@@postersandstuff I like them equally, depending on what mood I'm in. But you're correct, as a piece of writing, TLD is better - probably because its springboard was a Fleming short story.
I personally feel like "Licence to Kill" has gotten a bit of a critical evaluation over the years after the release of "Casino Royale", although not quite to the degree of "On Her Majesty's Secret Service", but still I am glad that the film is getting more love over the years for being a bit more beyond the surface than your average 007 flick with how it explores the idea of loyalty.
I remember it being looked at as too "American" or "The Miami Vice Bond". I think it took too many liberties with the formula for most critics at the time (and perhaps also the general audience). It's always been my favourite since I first saw it though.
@@victorvalentin5148 That bit was honestly weird, why didn't they kill Leiter? They had his legs chewed up by sharks in an aquarium by the marina and then brought him back to his home and left him on the couch for Bond to discover? Anyway great bond movie, my #1 or #2. Dalton is a riveting actor.
@@KomackinoA It's not weird, Sanchez literally explains it during the shark scene. "There are worse things than dying, old man" He wants to leave him crippled and his life ruined so he lives the rest of his life in pain and sorrow rather than just killing him, to send a message to any other cops and agents that might try to go after him. He just didn't bank on a rogue James Bond being Leiter's best mate and not even thinking twice about ditching his job just to go after him like no other agent ever legally could. However, I do agree it was a poor choice to have him looking so cheerful at the end, despite the weeks that have passed. That was purely in the performance and delivery though, as the same dialogue could easily have been delivered very differently. I assume someone high up in the studio decided they couldn't end a Bond movie with any pain and sorrow, so told them Felix had to be more cheerful at the end. Poor choice, especially given how dark and violent the rest of the film is.
I always felt like LTK's first act felt more like Miami Vice/Lethal Weapon than Bond, but Sanchez is easily one of the most intimidating villains in the series so there's that. Also glad to see Gladys and her song get the recognition it deserves. What a tune!
I am a big fan of the Dalton era. You can see by the look on his face after he tells off Saunders in the car (Living Daylights) that this is not your father's 007. This is as close to Fleming's vision as the movie makers would ever get.
Based on everything that I’ve read, Dalton’s Bond was by far the closest to the source material of the Ian Fleming novels. (With the surprisingly good Lazenby coming in close second) this was in large part to Dalton’s perfectionism. He would literally have the bond novels on hand and be reading them between scenes to bring his performances more in line with that of the source material. It’s why he put the nuance of a guy who has seen and done really bad things to complete his missions, and is now kinda burnt out by it all. How his interactions with Kara are mainly as a means to an end to track and take down her double agent boyfriend. They rank up there with my other favorite bond movies From Russia with Love, (probably Connery’s best bond film imo, simply for the intrigue and the down to earth gadgets) and On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.(for similar reasons)
I've always liked Kara Milovy. She's an innocent pawn who spends most of the movie not really knowing exactly what the hell is going on and gets dragged around to 5 (by my count) different countries during the course of the film. But she rolls with the punches and becomes, in my opinion, one of the better Bond girls.
Licence to kill is one of my favourite Bond films and has the best intro to the main theme. I'm a musician but the way the music segues from the wedding march to the theme song brings me to tears every time I hear it. It was a totally amazing piece of arranging. Robert Davi is a far more credible villain than many, while Carey Lowell was gorgeous. After the madcap years of Roger Moore, it was great to have a Bond close to the original Fleming character. I would have loved Timothy Dalton to carry on for a few more films but the 6-year hiatus between "Licence to Kill" and "Goldeneye" led him to take on other roles.
I'm generally surprised at his comment on the lame scores. Living Daylights is Barry's Magnam Ops IMO, (all 3 of his last bond scores are great) and Licence to Kills Bond theme is a banger.
Dalton was ahead of its time, he's basically Daniel Craig two decades early. Truth is, they were all good in different way, it makes no sense to compare Bond actors or arguing which one was better. We all have a favorite for different reasons but you can't say one is better than the other. This is gonna sound like blasphemy but Connery was not my favorite, he was too far away from my time. I grew up with Moore, then Brosnan and if I had to pick a third it'll probably be Dalton.
I mean the character was written in the 50s and developed from that sense. I mean Judi Dench's M literally calls him a "misogynistic dinosaur" and a "relic of the Cold War". Honestly, Bond is a reflection of the times in a way; therefore, Bond changes. I don't think his misogynistic nature would've worked for Brosnan/Craig's era which is why you can see the character go through some changes.
Well the character was written in the 1950s, and acts as somewhat of a projection of Ian Fleming’s personality, and he probably wasn’t the most progressive person, when compared to today’s standards. He’s a product of his time, and therefore, so is Bond.
@@danyt1232 Fleming was a product of the bygone British upperclass, a family that surrounded itself with aristocrats and Lords (his father was a member of the House of Commons and a friend of Churchill). Of course he created Bond as man of British supremacy.
Great video! Two points I'd like to make. Soundtrack: The Living Daylights is much better than License To Kill. Why? Mostly because it's the last Bond score by John Barry. Point two: One of my favorite things about Licence To Kill is Desmond Llwylenn gets the most screen time as Q in all of the Bond movies he appeared in. How could you NOT love LTK for that reason alone?
It feels out of character for Q to help Bond when his aid isn't sanctioned by his boss & to jeopardize his job to help a spy who he was probably always hoping would either quit or be fired because he had been such a thorn in his side ever since Goldfinger.
I loved these two films! Timothy Dalton is my second favourite Bond actor. Sean Connery being my favourite. I love how they took bond to much darker places! Especially in licence to kill.
So many people just gloss over these films when they're honesty pretty solid. Thanks for giving them the respect they deserve and not just totally bashing Living Daylights in comparison to License.
