Licence to Kill Movie Review

Timothy Dalton's second (and final) Bond outing is mainly memorable for nothing in the film itself. The title, Licence to Kill, was a change from the original Bond story, Licence Revoked, when it was revealed that a large percentage of Americans didn't know what "revoked" meant. And then there was the issue of whether to spell the first word "licence" or "license." Ultimately less was said about the film, which is one of the least successful Bond movies ever at the box office, especially in adjusted dollars. The problem? The story isn't very Bond-like: He leaves MI-6 for most of the film to avenge best bud Felix Leiter's death at the hands of a drug kingpin while canoodling with Carey Lowell, a poor Bond girl choice if ever there was one. A cameo by Wayne Newton pushes the film into full-on kitsch, and many feared the series was dead after Licence's poor showing. It would be six years until the next film, GoldenEye, the longest period without a Bond release since the series began in 1963.

Aka License to Kill.

Bond #16.