin Industries, and Bond heads off to investigate its owner, Max Zorin. Zorin may only seem like a innocent guilty man, but is really planning to set off an earthquake in San Andreas which will wipe out all of Silicon Valley. As well as Zorin, Bond must also tackle May Day and equally menacing companion of Zorin, whilst dragging Stacy Sutton along for the ride.
Writers: Richard Maibaum, Michael G. Wilson
Cast: Roger Moore
-
James Bond
Christopher Walken
-
Max Zorin
Tanya Roberts
-
Stacey Sutton
Grace Jones
-
May Day
Patrick Macnee
-
Tibbett
Patrick Bauchau
-
Scarpine
David Yip
-
Chuck Lee
Fiona Fullerton
-
Pola Ivanova
Manning Redwood
-
Bob Conley
Alison Doody
-
Jenny Flex
Willoughby Gray
-
Dr. Carl Mortner
Desmond Llewelyn
-
Q
Robert Brown
-
M
Lois Maxwell
-
Miss Moneypenny
Walter Gotell
-
General Gogol
Filming Locations: 2201 Broadway, Oakland, California, USA
Box Office Details
Budget: $30,000,000
(estimated)
Opening Weekend: $13,294,435
(USA)
(27 May 1985)
(1 Screen)
Gross: $152,400,000
(Worldwide)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
Because of the unprecedented level of co-operation from the San Francisco authorities, producer Albert R. Broccoli insisted that the film's premiere take place in the city. It was held at the Palace of Fine Arts, and was the series' first World Premiere to be in the USA.
Goofs:
Factual errors:
When Bond and Sutton are on top of the burning elevator fire burns the cables and it falls down the shaft. In reality a Molotov cocktail can't produce enough heat to burn through heavy steel cables.
Quotes:
[first lines]
Kimberley Jones:
I thought you'd never get back. James Bond:
Well, there was a heck of a crowd on the piste!
User Review
Under-rated Bond entry.
Rating:
A View To A Kill seems to get more than its fair share of criticism. Often
it is labelled the weakest of the Bond entries, but I don't think this is
particularly true. Personally, I don't even rate it as the poorest of Roger
Moore's Bond outings, with Moonraker and The Man With the Golden Gun
standing out in my memeory as less memorable escapades than this
one.
It's Moore's final appearance as 007, and he is trying to prevent a
psychotic business magnate, Max Zorin (Walken) from destroying Silicon
Valley and cornering the world electronic market all for himself. To make
matters worse, Zorin is not your average adversary, since he was born as the
result of a Nazi doctor's scientific tamperings resulting in him being
hyper-intelligent but also uncontrollably murderous. The mission takes Bond
from Zorin's French chateau, to San Francisco, and ultimately to an
abandoned mine close to Silicon Valley, where Zorin plans to detonate a bomb
which will trigger a cataclysmic earthquake.
The set pieces are memorable, including a parachute pursuit from the Eiffel
Tower, a fire engine chase around the hilly streets of San Francisco, and an
airship crash on the Golden Gate bridge. Moore looks a bit old for the part,
and his sexual humour bears a greater emphasis than usual of the "dirty old
man" baggage. However, he still has an easy-going charisma and good comic
timing. Walken makes for a good, supremely confident villain, and is well
backed by the fearsome Grace Jones. However, Tanya Roberts might be a
gorgeous looker, but her Bond girl character is whining and screaming so
much in this film that she eventually wears out her welcome. The theme song
from Duran Duran is rather too '80s, but the instrumental music by John
Barry is stirring and dramatic.
I'm not sure what all the disappointment is about. A View To A Kill is an
above average Bond flick with plenty to keep you entertained.
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