Simply put, Timothy dalton is one of the best bonds, if not the best. And also both his two bond movies are also among the best of them all, he looked the part, acted the part, he was the part.its just such a shame that he didn't do any more .
Great comparison video! I like both, Bond #15 and Bond #16 very much! But, TLD is better! It's the best Bond film EVER!!! Best pre-credit sequence, best song, best story, best Bond, best Bond-girl. Yeah, I really like Maryam d'Abo! And I don't know, why so many people hate the villains of this film!? I think that all three: Jeroen Krabbe, Andreas Wisniewski and Joe Don Baker are good in their parts. And of course, film has such a beautiful finale in Vienna Opera, where Kara meets Bond in her dressing room... I think, TLD is much more glamorous than LTK. LTK looks a little bit cheaper, I guess...
I have no nostalgia for the film as I only saw it when I bought the whole blu ray set, and it’s definitely my favourite too, how’s he just gonna call necros a crappy villian like cmon man did he even watch that scene its my favourite action scene with the disguises, fighting an agent in the kitchen, the milk bottles and the escape, one of the most badass villians!
I used to like Living Daylights much more, but after rewatching Licence to Kill recently, they both rank at about the same level. TLD is the better Bond movie, the formula executed almost flawlessly... but LTK is the better *movie*, probably *because* it diverts from the formula and presents something different.
Really cool to see a deep dive into two of the less discussed films! I love your read on the Bond/villain chemistry in License. Please do your top 10 list!
Dalton is my fave Bond and love both films. The first is more of a cold war/spy type while the second more action oriented. My opinion why Licence didn't do as well in the box office is 1: that summer was packed with blockbusters. Remember the juggernaut that was Batman? Squashed all competition around it including other hits like Indiana Jones 3, Ghostbusters 2, Lethal Weapon 2 & Star Trek 5. Licence had no chance and got swamped. 2: The producers were pretty cheap when it came to advertising, should have been up there with the other hits previously mentioned. Maybe it should have kept away from those summer films and be released around Christmas. Maybe it would have been the only blockbuster around that period and cleaned up at the box office. Either way Dalton was underrated. Craig is playing it the same way; dry humour, gritty badass spy. He's my 2nd fave after Dalton.
These movies are often overlooked due to the fact that there's 22 other films in the series surrounding them. There's people that don't even know these movies exist. If the living daylights and licence to kill were movies of their own without being linked to the bond franchise they probably would've received better reviews from both critics and fans. But because Dalton's dark and serious take on the character came right after the tongue in cheek take from Moore. People just weren't expecting it and obviously weren't ready for it. If these movies followed darker films like OHMSS or For Your Eyes Only things might've been different. But overall these movies including OHMSS are absolute gems of the franchise and each have their own identity!
It's also a fact that the most popular things are more homogeneous and bland. To be frank, even Craig's latest Bond movies, which are very successful, I find ultimately homogenous and bland in terms of movies today. Skyfall was just a very expensive and desperate attempt to replicate Christopher Nolan basically - I personally find it one of the most overrated Bond films ever with a weak villain (a wasted use of Bardem), forced plot and a Bond who just looks and behaves like a miserable, stiff and awkward Russian henchman, not 007.
Thanks for another great video. Ive heard that Goldeneye waz developed specifically with Dalton in mind, and wonder if that would've been his break out portrayal of 007. Goldfinger, spy who loved me, skyfall, third times often the charm.
Timothy Dalton is my favourite bond. As for the movies I remember loving The Living Daylight when I saw it at the movies but I remember being very disappointed after seeing Licence. The second half of the movie feels and looks like a bad TV special. TLD is easily in my top 5, maybe even top 3. And Dabo is one of the first faces that come up in my mind when I think of bond girls. Iconic if you ask me.
I liked your video because Dalton is my favourite Bond. However you completely lost me when you reduced Necros to ‘a villain who carries balloons’. I think if you had the start of Living Daylights with the end of Licence, Necros with the Licence baddies and the Bond girls from Licence too you would probably have the perfect Bond movie!
"Ghetto Blaster" is still used to refer to boom boxes. In the modern context, it suggests that the blaster is ghetto, not that it is blasting ghettoes.
Dalton was supposed to do Goldeneye. They wanted him to be available to do a couple more after Goldeneye too. Dalton felt he was getting too old and wanted to do just Goldeneye as his last Bond film. They didn't agree for him to make only 1 film after a 6 year Bond hiatus, and so went with Brosnan.
@@DRu.913 that's true and a shame as he still looked young enough to play bond even in the early 2000s when bronsnan made his last film. I would say dalton would of definitely been too old to play casino royale. But all the previous ones he could of still played
@@80skid83 yea I could easily see Dalton as the face of the 90s Bond that I would grow up with. Him & the new technology in 90s cinema, he would've been great! I really wish we got to see what Dalton's goldeneye version would be! Not only Dalton vs Bean (006) but Dalton vs Judi Dench as M would prove interesting. The scene in particular where M calls Bond a dinosaur & a relic of the Cold War, Brosnan is dominated & only says "point taken". I think Dalton wouldn't have backed down & instead replied with a witty remark because Dalton's Bond was quick on wit. We'll never know!
3:18 - whilst I agree with the perspective to a degree; I ultimately put his response down to his outrage at yet another one of his friends being murdered by these people. He doesn't doubt his capabilities; but his recklessness in that moment was about revenge rather than cold, surreptitious secret agent logic. He just wanted to end that SOB 'compliments of Sharkey!'
Connery and Dalton are the best Bonds with Craig in a close third. I would give Lazenby more credit but its hard to judge based on one very good film with an outstanding supporting cast, I feel like if he signed the contract he would have ended up getting some Moore films which are fun but I don’t take as serious films.
