A View To A Kill (1985)


 

Mission
Millionaire psychopath Max Zorin is the mastermind behind a scheme to destroy Silicon Valley in order to gain control over the international microchip market. With the countdown ticking toward a cataclysmic disaster, James Bond must stop this madman from achieving his goal.

Release Data
UK: 13th June 1985 (PG)
USA: 24th May 1985 (PG)
World Premiere: 22nd May 1985 (Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco, USA)
UK TV Premiere: 31st January 1990, ITV
US TV Premiere: 5th November 1987, ABC

Running Time: 127 minutes
Classification: PG (UK), PG (US)
Budget: $30m
Worldwide Box Office: $152.4m
US Box Office: $50.3m
US Admissions: 14.1 million
UK Box Office: N/A


Cast & Characters
James Bond
Roger Moore
Stacey Sutton
Tanya Roberts
Max Zorin
Christopher Walken
Mayday
Grace Jones
Sir Godfrey Tibbett
Patrick Macnee
Chuck Lee
David Yip
Scarpine
Patrick Bauchau
Achille Aubergine
Jean Rougerie
Dr. Carl Mortner
Willoughby Gray
Pola Ivanova
Fiona Fullerton
General Gogol
Walter Gotell
Sir Frederick Gray
Geoffrey Keen
M
Robert Brown
Miss Moneypenny
Lois Maxwell
Q
Desmond Llewelyn

Production
Producers: Albert R. Broccoli
Director: John Glen
Screenplay: Richard Maibaum, Michael G Wilson
Composer: John Barry

Locations
Siberia, Russia; London, UK; Ascot, UK; Paris and rural France; San Francisco and the Bay Area, USA.

Pre-Credits Sequence
Bond is in Siberia along with lots of Soviet ski troops who are after the same thing; a microchip on concealed on the snow covered body of a dead 00 agent. Bond is discovered and the scene turns into a running gun battle until he manages to steal snowmobile, which does not last long. After shaking off enemies and destroying a helicopter with a flare gun, the scene draws to an end with Bond entering a mini sub that is disguised as an iceberg. Bond finds a female accomplice inside and produces caviar and vodka for the long sail home.

 

Title
The title is taken from an Ian Fleming short story. Producers announced the film following Octopussy would be "From A View To A Kill", but dropped Fleming's "From" during production. The line is uttered by the villain as he presides over Silicon Valley from his airship.

 

Cut Scenes & Alternate Versions
A deleted scene presented on the DVD shows Bond being bailed out of a Paris jail by "M" following his taxi chase of May Day. The scene shows Bond collecting his personal effects, including the wristwatch with garrote wire from "From Russia With Love", an ink pen filled with acid, and a cigarette lighter that's a flame thrower.

The BBFC requested cuts to the film in 1985 for cinema exhibition, and this cut version was subsequently released on both video and DVD in the UK. Two kicks to the crotch were removed, and the image of a nude woman in the opening titles was altered to mask her nudity.

Producer Albert R. Broccoli later stated that the production suffered from studio budget cuts. One major scene that got the chop prior to shooting featured Q in the field with his "snooper" robot investigating Zorin's pumping plant.

Best Line
May Day: "Someone will take care of you!"
Bond: "You'll see to that personally will you?"

Best Mistake
When Stacey breaks a vase containing her grandfather's ashes over a thug's head, there are no ashes inside.

Distinguishing Feature
Christopher Walken is the only actor with an Oscar to have played a Bond villain.

Vital Statistics
Conquests: 4
Martinis: 0
Kills: 5
"Bond, James Bond": 2

MI6 Rating

Fan Rating

As voted in MI6's Fan Verdict poll

JAMES BOND WILL RETURN [IN "THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS"]

DVD cover image courtesy Amazon Associates