Tomorrow Never Dies (USA 1997)


	Tomorrow Never Dies		Return to Pan-Asia Review Archive
	Michelle Yeoh and Remington Steele in Tomorrow Never Dies.
	Year:	1997
	Director:	Roger Spottiswoode
	Producer:	Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli
	Action:	Philip Kwok Chun-Fung
	Cast:	Pierce Brosnan, Jonathan Pryce, Michelle Yeoh, Teri Hatcher, Judi Dench, Joe Don Baker, Desmond Lllewlyn, Samantha Bond, Philip Kwok Chun-Fung (cameo)
	The Skinny:	Another action-packed entry in the James Bond phenomenon, this time, featuring Michelle Yeoh in her American debut. Also starring the guy from Dante's Peak.
	Review by Calvin McMillin:	Pierce Brosnan returns as secret agent 007 in Tomorrow Never Dies, the eighteenth film in the highly successful James Bond film series. The plot is of typical Bondian proportions: in a novel bid to jumpstart World War III, delusional media mogul Elliot Carver (Jonathan Pryce) orchestrates an international tête-à-tête between merry, old England and Communist China. With neither side willing to back down, it's up to MI6 Commander James Bond to save the world. But this time around, Bond is teamed up with no mere bimbo: his Chinese counterpart, the accomplished secret agent Wai Lin (Michelle Yeoh) is every bit his match. Michelle Yeoh first caught the attention of the Bond producers via her death-defying role in Police Story III: Supercop, a fantastic action extravaganza in which she was paired alongside international superstar Jackie Chan. But unlike the early American duds that failed to make Chan a star in the West, Tomorrow Never Dies provides a fitting crossover role for HK goddess Michelle Yeoh in what would become her big American breakthrough. Whereas Chan's early flicks tanked because they tried to make him into something he was not (Chan as Dirty Harry in The Protector, anyone?), this film portrays Yeoh in the best possible light. To the producers' credit, Yeoh's character is not the demure Asian lotus blossom kowtowing to Bond's every whim and desire, but a fiery, independent, and altogether kick-ass spy supreme, every bit as interesting as the film's famous protagonist. As far as action flicks go, Tomorrow Never Dies is definitely worth checking out - not only as a nice introduction for Western audiences to the wonder that is Michelle Yeoh, but as a slick piece of popcorn fun. Who doesn't like martinis, girls, and guns? (Calvin McMillin, 2002)
	Availability:	DVD (USA) Region 1 NTSC MGM/UA Home Video 16x9 Anamorphic Widescreen English Language Dolby Digital 5.1 Audio Commentaries, "Secrets of 007" Featurette Sheryl Crow Music Video, David Arnold Interview, Trailers
		image courtesy of MGM/UA Home Video
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