Mr. Conger, your James Bond comparisons are - bar none - my favorite RUclips movie reviews. The sequence at 3:35 summarized everything I’ve enjoyed from Dalton’s Bond since I was a kid. Keep ‘me coming sir.
Licence to Kill and Goldeneye are my top 2 Bond films of all time. The Living Daylights is also a favourite, but the plot is a little sloppily executed and the villains are a bit annoyingly performed. LTK is tighter, the villain is one of the best of any Bond film, the ex-army pilot Bond girl Pam Bouvier is genuinely cool and strong without being annoying or lame and the whole motivation of Bond from finding Felix mutilated and his wife raped and murdered is very powerful and really draws you in. Prefer whichever Bond you like, but Dalton was the best actor to ever play the role and felt fully rounded, believable, dangerous yet also human and likable. He also looked exactly right for the character. Craig I actually find very overrated - stiff, awkward, perpetually angry and miserable and he just does not look like James Bond (something I've tried to, but just can't see past).
Both films are flawed, but also very different, and compliment each other nicely. But the one consistent element is Dalton, who doesn't put a foot wrong, and helps make them more than just half-decent 80s action movies. I think overall I prefer License To Kill; it has more edge and as you say it gets better as it goes along.
@@postersandstuff and when you really gotta think about Bruce Lee, he has passed away Timothy Dalton is still alive and he can still play James Bond. It’s just that he’s too old to do it now and that is for the fans and for the franchise
Your commentary is hysterical. I peed myself laughing at "he ran out of shits to give before the opening credits." And, by the way, Timothy is my FAVORITE Bond. He is much more like the character in the original books. Besides the fact that he is GORGEOUS! I just now finished watching Daylights, and now I'm going on to LIcense.
The Living Daylights is way superior. Its not even a contest from my point of view. Licence to Kill is too americanized and just doesn't have that Bond feeling.
I think Licence is better. the movie gets better and better as it goes. I know it's a bit different but I think that's a good thing so we don't have 25 movies that are all the same.
@SSWestraX A few people have mentioned its similarity to Miami Vice. I never thought of it that way, but it makes sense, especially with Sanchez. Thanks for commenting!
To be honest, I think that’s the point of Licence to Kill. I think the point is, it’s not a fantastical adventure. Bond isn’t here to make quips and go to outer space. It’s Bond at his most ruthless and vindictive. He’s avenging the only true friend he has in the world who’s marriage was ruined just like his. It could be personal catharsis which has eluded Bond since he lost Tracy.
Both are top notch Bond films. I think they're equally good in different ways. Living Daylights has a better plot and License to Kill has better action scenes. I'm always going back and forth on which one I like more. Depends on what kind of mood I'm in.
Timothy Dalton will always be the best and most accurate portrayal of Bond from the novels. The Living Daylights is one of my favorite Bond films. Also John Barry’s last and best Bond score.
This is actually a video I've been looking forward to! I have a very interesting history with these two particular bond films. Living Daylights is one of the earlier bond films I watched at around age 14 or 15, while License to Kill was the very last Bond film I watched when I finally did a marathon at around age 25 or 26 (well last in terms of older Bond films). After I finally watching it I really felt I missed out on Lisence to Kill, and it's now one of the series highlights for me, primarily for the interactions between Bond and Sanchez. It's been a couple years since I last watched it, off to make the time in the next couple days to give it another viewing. Thanks for another great video. I love this series and I'm down to see a top ten villains or ten henchmen video!
Hey, thanks for commenting. Let me know what you think of LTK on a more recent viewing. It isn't perfect, but I do feel it improves as it goes on. The Sanchez/Bond dynamic is also the highlight for me.
Timothy Dalton was an excellent James Bond. The best after Sean Connery. License to Kill despite it's flaws is one of the top five best Bond films in the series.
Thanks for your excellent review. I had more issues with the editing in 'Licence' than 'Daylights', although the trip from the airfield to the Afghan stronghold and back makes that film overlong. I wonder what Stuart Baird would have brought to the franchise at that point in time? Also 'Daylights' seems to be designed to feature an 'as yet to be cast' Bond. There's hand to hand combat and greater physicality, but there's also the gadget filled car. It seems like the makers were covering all bases. I think overall 'Licence' is the better film, but it doesn't mine its story as coherently as it could. There are several obvious plot issues that make the story seem untidy and lacking in realism. One is how Bond is just able to deposit and withdraw a huge sum of money without drawing unwanted attention to himself. Usually in a film that would be a way of deliberately announcing to the villain that you're in town and getting their undivided attention.
One point: it might be surprising if Sanchez' 'facilities' weren't used by a lot of crooks to hide/launder ill-gotten money, so perhaps all concerned were just used to it.
License to kill felt like a big screen Miami Vice, only, without the style. Living Daylights has one of John Barry's best scores along with View to a kill & You only live twice. TLD was also the last Bond where the main henchman actually cared about his own demise, like odd job in Goldfinger when bond got hold of his hat & unlike Tomorrow Never Dies when the henchman seem rather non plused that a rocket was being ignited on him. I liked Dalton as bond. 👍
License to Kill did what Diamonds are Forever failed to do. Avenging someone you cared for. License to Kill is the better film with better dialogue. The Living Daylights is a good film but it cannot compare with License to Kill. License to Kill is considered a classic ever since Craig has been doing Bond.
As much as I like Craig, it bugs me that people act like he introduced the gritty take on the Bond character when Dalton pioneered it. It's such a shame that we got screwed out of a 1991 and 1993 movie.
