Die Another Day (2002)

After over a year in captivity in North Korea, James Bond (Pierce Brosnan in his fourth and final outing as 007) is released in a prisoner exchange with a Korean terrorist (Rick Yune). Bond is determined to track down the terrorist and eliminate him as well as find out who betrayed his mission in Korea. The 20th entry in the 007 franchise is a very mixed bag. It simply tries to be too much to the point of outlandishness. More explosions, bigger sets, gadgets everywhere. So much so that when the franchise was rebooted with 2006's CASINO ROYALE it went in the opposite direction with more realism, more detail on character and less emphasis on special effects and gadgets and lame puns. The film is heavily laden with obvious CGI work which gives the film an often rather cheesy look despite its massive budget. Halle Berry is wasted as the Bond girl and she has the film's worst lines. Directed by Lee Tamahori (ONCE WERE WARRIORS. The techno pop title song is sung by Madonna who also has a cameo as a lesbian fencing instructor. With Judi Dench, Michael Madsen, Toby Stephens, John Cleese and Rosamund Pike.