Nah. The Living Daylights was WAY better than Licence to Kill. I'm completely bored of all the anti-drug plotlines that were so prevalent in the 80's and 90's, and I also hated everything about the slimy televangelist middle man. The Living Daylights used the Cold War as its backdrop, which is much more interesting to me.
TLD and LTK are easily in my Top 5 Bond films. Timothy Dalton is my fave Bond. I mean, how can you not love this line: 'It';; take him about 10 seconds to reach us. Plenty of time for a sniper to make strawberry JAM of him!'
Licence to kill is definitely my favourite bond film, gritty and core. It's such a shame Property of a land never mad it passed the drawing board. Timothy Daulton may be the least popular bond, but he's my favourite. He really pulled it off well and I think he was the best. My favourite Pierce Brosnan film is the world is not enough. There is a film based on licence to kill in 1975 called the second best spy in the world, also a lot of the films were made into audio books, there are also other bond films out there, 1 casino royale in 1967, 2 casino royale 1954, 3 Moonraker by warwick studios in 1959 and never say never again.
*TLD is one of the best movies of the 007 franchise.* *And LTK is the most underrated 007 movie.* *Timothy Dalton was Great but the people and audience was not ready.*
I never saw any of the Dalton era movies. I started with Brosnan and only went back to watch Connery and Roger Moore eras because people talked about them the most. I may check out License to Kill though, since it sounds interesting from your description.
Dalton is easily my favourite Bond. Love both films, but LTK is one of my favourite films of any genre of all time. The end chase with the tankers (despite questionable rules of physics) is beyond greatness.
None of them excells at action?! Bond hanging on top of a car, the escape on Morocco and the plane scene on The Living Daylights are great. Appart from the cartoony bar fight License to Kill has some of the best stunts/action scenes on the series. I'm watching the fan favorites/most acclaimed 007 films before "No Time to Die", and I'll dare to say the 2 Dalton films are very superior to the whole Roger Moore/Austin Powers era hands down.
If there was a much smoother transition into The Dalton Phase or a long wait I feel like his movie would’ve been much better received like Craig is now for doing the most identical performance to Dalton. But both of Dalton’s Bond films are acceptable entries but suffered from bad marketing and the jarring transition from the camp Moore films.
My Top 10 Bond Villains list is online! Check it out at ruclips.net/video/6C5KidVQa38/видео.html&t= and comment with your own list as well.
A tip : watch movies on Flixzone. Been using it for watching lots of of movies during the lockdown.
@Bishop Gianni definitely, I've been watching on flixzone for years myself :)
- Living Daylights has a better plot
- License to Kill has better action scenes
Both are top notch Bond films. Equally good in different ways.
Exactly.
@@pmgodfrey5203 LTK theme was just average , i much preferred TLD theme
@@postersandstuff I like them equally, depending on what mood I'm in. But you're correct, as a piece of writing, TLD is better - probably because its springboard was a Fleming short story.
@Daniel Jaramillo "worst of humanity"🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Must be a cringy Roger moore fan, who made James bond character nothing but a clown.
Licence to Kill also had better girls and a better main villain
I personally feel like "Licence to Kill" has gotten a bit of a critical evaluation over the years after the release of "Casino Royale", although not quite to the degree of "On Her Majesty's Secret Service", but still I am glad that the film is getting more love over the years for being a bit more beyond the surface than your average 007 flick with how it explores the idea of loyalty.
I remember it being looked at as too "American" or "The Miami Vice Bond". I think it took too many liberties with the formula for most critics at the time (and perhaps also the general audience). It's always been my favourite since I first saw it though.
Timmy Dalton is a great actor. I love his take on Bond.
Love his work in the series ‘Chuck’
@@livingeveryday777 I've never seen that series. What's it about?
The best Bond in my opinion.
Dalton. A great bond.
The best
felix wasn’t murdered. he shows up at the end of the film.
Kaelin Denton thanks dude he didnt see the movie bc felix didnt die his wife did
@@victorvalentin5148 That bit was honestly weird, why didn't they kill Leiter? They had his legs chewed up by sharks in an aquarium by the marina and then brought him back to his home and left him on the couch for Bond to discover? Anyway great bond movie, my #1 or #2. Dalton is a riveting actor.
And he's extremely light hearted. Maybe no one told him his wife was dead...
@@KomackinoA It's not weird, Sanchez literally explains it during the shark scene. "There are worse things than dying, old man" He wants to leave him crippled and his life ruined so he lives the rest of his life in pain and sorrow rather than just killing him, to send a message to any other cops and agents that might try to go after him. He just didn't bank on a rogue James Bond being Leiter's best mate and not even thinking twice about ditching his job just to go after him like no other agent ever legally could.
However, I do agree it was a poor choice to have him looking so cheerful at the end, despite the weeks that have passed. That was purely in the performance and delivery though, as the same dialogue could easily have been delivered very differently. I assume someone high up in the studio decided they couldn't end a Bond movie with any pain and sorrow, so told them Felix had to be more cheerful at the end. Poor choice, especially given how dark and violent the rest of the film is.
@@KomackinoA it’s a reference to Live and Let Die where Felix suffers the same fate and has a hook hand for the rest of the series.
I always felt like LTK's first act felt more like Miami Vice/Lethal Weapon than Bond, but Sanchez is easily one of the most intimidating villains in the series so there's that. Also glad to see Gladys and her song get the recognition it deserves. What a tune!
I actually made a top 10 Bond villains video recently. You should check it out! Sanchez may make an appearance
@@ClearCritique Films:
The Living Daylights < Licence to Kill
Title Songs:
"The Living Daylights" by A-Ha > "Licence to Kill" by Gladys Knight
@@thomasanderson2757 Agreed
I am a big fan of the Dalton era. You can see by the look on his face after he tells off Saunders in the car (Living Daylights) that this is not your father's 007. This is as close to Fleming's vision as the movie makers would ever get.
Based on everything that I’ve read, Dalton’s Bond was by far the closest to the source material of the Ian Fleming novels. (With the surprisingly good Lazenby coming in close second) this was in large part to Dalton’s perfectionism. He would literally have the bond novels on hand and be reading them between scenes to bring his performances more in line with that of the source material. It’s why he put the nuance of a guy who has seen and done really bad things to complete his missions, and is now kinda burnt out by it all. How his interactions with Kara are mainly as a means to an end to track and take down her double agent boyfriend.
They rank up there with my other favorite bond movies From Russia with Love, (probably Connery’s best bond film imo, simply for the intrigue and the down to earth gadgets) and On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.(for similar reasons)
I've always liked Kara Milovy. She's an innocent pawn who spends most of the movie not really knowing exactly what the hell is going on and gets dragged around to 5 (by my count) different countries during the course of the film. But she rolls with the punches and becomes, in my opinion, one of the better Bond girls.
Licence to kill is one of my favourite Bond films and has the best intro to the main theme. I'm a musician but the way the music segues from the wedding march to the theme song brings me to tears every time I hear it. It was a totally amazing piece of arranging. Robert Davi is a far more credible villain than many, while Carey Lowell was gorgeous. After the madcap years of Roger Moore, it was great to have a Bond close to the original Fleming character. I would have loved Timothy Dalton to carry on for a few more films but the 6-year hiatus between "Licence to Kill" and "Goldeneye" led him to take on other roles.
I'm generally surprised at his comment on the lame scores. Living Daylights is Barry's Magnam Ops IMO, (all 3 of his last bond scores are great) and Licence to Kills Bond theme is a banger.
Dalton was ahead of its time, he's basically Daniel Craig two decades early. Truth is, they were all good in different way, it makes no sense to compare Bond actors or arguing which one was better. We all have a favorite for different reasons but you can't say one is better than the other. This is gonna sound like blasphemy but Connery was not my favorite, he was too far away from my time. I grew up with Moore, then Brosnan and if I had to pick a third it'll probably be Dalton.
Bond isn't a PC character so I hate when people highlight his misogynistic traits as 'not aging well' etc. That's the character
Agree George. I personally love this type of Bond more than the modern day PC characters
I mean the character was written in the 50s and developed from that sense. I mean Judi Dench's M literally calls him a "misogynistic dinosaur" and a "relic of the Cold War". Honestly, Bond is a reflection of the times in a way; therefore, Bond changes. I don't think his misogynistic nature would've worked for Brosnan/Craig's era which is why you can see the character go through some changes.
Well the character was written in the 1950s, and acts as somewhat of a projection of Ian Fleming’s personality, and he probably wasn’t the most progressive person, when compared to today’s standards. He’s a product of his time, and therefore, so is Bond.
@@danyt1232
Fleming was a product of the bygone British upperclass, a family that surrounded itself with aristocrats and Lords (his father was a member of the House of Commons and a friend of Churchill).
Of course he created Bond as man of British supremacy.
Lols @ the pathetic moral panic of wimps today, worried about phrases like "ghetto blaster"...and "just let it happen". The Church Ladies are back.
Personally, I like The Living Daylights song the most. Not because it's the most Bond-ish, just the better track.
Great video! Two points I'd like to make. Soundtrack: The Living Daylights is much better than License To Kill. Why? Mostly because it's the last Bond score by John Barry. Point two: One of my favorite things about Licence To Kill is Desmond Llwylenn gets the most screen time as Q in all of the Bond movies he appeared in. How could you NOT love LTK for that reason alone?
It feels out of character for Q to help Bond when his aid isn't sanctioned by his boss & to jeopardize his job to help a spy who he was probably always hoping would either quit or be fired because he had been such a thorn in his side ever since Goldfinger.
The soundtrack for tld is better because it sounds better okay
I loved these two films! Timothy Dalton is my second favourite Bond actor. Sean Connery being my favourite. I love how they took bond to much darker places! Especially in licence to kill.
Connery, dalton, Craig definitely top 3 imo
@@80skid83Craig is the worst.
1. Timothy Dalton
2. Sean Connery
3. Roger Moore
4. Pierce Brosnan
5. George Lazenby
6. Daniel Craig
So many people just gloss over these films when they're honesty pretty solid. Thanks for giving them the respect they deserve and not just totally bashing Living Daylights in comparison to License.
Simply put, Timothy dalton is one of the best bonds, if not the best. And also both his two bond movies are also among the best of them all, he looked the part, acted the part, he was the part.its just such a shame that he didn't do any more .
Dalton's Bond was ahead of its time. Things Craig was acclaimed for, Dalton gave us 20 years prior.
I think the Bond acting was at its best in the Licence to Kill, I mean seriously he is more ruthless, cold blooded and is unhinged
I think that licence to kill is the far superior film.
Dalton was excellent
Great comparison video! I like both, Bond #15 and Bond #16 very much! But, TLD is better! It's the best Bond film EVER!!! Best pre-credit sequence, best song, best story, best Bond, best Bond-girl. Yeah, I really like Maryam d'Abo! And I don't know, why so many people hate the villains of this film!? I think that all three: Jeroen Krabbe, Andreas Wisniewski and Joe Don Baker are good in their parts. And of course, film has such a beautiful finale in Vienna Opera, where Kara meets Bond in her dressing room... I think, TLD is much more glamorous than LTK. LTK looks a little bit cheaper, I guess...
Oh yeah I would love to see your Top 10 Bond villains list.
Me, too!!
@@covermeportkins Working on it now!
My top 10 bond villains video is on my channel. You should check it out and comment with your list!
Dalton played bond they way a British state assassin should be. Serious and deadly.
Overall, I feel The Living Daylights is a better movie, however, License to Kill is far more entertaining to watch. Both are really solid movies.
Films:
The Living Daylights < Licence to Kill
Title Songs:
"The Living Daylights" by A-Ha > "Licence to Kill" by Gladys Knight
Living Daylights is my fav. All based on nostalgia... But man with exploding milk bottle was sooo cool as a 9y/o
I have no nostalgia for the film as I only saw it when I bought the whole blu ray set, and it’s definitely my favourite too, how’s he just gonna call necros a crappy villian like cmon man did he even watch that scene its my favourite action scene with the disguises, fighting an agent in the kitchen, the milk bottles and the escape, one of the most badass villians!
the living daylights is one my top 5 favorite bond movies
I used to like Living Daylights much more, but after rewatching Licence to Kill recently, they both rank at about the same level. TLD is the better Bond movie, the formula executed almost flawlessly... but LTK is the better *movie*, probably *because* it diverts from the formula and presents something different.
Living daylights. Absolutely more classic Bond .
Living Daylights is Indiana Jones The Last Crusade. License To Kill is Miami Vice
His interpretation of the character is more faithful to the Ian Fleming novels
Really cool to see a deep dive into two of the less discussed films! I love your read on the Bond/villain chemistry in License.
Please do your top 10 list!
I did the villain list on my channel recently. Let me know what you think of it! Glad you enjoyed the video.
Nice video, I agree in most of the things you said, but I still liked the romance in Living Daylights.
Dalton is my fave Bond and love both films. The first is more of a cold war/spy type while the second more action oriented. My opinion why Licence didn't do as well in the box office is 1: that summer was packed with blockbusters. Remember the juggernaut that was Batman? Squashed all competition around it including other hits like Indiana Jones 3, Ghostbusters 2, Lethal Weapon 2 & Star Trek 5. Licence had no chance and got swamped. 2: The producers were pretty cheap when it came to advertising, should have been up there with the other hits previously mentioned. Maybe it should have kept away from those summer films and be released around Christmas. Maybe it would have been the only blockbuster around that period and cleaned up at the box office. Either way Dalton was underrated. Craig is playing it the same way; dry humour, gritty badass spy. He's my 2nd fave after Dalton.
I think people were just way use to roger Moore bonds campy style..people just weren’t ready for a more serious take on the character in my opinion
License to Kill was a great honeymoooooooon to Living Daylights.
Love it.
These movies are often overlooked due to the fact that there's 22 other films in the series surrounding them. There's people that don't even know these movies exist. If the living daylights and licence to kill were movies of their own without being linked to the bond franchise they probably would've received better reviews from both critics and fans. But because Dalton's dark and serious take on the character came right after the tongue in cheek take from Moore. People just weren't expecting it and obviously weren't ready for it. If these movies followed darker films like OHMSS or For Your Eyes Only things might've been different. But overall these movies including OHMSS are absolute gems of the franchise and each have their own identity!
It's also a fact that the most popular things are more homogeneous and bland. To be frank, even Craig's latest Bond movies, which are very successful, I find ultimately homogenous and bland in terms of movies today. Skyfall was just a very expensive and desperate attempt to replicate Christopher Nolan basically - I personally find it one of the most overrated Bond films ever with a weak villain (a wasted use of Bardem), forced plot and a Bond who just looks and behaves like a miserable, stiff and awkward Russian henchman, not 007.
What would be a great idea is comparing Dalton and Craig. They are both very similar in terms of bringing more a brutal take on the character.
Really like these videos. Keep up the good work!
Thanks for another great video. Ive heard that Goldeneye waz developed specifically with Dalton in mind, and wonder if that would've been his break out portrayal of 007. Goldfinger, spy who loved me, skyfall, third times often the charm.
Timothy Dalton is my favourite bond. As for the movies I remember loving The Living Daylight when I saw it at the movies but I remember being very disappointed after seeing Licence. The second half of the movie feels and looks like a bad TV special. TLD is easily in my top 5, maybe even top 3. And Dabo is one of the first faces that come up in my mind when I think of bond girls. Iconic if you ask me.
I'd forgotten Robert Davi was a bond villain. He plays a good villain in Stargate Atlantis too.
Both are Top 10 Bond films imo. License To Kill is my favourite Bond film.
I like Timothy Dalton as James Bond. I like both he did. I think it's a shame he couldn't get a 3rd movie in as Bond.
Both Dalton films were amazing and they could not be more different. One is a spy film, the other an action movie.
The sniper scene after the concert at the beginning of TLD is my favourite scene in the entire franchise.
So fun to watch.
I liked your video because Dalton is my favourite Bond. However you completely lost me when you reduced Necros to ‘a villain who carries balloons’. I think if you had the start of Living Daylights with the end of Licence, Necros with the Licence baddies and the Bond girls from Licence too you would probably have the perfect Bond movie!
Dalton was the ultimate Bond by far
Honestly Living Daylights is like #5 or something for my favorite James Bond list
"Ghetto Blaster" is still used to refer to boom boxes. In the modern context, it suggests that the blaster is ghetto, not that it is blasting ghettoes.
Yeah lol. He was really trying to get offended over something but was ignorant.
I think if he got more films he could have really shined
He did shine in both films...What are you on!?
GoldenEye would've been the best Bond film if Dalton played Bond in it. Timothy Dalton up against Sean Bean would've been killer.
Dalton was supposed to do Goldeneye. They wanted him to be available to do a couple more after Goldeneye too. Dalton felt he was getting too old and wanted to do just Goldeneye as his last Bond film. They didn't agree for him to make only 1 film after a 6 year Bond hiatus, and so went with Brosnan.
@@DRu.913 that's true and a shame as he still looked young enough to play bond even in the early 2000s when bronsnan made his last film. I would say dalton would of definitely been too old to play casino royale. But all the previous ones he could of still played
@@80skid83 yea I could easily see Dalton as the face of the 90s Bond that I would grow up with. Him & the new technology in 90s cinema, he would've been great!
I really wish we got to see what Dalton's goldeneye version would be! Not only Dalton vs Bean (006) but Dalton vs Judi Dench as M would prove interesting. The scene in particular where M calls Bond a dinosaur & a relic of the Cold War, Brosnan is dominated & only says "point taken". I think Dalton wouldn't have backed down & instead replied with a witty remark because Dalton's Bond was quick on wit.
We'll never know!
In my opinion, License to Kill is the BEST 007 film of them all.
3:18 - whilst I agree with the perspective to a degree; I ultimately put his response down to his outrage at yet another one of his friends being murdered by these people. He doesn't doubt his capabilities; but his recklessness in that moment was about revenge rather than cold, surreptitious secret agent logic.
He just wanted to end that SOB 'compliments of Sharkey!'
Connery and Dalton are the best Bonds with Craig in a close third. I would give Lazenby more credit but its hard to judge based on one very good film with an outstanding supporting cast, I feel like if he signed the contract he would have ended up getting some Moore films which are fun but I don’t take as serious films.
I love Dalton's Bond and his two films, however, I prefer The Living Daylights. But both films are great in my opinion.
Best Bond
Best Bond, closest to the book and top 3 Bond film. Licence was Casino Royale before Casino Royale.
License to kill is a top 3 Bond.
Both have great action scenes, but the LTK's triple action sequence of underwater fight to ski-less water skiing to plane fight is awesome!
Mr. Conger, your James Bond comparisons are - bar none - my favorite RUclips movie reviews. The sequence at 3:35 summarized everything I’ve enjoyed from Dalton’s Bond since I was a kid. Keep ‘me coming sir.
Thanks!
Licence to Kill and Goldeneye are my top 2 Bond films of all time. The Living Daylights is also a favourite, but the plot is a little sloppily executed and the villains are a bit annoyingly performed. LTK is tighter, the villain is one of the best of any Bond film, the ex-army pilot Bond girl Pam Bouvier is genuinely cool and strong without being annoying or lame and the whole motivation of Bond from finding Felix mutilated and his wife raped and murdered is very powerful and really draws you in.
Prefer whichever Bond you like, but Dalton was the best actor to ever play the role and felt fully rounded, believable, dangerous yet also human and likable. He also looked exactly right for the character. Craig I actually find very overrated - stiff, awkward, perpetually angry and miserable and he just does not look like James Bond (something I've tried to, but just can't see past).
Goldfinger vs From russian with love
Both very good films. I think from Russia edges it ever so slightly
Both films are flawed, but also very different, and compliment each other nicely. But the one consistent element is Dalton, who doesn't put a foot wrong, and helps make them more than just half-decent 80s action movies. I think overall I prefer License To Kill; it has more edge and as you say it gets better as it goes along.
Its like with Bruce Lee films , they really benefit from Bruce and the Bonds really benefit from Tim imo
@@postersandstuff and when you really gotta think about Bruce Lee, he has passed away Timothy Dalton is still alive and he can still play James Bond. It’s just that he’s too old to do it now and that is for the fans and for the franchise
Your commentary is hysterical. I peed myself laughing at "he ran out of shits to give before the opening credits." And, by the way, Timothy is my FAVORITE Bond. He is much more like the character in the original books. Besides the fact that he is GORGEOUS! I just now finished watching Daylights, and now I'm going on to LIcense.
Good to hear. Hope you enjoy License!
The Living Daylights is way superior. Its not even a contest from my point of view. Licence to Kill is too americanized and just doesn't have that Bond feeling.
TRUE. Completely agree.
I think Licence is better. the movie gets better and better as it goes. I know it's a bit different but I think that's a good thing so we don't have 25 movies that are all the same.
@SSWestraX A few people have mentioned its similarity to Miami Vice. I never thought of it that way, but it makes sense, especially with Sanchez. Thanks for commenting!
To be honest, I think that’s the point of Licence to Kill. I think the point is, it’s not a fantastical adventure. Bond isn’t here to make quips and go to outer space. It’s Bond at his most ruthless and vindictive. He’s avenging the only true friend he has in the world who’s marriage was ruined just like his. It could be personal catharsis which has eluded Bond since he lost Tracy.
Both are top notch Bond films. I think they're equally good in different ways. Living Daylights has a better plot and License to Kill has better action scenes. I'm always going back and forth on which one I like more. Depends on what kind of mood I'm in.
Timothy Dalton will always be the best and most accurate portrayal of Bond from the novels. The Living Daylights is one of my favorite Bond films. Also John Barry’s last and best Bond score.
Two of the best ever bond films. Dalton is great in both so no way I am gonna criticize both.
TLD has a lot to love but Licence is just about perfect for me
This is actually a video I've been looking forward to! I have a very interesting history with these two particular bond films. Living Daylights is one of the earlier bond films I watched at around age 14 or 15, while License to Kill was the very last Bond film I watched when I finally did a marathon at around age 25 or 26 (well last in terms of older Bond films).
After I finally watching it I really felt I missed out on Lisence to Kill, and it's now one of the series highlights for me, primarily for the interactions between Bond and Sanchez. It's been a couple years since I last watched it, off to make the time in the next couple days to give it another viewing.
Thanks for another great video. I love this series and I'm down to see a top ten villains or ten henchmen video!
Hey, thanks for commenting. Let me know what you think of LTK on a more recent viewing. It isn't perfect, but I do feel it improves as it goes on. The Sanchez/Bond dynamic is also the highlight for me.
The Living Daylights > Licence To Kill
Timothy Dalton was an excellent James Bond. The best after Sean Connery. License to Kill despite it's flaws is one of the top five best Bond films in the series.
Thanks for your excellent review. I had more issues with the editing in 'Licence' than 'Daylights', although the trip from the airfield to the Afghan stronghold and back makes that film overlong. I wonder what Stuart Baird would have brought to the franchise at that point in time? Also 'Daylights' seems to be designed to feature an 'as yet to be cast' Bond. There's hand to hand combat and greater physicality, but there's also the gadget filled car. It seems like the makers were covering all bases. I think overall 'Licence' is the better film, but it doesn't mine its story as coherently as it could. There are several obvious plot issues that make the story seem untidy and lacking in realism. One is how Bond is just able to deposit and withdraw a huge sum of money without drawing unwanted attention to himself. Usually in a film that would be a way of deliberately announcing to the villain that you're in town and getting their undivided attention.
One point: it might be surprising if Sanchez' 'facilities' weren't used by a lot of crooks to hide/launder ill-gotten money, so perhaps all concerned were just used to it.
@@pmgodfrey5203 I hadn't thought of that. Good point. Maybe Bond also made some pay-offs to make other people look the other way.
@@CaminoAir That's also possible.
Separate elements of The Living Daylights really work but as a whole product I think Licence To Kill blows it out of the water.
Timothy Dalton was the best Bond, hands down...
License to kill felt like a big screen Miami Vice, only, without the style. Living Daylights has one of John Barry's best scores along with View to a kill & You only live twice. TLD was also the last Bond where the main henchman actually cared about his own demise, like odd job in Goldfinger when bond got hold of his hat & unlike Tomorrow Never Dies when the henchman seem rather non plused that a rocket was being ignited on him. I liked Dalton as bond. 👍
I love both films, and rank Dalton third out of the six actors to play Bond. He was fantastic.
The very first James bond movie I watched was the living daylights, at an old friends house on vhs tape , I was staying overnight at his place
I’ve been waiting for this video.
I like Koskov and think he’s a lot of fun but Sanchez might be my favourite villain in the whole series
I would have to say that license to kill is better.
but i really like both of them
License to Kill did what Diamonds are Forever failed to do. Avenging someone you cared for. License to Kill is the better film with better dialogue. The Living Daylights is a good film but it cannot compare with License to Kill. License to Kill is considered a classic ever since Craig has been doing Bond.
License to Kill is sick! Better villain, better girls, badass gadgets.
I like both but prefer The Living Daylights
As much as I like Craig, it bugs me that people act like he introduced the gritty take on the Bond character when Dalton pioneered it. It's such a shame that we got screwed out of a 1991 and 1993 movie.
Nah. The Living Daylights was WAY better than Licence to Kill. I'm completely bored of all the anti-drug plotlines that were so prevalent in the 80's and 90's, and I also hated everything about the slimy televangelist middle man. The Living Daylights used the Cold War as its backdrop, which is much more interesting to me.
TLD and LTK are easily in my Top 5 Bond films. Timothy Dalton is my fave Bond. I mean, how can you not love this line: 'It';; take him about 10 seconds to reach us. Plenty of time for a sniper to make strawberry JAM of him!'
I don't like licence to kill. It's just not... good. But the living daylights is amazing. One of the top bond films
I LOVED the planes in License. Plus Dalton is fantastic and extremely underrated in the role. Wish he had come back for a third film...
Licence to kill is definitely my favourite bond film, gritty and core. It's such a shame Property of a land never mad it passed the drawing board. Timothy Daulton may be the least popular bond, but he's my favourite. He really pulled it off well and I think he was the best. My favourite Pierce Brosnan film is the world is not enough. There is a film based on licence to kill in 1975 called the second best spy in the world, also a lot of the films were made into audio books, there are also other bond films out there, 1 casino royale in 1967, 2 casino royale 1954, 3 Moonraker by warwick studios in 1959 and never say never again.
*TLD is one of the best movies of the 007 franchise.*
*And LTK is the most underrated 007 movie.*
*Timothy Dalton was Great but the people and audience was not ready.*
I never saw any of the Dalton era movies. I started with Brosnan and only went back to watch Connery and Roger Moore eras because people talked about them the most.
I may check out License to Kill though, since it sounds interesting from your description.
Dalton is easily my favourite Bond. Love both films, but LTK is one of my favourite films of any genre of all time. The end chase with the tankers (despite questionable rules of physics) is beyond greatness.
I love these 2 movies so much
Eeh... Leiter isn't killed...
I feel that License to Kill was the better of these two in just about every category. And I never had any issues with Dalton as Bond.
None of them excells at action?!
Bond hanging on top of a car, the escape on Morocco and the plane scene on The Living Daylights are great.
Appart from the cartoony bar fight License to Kill has some of the best stunts/action scenes on the series.
I'm watching the fan favorites/most acclaimed 007 films before "No Time to Die", and I'll dare to say the 2 Dalton films are very superior to the whole Roger Moore/Austin Powers era hands down.
Please do a top ten villains
"Forgetting technical quality..."
*shows Q tossing away his radio*
best edit of all time
Balloons. Are. Menacing.
If there was a much smoother transition into The Dalton Phase or a long wait I feel like his movie would’ve been much better received like Craig is now for doing the most identical performance to Dalton. But both of Dalton’s Bond films are acceptable entries but suffered from bad marketing and the jarring transition from the camp Moore films.
I agree.